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Whatchareadin (174 KP) rated Woman of God in Books

May 10, 2018

Woman of God

James Patterson | 2017 | Fiction & Poetry

6.0

(1 Ratings)

Book Rating

Brigid Fitzgerald is a doctor in South Sudan. She sees devastation every day, but her faith in God keeps her going. When tragedy falls on Brigid over and over again, her faith will be tested. Will she be able to find the purpose God has for her, or will she lose faith before that?

The story starts 20 years in the future on an Easter Sunday. I was reading the book around the same time, so it all seemed to fit in well together. Brigid is getting reading for Sunday morning mass at church. While in Rome, her good friend and reporter Zach is sitting outside of the Vatican waiting to hear who the new pope will be. Then the whole story rewinds and takes us back to where Brigid got her start as a young doctor working in the Sudan. Time after time, something tragic happens to Brigid and every time it does, she "hears" God. Throughout the course of the story she looses a boyfriend, 2 husbands and a child. To anyone that would tear them away from God, but it only draws Brigid closer. So close in fact that she becomes and ordained priest herself. Getting to meet the current pope and have his blessing upon her and her family.

With her unwavering faith, will it be enough to make her the first female pope?

This book was quite different from other things I have read by Patterson. It was an add to my quest to read James Patterson stand alones this year.

Kudos

David McK (3425 KP) rated Invictus in Books

Jan 30, 2019

Invictus

Simon Scarrow | 2016 | Fiction & Poetry

8.0

(1 Ratings)

Book Rating

It's hard to believe this is now book number 15 in [a:Simon Scarrow|60636|Simon Scarrow|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1240832197p2/60636.jpg]'s now-so-called 'Eagles of the Empire' series: a series that, originally, was set during the Roman invasion of Brittania (in [b:Under the Eagle|578428|Under the Eagle (Eagle, #1)|Simon Scarrow|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1315349321s/578428.jpg|565359]) and that had Carto as being junior to Macro - a situatuion that, by this point in their ongoing adventures, has reversed itself with Cato now the more senior of the two.

As this starts, Macro and Cato are on their way back to Rome (after the events of [b:Britannia|25028364|Britannia (Eagle, #14)|Simon Scarrow|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1439580823s/25028364.jpg|44703249]: a novel in which, at the end, Cato received some unfortunate news. Distressibng news that, as the plot develops, becomes more and more only the tip of the iceberg (and that leads me to wonder if the author was letting his real-life experiences influence him when he was writing this? Or am I just reading too much into it? (as he has not been shy about sharing certain aspects on social media)), with this plot leading Cato and Macro to join a compny of the Praetorian Guard on an extended campaign, in which they have to defend a slave mine from a local uprising in Spain - an uprising that, to be fair, has a pretty valid reason behind it.

Once again, a thoroughly enjoyable read.

Kudos

Deborah (162 KP) rated The Ides of April (Flavia Albia Mystery, #1) in Books

Dec 21, 2018

What's the next best thing to a new Falco novel? I suspect it must be this latest offering from Lindsey Davis who, with her tongue firmly in cheek, introduces us to the next generation in the form of Falco's adopted daughter, Flavia Albia, who is all grown up (and indeed widowed) and, guess what? Working as a private informer out of an apartment in Fountain Court!

If you liked the Falco novels, you'll like this, but if you haven't read any then you will be able to pick this up without any confusion about the back story. We've moved on from the somewhat benign Vespasian through the short lived Titus and on to mad, bad and dangerous to know Domitian. Falco and Helena are cautiously keeping their heads down!

Davis always has a knack from bringing ancient Rome to life so you get a bit of an history lesson without even realising it.

I was quite pleased with myself for picking out the culprit about halfway in. To start with, they seem to be random, senseless killings, but all is explained by the time you turn the final page - which seems to come all too soon. There were still some surprises in there that I didn't see coming too!

My favourite bit? A throwaway remark from Albia that her dad has seem some things so secret that he probably won't be able to publish his memoirs for a couple of thousand years.... Great stuff; bring on the next instalment!