In the early 20th Century, a pair of North Carolina mountain children sow the seed of a love that becomes their only solace in the hard yet beautiful world they know. They grow it from steep ground of poverty, ignorance, and violence. A landscape so brutal it can kill hope long before claiming life.

Bloodshed years later finally sends Frank Locke on the run, deep into wilderness, abandoning his extraordinary love, Mary Lizbeth. When a whitewater river washes this desperate soul into the hands of Sophia, he discovers a luminous woman steeped in mystery, trapped in a tragically brilliant life. Far ahead of her time. Secreted from the world. As she awakens Frank’s mind, they rise to meet a love that binds three people for a lifetime.

This love triangle forms a beauty no one sees coming. From the wilds of Appalachia, crossing nearly a century, it runs deep into a lush American fortune, and lives in letters of adoration and hope of the least expected.

In a rhapsody of Southern voices, mingling hilarity and sorrow, She-Rain speaks of lives soaring beyond heartbreak, fundamentalism, and self-destruction. Through the most graceful longing, two women in love with one man ultimately prove the power of human hearts to answer high callings. They show us all how to heal — and thrive — to the very end.

Author Bio
Michael Cogdill is blessed as one of the most honored television storytellers in America. His cache of awards includes 24 Emmys and the National Edward R. Murrow for a broad range of achievement, from live reporting to long-form storytelling. His television credits as a journalist include CNN, CNBC, MSNBC, and The Today Show, and Michael’s interview history crosses a wide horizon: The Reverend Billy Graham, Dr. Mehmet Oz of Oprah fame, Dr. Henry Kissinger, Abby Hoffman, Senator Hillary Clinton, Senator John McCain, Howard K. Smith, James Brown, Keith Lockhart of the Boston Pops and many other newsmakers. His coverage credits include Presidents and Vice Presidents of the United States.

Michael spent ten years writing She-Rain, letting it evolve into a world of fiction drawn from his upbringing in Western North Carolina but reaching far beyond. His other writing credits are Cracker the Crab and the Sideways Afternoon — a children’s motivational book, and a self-help volume, Raise the Haze. Michael makes his home in South Carolina with his wife, Jill (a publishing entrepreneur), and their second-generation golden retriever, Maggie. He’s currently working on his second novel.

For more information, please visit http://she-rain.blogspot.com.

800-927-0517 Ext. 104 or ajennings@tbbmedia.com

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Don’t just improve your marriage. Transform it!

Marriage Coach Daniel Tocchini shows how to

break barriers and remove ruts in marriage 

Dallas/Ft. Worth, TX—Us, a new book by Daniel Tocchini, isn’t about improving marriages. It’s about transforming them. Drawing on personal experience and stories from couples he has coached, Tocchini offers practical guidance to move couples beyond communication tricks and gimmicks to help them truly understand “Us” for the first time—talking honestly, listening generously, tackling tricky issues, breaking out of ruts, and abandoning self-centered “consumer thinking.” The good news, according to Tocchini, is that personalities don’t need to change in order for marriage to work. What needs to change is how we view ourselves, our spouses, and our marriages. 

Innovative, insightful and thoroughly biblical, Tocchini’s approach has helped thousands in his popular seminars. Whether a marriage is in deep trouble or just coasting along, it’s time for Christian couples to read the User’s Guide that God intended. 

In this intensely practical, innovative guide, marriage coach Daniel Tocchini invites you to open your marriage to transformation by learning to:

• Expect less—and infinitely more—of your life partner and yourself
• Actually talk to each other instead of making assumptions (and accusations)
• Break free of those recurring, unresolved arguments
• Manage the impact of difficult (but necessary) conversations on your relationship
• Defuse conflict without sweeping it under a rug
• Open the broken places in your marriage (the ones you hesitate even to talk about) to God’s kind of reconciliation

Tocchini explains, “This is a transformational approach to breaking through the barriers and getting out of the ruts in our marriage by paying attention to our conversation—what we are thinking, our motivation for thinking it, and the impact it has on our spouse.” 

