My top ten reads in 2017 + 3 bonus books if romance is your thing
2017 has been the year I’ve gotten into ebook reading in a big way. This was mainly because I wanted to read Christian fiction to understand the market I was entering. Among the dross (sadly there was quite a bit of it), I’ve found authors to follow. I’ll include books in this list that weren’t ‘my thing’ but were well written and might be yours.
1. The Long Highway Home – Elizabeth Musser.
One of my few 5 star reviews for the year. In Christian fiction I reserve 5 stars for books I regard as both worth re-reading and books with potential to have eternal impact. A book grappling with the refugee crisis.
2. Mike Hollow –
Pacifists don’t own revolvers. But Paul Ramsey does. And now he’s dead.
Fifty people squashed into a stinking public air-raid shelter all night – babies screaming, old ladies crying, no beds, not even a light to see by. When the all-clear siren sounds, people disperse to home and work. But one man remains. He’s Paul Ramsey, a young teacher, and he’s dead – stabbed through the heart.
DI Jago quickly establishes that the victim was a pacifist, desperate to avoid military service. Why, then, was he carrying a loaded revolver in his pocket? Did he have enemies? Was he intent on harming someone – or even himself?
3. Nest of Sparrows – Deborah Raney.
Deborah writes gritty contemporary Christian fiction and I intend to read more of hers.
Her Children Are All He Has Left.
As Wade focuses his efforts on caring for the children, he discovers that their tender, young lives give tremendous meaning to his own broken one. Then Starr’s abusive ex-husband shows up to claim the offspring who barely remember him–and Wade prepares for the fight of his life.
Will anyone believe his claim to love the children more than their father loves them?
A powerful novel of loss and discovery, courage and grace, A Nest of Sparrows masterfully illustrates one man’s struggle to know when to fight, when to let go, and when to simply wait.
4. A Season to Dance – Patricia Beal
5. All the Way Home – Ann Tatlock
7. When Santa learned the gospel – Simon Camilleri
8. Remembering Dresden -Dan Walsh
10. Understanding show, don’t tell – Janice Hardy
One thing I discovered this year is that I only rarely like romance. But it is such a huge genre that it was hard to avoid. I enjoyed all three of these authors. One Australian, one New Zealander and one from the US.
