Carole Towriss' "In the Shadow of Sinai"

Title: In the Shadow of Sinai
Publisher: DeWard Publishing Company

Cover blurb: Bezalel is a Hebrew slave to Ramses II. An artisan of the highest order, Ramses has kept him in the palace even when all other Israelites have been banned. Bezalel blames El Shaddai for isolating him from his people.

When Moses and Aaron appear one summer, and El Shaddai shakes Egypt to its core, Bezalel must reexamine his anger. Over the course of the next year, Bezalel’s life becomes intertwined with those of an Egyptian child-slave, the captain of the guard, and especially a beautiful young concubine.

When spring arrives, all of them escape with the young nation of Israel. But that’s only the beginning…

1) How did this story come to you?
I was reading the Bible - I think I was in church - in Exodus 31. "Then the Lord said to Moses, 'See, I have chosen Bezalel son of Uri, the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah, and I have filled him with the Spirit of God, with wisdom, with understanding, with knowledge and with all kinds of skills— to make artistic designs for work in gold, silver and bronze, to cut and set stones, to work in wood, and to engage in all kinds of crafts.' And I thought, 'Now how would a slave know how to do all that?' God could have just poof, given him all that knowledge, but that's no fun, and generally not how God works. So I made up a story.

2) Tell us about the journey to getting this book published.
A crit partner, the first fiction author for DeWard, told me they were looking for Biblical fiction. I queried them, and an hour later they asked for the full manuscript. Three months later I was offered a contract.

3) Tell me three things about yourself that would surprise your readers.
I love to watch weird movies. I’m short. I love Mexican food and chocolate.

4) What are you working on now and what's next for you?
I am almost done with the sequel By the Waters of Kadesh. This is part of a trilogy.

5) Parting comments?
Thanks for the opportunity to be on your blog. And to everyone reading this, I hope you give my book a try!

6) Where can fans find you on the internet?
www.caroletowriss.com  You can read the first two chapters for free there. Also at facebook.com/NovelistCaroleTowriss.


DeWard Publishing Company http://deward.com/?p=1965

Amazon http://www.amazon.com/Shadow-Sinai-Carole-Towriss/dp/1936341484/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1351610453&sr=1-1
Barnes & Noble http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/in-the-shadow-of-sinai-carole-towriss/1113600797
Signed By the Author http://www.signedbytheauthor.com/In-the-Shadow-of-Sinai_p_726.html

Staci Stallings' "To Protect & Serve"

Love as a Verb
My newest series is called The Courage Series (To Protect & Serve, White Knight, and For Real, which comes out the end of this week). The Courage Series revolves around a firefighter who becomes kind of the center-pin for a whole group of friends. In the course of the three novels, the characters again and again face situations that call for great courage.

However, many times when we think of courage, we tend to think of dangerous situations--fires, wrecks, etc. There are certainly enough of those portrayed in the three books, but I think by the third one (For Real) we begin to see a different kind of courage called for--the courage to love with your whole heart, to be "all in" with someone and to love no matter what.

That's a tough one because most of us have learned the art of loving when it's convenient, when it's easy. We have friends who seem great until we need something, and then they disappear. "Fair-weather" friends. But this series really points out that real friends aren't just there when things are good. Real friends are there particularly when things get rough.

When life keeps throwing curveballs meant to take you out, that's when you need friends the most--and when you, as a friend, need to be there for others the most. This is really hard, and it requires having a verb kind of love, not just a noun kind of love.

See, the noun kind of love is all hearts and flowers and champagne. It's going out to party together, celebrating, having fun. But the verb kind of love is the part that happens after the end of the movie. The part you have to step into when he loses his job or she loses her health.

It's the part that society doesn't like to focus on--the being there for someone when the chips are down and they have been stomped on by this thing called life. It's showing up when someone close to them has died and being willing to be there, with them, through the trials and the tears, through the heartache and the healing. That's the verb kind of love, and it takes immense courage.

It's the kind of courage that The Courage Series is ultimately about. Having the courage to live love, to be love, to give love--when it's easy, and when doing so might just tear your heart right out.

I think the challenge of this series is first to show the reader what the verb kind of love is, what it looks like with this set of friends, and then it challenges you to live the verb kind of love. The question is: Do you have the courage that will take?

Copyright Staci Stallings, 2012

Staci Stallings, the author of this article, is a Contemporary Christian author and the founder of Grace &a Faith Author Connection. Check out Staci's brand new release...

Houston firefighter, Jeff Taylor is a fireman's fireman. No situation is too dangerous to keep him sidelined if lives are on the line. However, when control freak Lisa Matheson falls for him, she quickly realizes she can't control Jeff or the death wish he seems to have...

To Protect & Serve
The Courage Series, Book 1
To save other's lives, they will risk their own

Buy it on Amazon Kindle: http://www.amazon.com/Protect-Serve-Courage-Series-ebook/dp/B008391QB2/ref=sr_1_22?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1337091378&sr=1-22

Buy it on Barnes & Noble Nook:
http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/to-protect-serve-staci-stallings/1110805844?ean=2940014423410

"To Protect and Serve will hold you prisoner to its pages until the final one is turned. Prepare to cry, laugh, wish, love and maybe even cry again as you become enveloped in the hopes and feelings of Lisa and Jeff."
-Cindy Reiger