Author Bio

Daniel L. Tocchini has worked with more than 5,000 couples through personal marriage coaching and the unique and life-changing marriage seminars offered through his organization, the Association for Christian Character Development. An ordained minister, chaplain, author, and highly successful speaker/coach, he lives with his family in California. 

Suggested Interview Questions

1. You claim that regardless of our efforts to change each other, we will never be able to successfully improve our marriages.  What hope is there, then, for transforming a marriage?

2. Statistics show that Christian marriages fail as much (or more) than non-Christian marriages. Why are marriages in so much trouble, and how can we help prevent bad marriages before they even begin?

3. What is the key to making your spouse your advocate instead of your adversary?

4. Why is it important for spouses to come up with a vision statement for their marriage?

5. How has “consumer thinking” caused so many marriages to self-destruct? 

Us by Daniel L. Tocchini

David C Cook/January 2010

ISBN: 978-1-4347-6473-7/196 pages/softcover/$14.99

www.davidccook.com

800-927-0517 Ext. 104 or ajennings@tbbmedia.com

Visit our website at www.tbbmedia.com 

Sometimes the person farthest away from you

is the one who’s closest to your heart. 

Author Chris Coppernoll explores Broadway, Hollywood, love and online dating in his latest novel, Screen Play 

Dallas/Ft. Worth, TX—Screen Play (David C. Cook 2010), the third novel from author Chris Coppernoll is an inspiring story of friendship and faith set amidst the complexities of Hollywood and cleverly combined with an uplifting love story reminiscent of Sleepless in Seattle.  

At thirty, Harper fears her chances for a thriving acting career and finding true love are both fading fast. After a devastating year of unemployment and isolation in Chicago, Harper is offered an unexpected role in a Broadway play—as understudy to New York’s biggest diva––and everything in Harper’s world changes.  

Harper also hopes to find love in NYC, but when it doesn’t happen, she reluctantly signs up to an online matchmaking site. Frustration mounts when the only match Harper is even remotely interested in lives in a remote territory on the opposite coast, thousands of miles away. A faith conversation during her year in Chicago shapes how Harper sees everything. She wants to see God at work in her life, but His ways are mysterious, and she’s faced with challenges in the secular world of Broadway. Harper feels like an actress who doesn’t act and a woman in love with someone she’s never even seen, but God’s about to change all that.   

Linked through the contemporary, text message world of internet dating, Harper learns it’s possible to care for someone outside her own universe, even when that someone can’t be touched, and ultimately how to love. She reaches out through the impersonal world of cyberspace and becomes more aware than ever of God reaching out to her. Sometimes the person farthest away from you, she discovers, is the one who’s closest to your heart.   

“Screen Play is a story about believing that God can do great things, even when we’re at our weakest,” say Coppernoll. “I hope readers will be swept up in Harper’s story instantly and that their excitement won’t let up until the very last page.” 

Romantic Times Online Magazine has given Screen Play 4 ½ stars and selected the novel as a “Top Pick”. 

Author Bio

Chris Coppernoll is the author of six books including Screen Play, A Beautiful Fall and Providence. A national speaker to singles, Chris is also the founder of Soul2Soul, a syndicated radio program airing on 800 outlets in 20 countries. Chris holds a Masters degree from Rockbridge Seminary and is deeply in love with his wife, novelist Christa Parrish.   

Suggested Interview Questions

1. As a bestselling Author, you know what it’s like to catch your big break. How are your experiences with success and brokenness reflected in this book?
2. In our technologically savvy world, internet dating has gone from taboo to mainstream. Why was it important to include this popular dating method in Screenplay? Do you think internet dating is a good idea?
3. We’ve seen so many celebrities mishandle success. What keeps a person grounded when they catch their big break?
4. When Harper finally gets her big break, she is faced with some very difficult choices. Why is it that huge successes are often accompanied by sacrificial decisions?
5. As a man involved in ministry to singles, how does the story of Harper Gray inspire singles to a greater devotion to Christ?

