SUSPENSE SISTERS: APRIL GIVEAWAY

Suspense Sisters: April Giveaway

WHAT'S HOT in Inspirational Suspense and Mystery!

Marji Laine here. 

A unique collection of characters in this new book intrigues me! 

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Two Stolen Men: A Park Pals Mystery: Book 4 (Park Pals Mysteries) 

by Dwain Cassady (Author)  Three mysterious crimes. Three threatening attacks. Can an unhoused ex-cop uncover the truth without losing his life?

Fitz Fitzgerald is engaged to be married in less than two weeks. The theft of an offering for a new shelter being collected by his fiancé’s church and the arrest of two of his unhoused friends on suspicious charges throw a dark cloud over his excitement. Fitz is determined to find out what really happened.

Believing someone is targeting the unhoused community, Fitz pushes on through anonymous threats, striving to uncover who is behind these crimes. When the threats are followed by action, the stakes become life or death.

With two friends facing unwarranted jail time and escalating attacks against his fiancé, Fitz has to balance his drive to uncover the truth with the need to protect the love of his life. Can he succeed and still make it to his wedding on time?

Two Stolen Men, Book 4 in the Park Pals Mystery series, is a character driven Christian suspense mystery. If you like books with intriguing characters, enough suspense to keep you turning pages, and relevance to current concerns, you’ll love this compelling conundrum in Cassady’s novel.

Pick up a copy and start savoring the suspense today

Get your copy HERE!

I hope you LOVE it! 

THIS WEEK ON THE SUSPENSE SISTERS

We have exciting things planned for you this week on the Suspense Sisters!

On Tuesday, Suspense Sister Mary Ellis will tell us what’s hot in inspirational suspense and mystery.

Wednesday, we’ll hear from author Roxanne Rustand. She’ll be talking about finding inspiration. She’s also giving away a copy of her book, DANGEROUS DECEMBER.

From USA Today best-selling author Roxanne Rustand comes another heartwarming, character-driven novel in her popular Northern Pines Suspense series, featuring Clean Romantic Suspense. A touch of suspense, page-turning twists...and with their forced proximity, maybe there's even an unexpected second chance at love.

A PAINFUL SECRET. A SECOND CHANCE. AND A HOPE FOR A CHRISTMAS MIRACLE, IF THEY CAN JUST HEAL FROM THEIR PAST...

After a painful divorce, small-town bookstore owner, Beth Carrigan, has rebuilt a quiet life in northern Wisconsin. The last thing she expects is her ex-husband Devlin—a decorated Marine—coming back with life-changing news: his late mother’s will binds them together for six months with a shocking ultimatum.

To secure the future they each desperately need—Beth’s beloved bookstore and Dev’s full inheritance—they must work side by side for six months to manage his mother’s stately home, now a temporary refuge for down-on-their-luck residents. It's a daunting mission that requires compassion, cooperation...and working together despite their painful divorce.

But someone doesn’t want them to succeed.

ORDER IT HERE 

Friday, author Kristin Hogrefe Parnell interviews Jerusha Agen about her book, SPECIAL TARGET. Leave a comment, along with your email address, for a chance to win a copy of this exciting book!

She’s trying to save the boy’s life. What if he’s supposed to save hers?

For tough-as-nails Chicago social worker Ashley Sorenson, it’s nothing new to risk her life for hurting children. Seeing innocent kids suffer every day may have made her a little cynical, but she’ll stop at nothing to rescue children from miserable circumstances.

But Ashley faces a special challenge when Matthew Borden, a sixteen-year-old with Down syndrome, is orphaned. Finding a suitable foster home for the boy becomes the least of her problems when someone starts threatening her and Matthew.
The sudden appearance of a mysterious FBI agent confirms Ashley’s growing suspicions that Matthew is no ordinary teen. The boy she thought no one wanted is wanted by many…dead or alive.

Dodging danger at every turn, Ashley races to find the secrets that could save Matthew’s life. When the truth unearths her own dark past and threatens more than their lives, the God Matthew trusts may be her only hope for rescue.

A gripping and gritty standalone Christian suspense thriller from the bestselling author of the Guardians Unleashed Series.

ORDER IT HERE 

Don’t forget to enter our monthly contest!

THE SUSPENSE SISTERS

WE LOVE BOOKS

HE IS RISEN

 

ON GOOD FRIDAY

 

History of Easter Traditions

Hi all! Melissa here. With Easter approaching, I’m reading about Easter traditions. I love understanding from where traditions came and the meaning behind them.

Lent

The 325 Council of Nicaea set the official date for both Christmas and Easter celebrations, and they also emphasized a 40-day fast leading up to Easter. Why 40? To emulate Christ’s 40 days of fasting during his temptation by Satan in the wilderness. Additionally, Moses fasted for 40 days after receiving the Ten Commandments, Elijah once fasted for 40 days and 40 nights, Noah was on the boat for 40 days, and the people of Israel wandered the wilderness for 40 years.

Sunrise Service

“…as time passed and Christianity became well established, some churches began to gather early in Easter to retrace the steps of the two Marys [who first discovered Jesus’ empty tomb].” Stories Behind the Traditions and Songs of Easter by Ace Collins

Easter Egg

“Many ancient civilizations, including the Persians, Phoenicians, Hindus, and Egyptians, believed the world began as an egg.” (Ace Collins)

While the egg was a symbol for many pagan cultures, it is also perfect for Christianity. The egg has always symbolized the beginning of life, and Christ’s sacrifice for us was the true beginning of life for humanity, a chance to be redeemed, a chance to be saved. Before a person is saved, it’s as if they are living inside a shell—darkness, muted, in many ways blind. Then we accept Christ as our savior, and we are born again.

The name “Easter”

The name “Easter” may have come from the name Oestre. Oestre was a pagan goddess with a rabbit head. A rabbit because rabbits symbolize fertility. “Many European tribes thought that she actually drove winter away and reawakened the world for its annual rebirth in spring.” (Ace Collins)

Just as Christ drives away evil and reawakens us to be reborn in Christ.

Easter Bunny

“A legend told of Oestre giving an audience to a bird. The bird looked into Oestre’s face and was overcome with the beauty it saw in the goddess’s rabbit-like features. Sensing the special nature of the rabbit, the bird asked the goddess to transform him into a rabbit… When the bird became a rabbit, it forgot everything about its former life except how to lay eggs. This bird’s eggs were then gathered by Oestre and presented to the world’s best children.” (Ace Collins)

Another association with a new life…being reborn. If we allow him, God can transform us into something entirely new.

 

But why is so much pagan tradition included in Christian holidays? I believe part of the reason is that God “set eternity in the human heart” (Ecclesiastes 3:11). We recognize deep truth. Ancient people didn’t know enough to understand the details. They didn’t know anything about Jesus, and many had no knowledge of the one true God. But they recognized deeper truths. And so certain traditions have always resonated across humanity.

Happy Easter, everyone.