Book Review~Faithful Finance

About the Book: 

From the back cover: Learn how to handle your money so you can have more of it. Financial advisor Emily G. Stroud is a mom, businesswoman, and entrepreneur who has two decades of experience helping people make smart choices about money. In Faithful Finance, she shares ten secrets she's learned along the way and will help you to: 

*Develop a personal savings plan based on your unique goals

*Make a monthly budget that actually works for you

*Reduce your overall debt burden

*Plan for your children's college years

*Insure your life without fear

*Leave a lasting and generous legacy

*And most important, discover the source of true wealth

With engaging stories and practical examples, Emily empowers you to make choices that will give you and your loved ones financial freedom for years to come. 

What I Thought:

Written from a Christian perspective with plenty of scripture throughout, Faithful Finance:10 Secrets to Move from Fearful Insecurity to Confident Control, is a great all-around lesson on finances. The author has many years of experience as a financial planner and touches on everything from insurance to retirement. Although I didn't feel the author went into any subject very deeply, she gave the basics on a lot of topics. I feel like I have quite a bit of knowledge on finances, but it is always good to get a refresher course on things! As a Christian, tying finances in to my life biblically is important to me as well, and the author does delve into this. Ms. Stroud included great information and I would recommend Faithful Finance. I look forward to checking out the resources at the back of the book, with several websites to help with different areas of your financial life. 

*I received a copy of this book from Handlebar Publishing in exchange for my honest review. 

Book Review~Woman of Courage by Wanda Brunstetter

Amanda Pearson, a young Quaker woman in the early 1800s, was left by her fiancée the night before her wedding.  She decides to travel over 3,000 miles west with her father to minister to the Nez Perce' Indians at the Spalding Mission.  They hire a guide for the long, rough journey and set out.  They encounter many dangerous situations along the way. 

Amanda soon finds herself at a trapper's cabin, recovering from a near-death accident.  The trapper, Jim, is not happy with her being there, but his Indian wife Mary tends to Amanda and they quickly become friends.  Amanda teaches Mary about Jesus.  Amanda worries that she may never make it to the mission.  She gets to know  Jim and Mary's friend Buck McFadden, and asks him to accompany her to the mission. Amanda and Buck both are starting to have feelings for each other, but they are from two different worlds.

What I thought: I've read Wanda Brunstetter's Amish fiction before and enjoyed it, so I was interested to try something different.  Woman of Courage is a well-written story that engaged me immediately and I found hard to put down.  It is amazing to think about a woman traveling across the country by horseback in the early 1800s.  The only thing I can think of negative about this book is that for part of the story Amanda uses 'thee' and 'thou', which I found annoying, but it is correct for Quaker people during that time period.  Woman of Courage has it all-drama, romance, history, and more!

*Disclosure: I received this book free from Handlebar Publishing in exchange for an honest review. 

Book Review~Goodbye to Yesterday

Goodbye to Yesterday is the first installment of The Discovery Saga by Wanda Brunstetter.  Ms. Brunstetter is very well known for her wonderful writing of Amish Fiction and non-fiction, and I have enjoyed many of her books. The Discovery Saga is a series of six short books, released one at a time monthly.  This is the story of Luke and Meredith Stoltzfus, newly married and struggling.  Luke has lost his job, and life is stressful.  He doesn't even know that Meredith suspects they are pregnant with their first child. An opportunity to learn a new trade in another state arises, and he goes ahead with it, even though Meredith has bad feelings about it. They soon learn that Meredith's fears of something going wrong were true.

Goodbye to Yesterday was a great book.  I loved that it was short,just 121 pages, so I could easily read it in a couple evenings.  For such a short book, it was still intense, and I felt that I really got to know the main characters of Luke and Meredith.  I'm anxiously awaiting the next installment of The Discovery Saga!

Disclosure: I received this book free from Handlebar Publishing in exchange for my honest review.