Screen Play by Chris Coppernoll

David C Cook/January 1, 2010

ISBN: 978-1-4347-6482-9/342 pages/softcover/$14.99

www.davidccook.com

My Thoughts

I totally loved this book.  I felt like I was a part of the cast.   I was there through the ups and downs.

800-927-0517 Ext. 104 or ajennings@tbbmedia.com

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Can you rebuild trust after a marriage is shattered by infidelity?

Get the truth about adultery recovery from a couple who’s been there. 

Dallas/Ft. Worth, TX—Statistics show that one in every four marriages is impacted by infidelity.  If you haven’t experienced the searing pain of unfaithfulness, odds are you know someone who has. The affects of infidelity are devastating and have destroyed many families, but adultery doesn’t have to be an automatic death sentence for your marriage. You can trust again. You can restore intimacy. You can have a relationship that you will both cherish for a lifetime. 

Fifteen years ago, Gary and Mona Shriver experienced the devastation caused by adultery. After saving their relationship, the Shrivers wrote Unfaithful (David C Cook, November 2009), the true story of how God restored their unraveling marriage. Raw and transparently honest, the Shrivers’ story alone is an inspiration, offering hope and practical strategies for healing. In this revised version, the authors add new information on emotional affairs and share real life stories of betrayal and complete healing.   

As co-founders of Hope and Healing Ministries, a Christian peer support ministry for couples in adultery recovery, the Shrivers have seen countless broken marriages restored and transformed into intimate relationships built on love, respect, and trust. Unfaithful is a lifeline for couples with no hope in sight. It is also a useful resource for ministers, counselors, as well as friends and family of couples struggling to recover after a spouse has strayed.  

With updated content and new discussion questions, Unfaithful is an ideal resource for small group studies or support groups. This revised version also offers a recovery timeline from a couples’ perspective, a helpful addition for couples wondering what the healing process will look like.

“We can now say with absolute sincerity that we have fully healed from the adultery,” the Shrivers share. “Our marriage is strong and mutually satisfying. We have love and trust. And we can only encourage you with the fact that it is worth the journey.” 

Author Bio:

After going through therapy to save their marriage from a devastating affair, Gary and Mona Shriver searched in vain for another couple who could offer them tangible hope that they could heal. Responding to this need in their community, the Shrivers cofounded Hope & Healing Ministries, Inc., an adultery recovery peer support ministry. They are members of the Association of Marriage and Family Ministries (AMFM) and participants of the AMFM ministry team for Reconciling Troubled Marriages. The Shrivers are also members of the Stanislaus County Healthy Marriage Coalition in California. They have shared their story of hope many times on The 700 Club, Focus on the Family, and RBC’s Words to Live By. Gary, who owns an audio and video production facility, and Mona, a former nurse active in women’s ministries, have been married thirty-three years and have three grown sons. They reside in Turlock, California. 

Suggested Interview Questions:

1.  The two of you have experienced firsthand the pain of infidelity and the eventual restoration of trust in your marriage. Will you share your story with us?

2.  How do couples rebuild trust after infidelity? What factors hinder this process? Why is it so important to rebuild trust in the first place?

3.  What is an emotional affair? How can you know when it’s happened? Why is ending an emotional affair sometimes more complicated than ending a physical affair?

4.  What is real forgiveness? How can a couple devastated by adultery practice this real forgiveness?

5.  The temptation for many couples recovering from adultery is to return as quickly as possible to the way things were—whether good or bad. Why is it so important not to do this? 

Unfaithful by Gary and Mona Shriver

David C Cook   November 1, 2009

ISBN: 978-1-4347-6533-8/285 pages/softcover/$14.99

www.davidccook.com 

800-927-0517 Ext. 104 or ajennings@tbbmedia.com

Visit our website at www.tbbmedia.com 
 

What Will Your Ministry Look Like 25 Years After You’re Gone?

Learn to value transformation over turn-around by extending your view 

Dallas/Ft. Worth, TX—Many of today’s ministries suffer from a near-sighted vision.  Too often leaders choose easy solutions over principled, long-term strategies.  The results can be devastating, as ignored issues become full-blown crises, and small problems become big challenges.  

The Longview (David C Cook, October 2009) is a fresh approach to leadership that will transform how readers make decisions and address problems.  Author Dr. Roger Parrott offers proven, practical principles drawn from scripture and his renowned career in educational leadership.  Parrott issues readers a timely challenge: Defy the trends of short-sighted goal-making for quick returns by learning to lead for long-term significance. 

America is paying the price of short-term decision making (i.e., sub-prime mortgages, Bernie Madoff, health care costs, General Motors bankruptcy, et al).  As more ministries adopt the prevailing short-term pattern, they move closer to the same outcome—the quick payoff—at the cost of a future crisis.  The Longview calls for a seismic shift in the leadership attitudes and actions of readers.  Parrott is a seasoned, practical leader who is not afraid to challenge younger leaders to lead for lasting impact, not fleeting bragging rights.  The book offers practical insights from both scripture and his own experience.  Both young and seasoned leaders will uncover a solid foundation for success for any ministry, organization, or business. 

“Our theology and our ministry passion draw us to talk about longview outcomes as our heart’s desire, but we have been duped into fostering a generation of leaders, board members, employees, and constituencies who value short-term gain over longview significance,” says Parrott. In The Longview, he further explains that because this shortview corporate culture has so permeated the church today, those in ministry have loosened their grip on the biblical model for leadership. The time is right for rising leaders to break free from the short-term leadership patterns of the past and set their sites on the horizon to ensure a life of leadership that will be honoring to God and bring us back to principles that will allow the church to make a transformational difference in the world.   

“The best leaders understand they should always be held accountable for the long-term before they are rewarded for their immediate results,” says Parrott.  “The Longview will give leaders nitty-gritty practical applications to break free from the pattern of aiming for nearsighted remedies instead of long-term solutions.” 

Endorsed by Ken Blanchard and a host of significant ministry leaders, The Longview will produce a seismic shift in the leadership attitudes of readers—it will revolutionize the way you lead.

Author Bio: At age thirty-four Roger Parrott became one of America’s youngest college presidents.  Parrott is currently the president of Belhaven University, an innovative liberal arts institution recognized as the leading evangelical college in the Arts.  He earned a PhD in higher education administration from the University of Maryland.  Parrott serves in leadership of the Lausanne Committee for World Evangelization, Mission America Coalition, and Council for Christian Colleges and Universities.  He has advised a wide variety of ministries in the US and internationally. 

Suggested Interview Questions:

1. How did the Church become caught up on a shortview approach and what are the consequences?
2. Why do you believe rising leaders are the generation who will value a longview approach to leadership?
3. How does the longview approach get lived out in the every-day demands of ministry leadership?
4. If you could summarize the longview approach in one rule, what would it be?
5. Give us some examples of ministry or business decisions made with the long term in mind.
6. What does the Bible say about taking the longview vs. the shortview?

The Longview by Roger Parrott, Ph.D.

David C Cook/October 2009/ISBN: 978-1-4347-6749-3/hardcover/255 pages/$16.99

www.davidccook.com – www.thelongview.info

800-927-0517 Ext. 104 or ajennings@tbbmedia.com

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Not Sure What to Say to a Grieving Person?

Give the gift of comfort with the 20^th anniversary edition of a classic

Dallas/Ft. Worth, TX—There is nothing more devastating than the death of a loved one. And whether it comes suddenly and unexpectedly, or at the end of a long and painful illness, every death is experienced anew, a shocking loss that takes your breath away and leaves you disoriented and lost.  

Grief is mysterious, misunderstood, and experienced differently from individual to individual. Yet there are certain universal elements to the grieving process. In When You Lose Someone You Love: Comfort for Those Who Grieve (David C Cook, October 2009), author Richard Exley offers a compassionate handbook on grief. The book is written as a series of letters between a pastor and a parishioner he seeks to comfort. As he offers understanding to a man suffering a profound loss, the pastor shows that grief is a healthy process that God can use to mend broken hearts.  

When we lose someone we love, we are often overwhelmed by the strong emotions and confusion that come like tidal waves in our lives. Sometimes we hardly recognize ourselves or the world in which we live. Exley’s personal and empathetic epistle communicates the mercy and grace of the heavenly Father to grieving people.  

“I have chosen the ‘letter style’ because it affords me the opportunity to speak to you directly and in a very personal manner,” Exley says. “This is not a book about grief; rather, it is comfort extended to those who are even now walking through the valley of the shadow of death.” 

This book is the perfect gift for anyone suffering a profound loss. It has been endorsed by many a reader who, having drawn great comfort from its pages, has passed it along to a grief-stricken friend or loved one. Pastors and ministries that regularly interact with grieving people should keep multiple copies of When You Lose Someone You Love on hand. 

Revised and updated, this twentieth anniversary edition features prayers and scripture meditation, as well as a new introduction and epilogue. Simple, profound, personal, compassionate … When You Lose Someone You Love tenderly walks the grief-stricken through sorrow to peace and, eventually, renewed joy. 

Author Bio:

Richard Exley is the author of twenty-nine books and has written both fiction and nonfiction. His articles have appeared in numerous magazines, including Leadership Journal, Charisma, Ministries Today, The Pentecostal Evangel, Advance, Enrichment, and New Man. He has served as senior pastor of churches in Colorado and Oklahoma, hosted several popular television and radio programs, including the nationally syndicated Straight from the Heart, and appeared on the 700 Club, Richard Roberts Live, Action Sixty, the former PTL, The New Jim Bakker Show, and The Harvest Show. Richard and his wife, Brenda Starr, spend their time in a secluded cabin overlooking picturesque Beaver Lake in Northwest Arkansas. 

Suggested Interview Questions:

1. When You Lose Someone You Love guides readers through some common stages of grief with a series of letters between a pastor and a parishioner he seeks to comfort. Why did you choose this approach to the topic at hand?
2. Who is David? Is he based on a real person?
3. What questions do people ask when they lose someone they love? What answers can you offer?
4. When You Lose Someone You Love is a cherished book that readers often pass along when they see others dealing with loss. What changes can we expect in this 20^th anniversary revised edition?
5. Grief is a natural and necessary process, but it does have its pitfalls. Tell us about them.

When You Lose Someone You Love by Richard Exley

David C Cook/October 2009

ISBN: 978-1-4347-6480-5/128 pages/softcover/$9.99

www.davidccook.com

800-927-0517 Ext. 104 or ajennings@tbbmedia.com

Visit our website at www.tbbmedia.com 

Facebook: Where the Future Church Hangs Out

How the Hyperconnected Are Redefining Community 

Dallas/Ft. Worth, TX—A revolution is taking place, one profile at a time.  Online social networks like Facebook and MySpace are connecting people like never before.  With hundreds of millions of users, they’re creating almost limitless potential to redefine our personal worlds.  It’s a movement that’s changing how we form relationships, perceive others, and shape our identity.  

In his new book, The Church of Facebook (David C Cook, October 2009) author Jesse Rice takes a deeper look at the movement which, at its core, reflects our need for community.  “Our longing for intimacy, connection, and a place to belong has never been a secret, but social networking offers us a new perspective on the way we engage our community,” Rice states.  This new perspective raises new questions: How do these networks impact our relationships?  In what ways are they shaping the way we think of ourselves?  And how might this phenomenon subtly reflect a God who longs to connect with each one of us? 

The Church of Facebook explores these ideas and much more, offering a revealing look at the wildly popular world of online social networking.  “The new landscape of social networking tells us two basic things:  One, we have a deep desire to be known.  And, two, we are faced with a technology that both enables and hinders the intimacy we’re looking for,” Rice says.  From personal profiles to status updates, author Jesse Rice takes a thoroughly entertaining and insightful look into what Facebook reveals about us, and what it may mean for the future of “community.”  

Social networking is no fad; it has become a fact of life, especially for teens and twenty-somethings.  The Church of Facebook is essential reading for parents and pastors who want to understand this trend and its impact on their children and congregations.  Rice’s discussions will engage social networkers of all ages and stages who are wrestling with the very real issues of identity, meaning, purpose, and friendship within the context of virtual communities.  

In the end, The Church of Facebook moves readers toward understanding God’s work in the body of Christ, the church.  Driven by Rice’s thought-provoking questions, observations, humor, and heartfelt storytelling, The Church of Facebook challenges readers to consider new perspectives regarding their social networking habits and how those habits may point to deeper heart issues and, ultimately, our hunger for Jesus.  

Author Bio

Jesse Rice is a writer and musician and served for eight years as the Contemporary Worship Arts Director at Menlo Park Presbyterian Church, a large and thriving congregation in the heart of Silicon Valley.  Jesse has a Master’s in Counseling Psychology and is an authority on the search for meaning in a fast-paced, hyper-connected world.  He is a sought-after worship leader and speaker with more than fifteen years of experience working with college students and young adults.  Jesse and his wife, Katie, live in Portland, Oregon. 

Suggested Interview Questions

1.  What does the popularity of Facebook reveal about our deepest desires?  Why do you think this is more than a fad for the teens and twenty-somethings?

2.  The knee-jerk reaction of parents and pastors to the pervasiveness of sites like Facebook and Myspace is often a fearful one.  What should these folks know about the Facebook world?  Is it really a dangerous place?

3.  What do our profiles, pictures, and the personal information we share on Facebook say about the way we want others to perceive us?  How does this affect the nature of our Facebook relationships?

4.  How are social networking sites affecting the way we define and practice “community”?  What does this mean for our faith communities?

5.  The Church of Facebook takes a light-hearted tone, but you draw some serious conclusions about social networking’s impact on our lives.  What are some of the most important factors for our listeners to consider as they evaluate their own social networking habits? 

The Church of Facebook by Jesse Rice

David C Cook/October 2009

ISBN: 978-1-4347-6534-5/192 pages/softcover/$12.99

www.davidccook.com   www.churchoffacebook.com

800-927-0517 Ext. 104 or ajennings@tbbmedia.com

Visit our website at www.tbbmedia.com 

The Last Word

In her second installment of the Sophie Trace Trilogy, Kathy Herman rolls Henderson, Kingsbury, and Blackstock into one with both suspense and spirituality  

Dallas/Ft. Worth, TX—Heart-pounding suspense meets heart-challenging truth as best-selling author Kathy Herman returns to Sophie Trace in her new page-turner, The Last Word (David C Cook, October 2009).  Based on Romans 1:16, “For I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes: first for the Jew, then for the gentile,” Herman’s second installment in the Sophie Trace series triumphantly demonstrates God’s miraculous ability to heal the broken. 

This theme comes to life in Vanessa Jessup, a twenty-year-old college student who becomes pregnant while having a secret love affair with her psychology professor and has to make a choice: either end the pregnancy or end the relationship.  The biblical truths she learned growing up prompt her to choose life and to go home to the refuge of her parents’ counsel and a right relationship with God.   

When Vanessa arrives home, her mother, Sophie Trace Police Chief Brill Jessup, is stunned to see that she’s pregnant—and by one of her professors.  While Brill is glad her middle daughter rejected the father’s abortion ultimatum, she’s also hurt that Vanessa ignored her upbringing and angry that the professor has disappeared without as much as a nickel of child support. 

But that’s not all Brill’s got on her plate.  One of her detectives has been killed, and the attacker has threatened to come for her next.  When a second cop is wounded, public criticism mounts as Brill attempts to stay alive long enough to catch the perp.  And she’s trying to find the deadbeat dad as Vanessa struggles to make decisions about her future.   

In spite of Brill’s best efforts to stay safe, the murderer finally kidnaps and threatens to kill her and then commit suicide.  As her life hangs in the balance, Brill becomes concerned that her attacker is about to die and is not saved and refuses to be silenced in her witness of God’s love for him.  In a show of grace under pressure and fierce determination, Brill will manage to have the last word, even if it kills her. 

Author Bio

Best-selling suspense novelist Kathy Herman has written fifteen novels, including CBA bestsellers The Real Enemy, Tested by Fire and All Things Hidden, since retiring from her family’s Christian bookstore business.  Kathy and her husband, Paul, have three grown children and five grandchildren and live in Tyler, Texas. 

Suggested Interview Questions

1. For those who didn’t catch the first installment in the series, can you give us a little background about Sophie Trace and its main characters?
2. Tell us about the Scripture verse upon which The Last Word is based.  Why is this theme so important to you?
3. Full of suspense, The Last Word follows Police Chief Brill Jessup as she tries to catch a killer on the loose.  Can you describe Brill for us?
4. What dilemmas does Brill’s daughter, Vanessa, encounter during the book?
5. Why do you consider your novels to be Bible studies without the homework?
6. What we can expect from the last book in the trilogy?

The Last Word Book 2: Sophie Trace Trilogy by Kathy Herman

David C Cook/October 2009

ISBN: 978-1-4347-6785-1/390 pages/softcover/$14.99

www.davidccook.com   www.kathyherman.com

800-927-0517 Ext. 104 or ajennings@tbbmedia.com

Visit our website at www.tbbmedia.com 

The Blue Umbrella

In his first novel, best-selling author Mike Mason offers the Unfortunate Events crowd

a beautiful literary fantasy with deep spiritual resonance  

Dallas/Ft. Worth, TX—What would happen if all the world’s weather was controlled by one man with a blue umbrella?  If your mother had been killed by lightning, would you trust this man?  This is the decision facing 10-year-old Zac Sparks in Mike Mason’s new page-turning fantasy novel, The Blue Umbrella (David C Cook, October 2009).  Probing the depths of good and evil, the first in Mason’s series for 9 to 12 year olds is a superbly written children’s story with deep spiritual resonance.   

When Zac Sparks’s mother dies, he’s sent to live in Five Corners with his cruel old Aunties.  It isn’t long before Zac knows something strange is going on.  Five Corners is populated with weird characters—a midget butler, a girl who doesn’t speak, a blind balloon seller, and a mysterious singer who is heard but not seen.  Then there’s the Aunties’ father, Dada.  Zac’s first encounter with Dada is so terrifying he faints dead away. 

The one bright spot is Sky Porter, the proprietor of the general store across the street, a friendly soul who encourages Zac—when the Aunties aren’t looking—and shows him a kindness that is sadly lacking from his dismal life.  But Sky isn’t what he seems either, and when Zac learns Sky’s amazing secret he realizes, to his dismay, that this wonderful man may have a very dark side as well. 

Discovering that Dada is an evil magician who is intent on stealing the ultimate treasure, Zac knows many lives are at stake, including his own.  With time running out, he must turn to the one person who might be able to help: Sky Porter.  Can Zac trust him? 

In the vein of Lewis and Tolkien, Mason has crafted a fantasy that will certainly appeal to fans of Harry Potter, The Golden Compass, Lemony Snicket, and The Chronicles of Narnia.  “In this era of climate change, when weather is arguably the most important issue facing the world, a story that dramatizes the human role and responsibility in creating weather is highly relevant and timely,” says Mason.  “The Blue Umbrella is permeated with a sense of awe at the power and beauty of weather, and it asks the question: Who is behind all this?”  

Author Bio

Mike Mason is the best-selling, award-winning author of The Mystery of Marriage, The Gospel According to Job, Practicing the Presence of People, and many others.  He has an M.A. in English and has studied theology at Regent College.  He lives in Langley, BC, Canada, with his wife, Karen, a family physician.  They have one daughter, Heather, who is pursuing a career in dance and the arts.  The Blue Umbrella is Mike’s first novel. 

Suggested Interview Questions

1. The Blue Umbrella is your first novel.  Why did you decide to try your hand at fantasy fiction?
2. Tell us about Zac Sparks and what awaits him when he is sent to live in Five Corners with his mean Aunties?
3. Without giving away any secrets, can you tell us the significance of the blue umbrella?
4. What fascinates you about the weather and why did you make it the book’s theme?
5. What plans do you have for the next books in the series?

The Blue Umbrella by Mike Mason

David C Cook/October 2009

ISBN: 978-1-4347-6526-0/425 pages/softcover/$14.99

www.davidccook.com – www.mikemasonbooks.com

800-927-0517 Ext. 104 or ajennings@tbbmedia.com

Visit our website at www.tbbmedia.com 

From Suicide to Sacrifice

In James David Jordan’s new thriller, Double Cross,

an ex-Secret Service agent deals with the truth about her past 

Dallas/Ft. Worth, TX— “The day my mother came back into my life began with a low December fog and a suicide.” So begins James David Jordan’s latest novel, Double Cross, which follows the exploits of Taylor Pasbury, a young ex-Secret Service agent with a checkered past and a penchant for finding trouble. Even as a high school kid, Taylor knew she was not like most other girls.  Raised by her father, a retired Special Forces officer, she learned to camp, shoot, and most of all, take care of herself.  Now a young adult, Pasbury opens her own security agency and finds herself in the middle of a mysterious case full of danger and intrigue. 

When the top assistant of her former client turns up dead, all signs point to embezzlement and suicide.  But in the world of Taylor Pasbury, nothing is as it seems.  A trail of clues leads to Taylor’s mother, who abandoned her when she was nine.  What begins as a suicide investigation becomes a personal quest to find the truth about her past.   

Double Cross is an action-packed story that provides thrilling twists and turns as well as a thought-provoking look at the personal and spiritual struggles of characters who are as complex as they are flawed. Ultimately, it’s a story of self-examination that describes Taylor’s journey toward the conclusion that some sacrifices can never be earned. 

James David Jordan is a successful business attorney in Dallas, Texas, and was named by the Dallas Business Journal as one of the most influential leaders in that legal community.  Jordan followed his aspirations of becoming an author, taking five years to create his first book, Something That Lasts, which was well-received by both critics and the public.  His second book, Forsaken, won the Reader’s Choice award from RelzReviews and The Suspense Zone. 

Jordan writes with a commitment to tell page-turning stories that challenge readers to explore and grow in their faith. With gripping authenticity, Jordan examines subjects of family and faith and skillfully draws readers into the crisis faced by Taylor Pasbury.  Along the way, readers will find ample opportunity to re-assess their own life situations and wrestle with their own thoughts about forgiveness and grace. 

Double Cross

by James David Jordan

B&H Publishing Group   October 2009

ISBN: 978-08054-4754-5/softcover/302 pages/$14.99

www.jamesdavidjordan.com 

Since 1987, The B & B Media Group, Inc. has used its broadcasting, marketing and advertising experience to provide the specialized and strategic publicity necessary to achieve the public relations goals of each client.  The Barnabas Agency, a division of The B & B Media Group, Inc., is a proven provider of exceptional public relations and personal management services for authors, speakers, ministries and organizations