Showing posts with label Cynthia Ruchti. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Cynthia Ruchti. Show all posts

Tuesday, 3 August 2010

They Almost Always Come Home by Cynthia Ruchti

Synopsis:~

When Libby's husband Greg fails to return from a two-week canoe trip to the Canadian wilderness, the authorities soon write off his disappearance as an unhappy husband's escape from an empty marriage and unrewarding career. Their marriage might have survived if their daughter Lacey hadn't died and if Greg hadn't been responsible.

Libby enlists the aid of her wilderness savvy father-in-law and her faith-walking best friend to help her search for clues to her husband's disappearance.if for no other reason than to free her to move on. What the trio discovers in the search upends Libby's presumptions about her husband and rearranges her faith.


My take:~


Cynthia Ruchti's debut novel is a deeply moving and honest exploration of one woman's physical search for her husband while confronting a painful examination of her own heart. With compelling and beautiful prose and one of the best first person voices I have read, Cynthia shares deep insights into Libby's pain over the loss of her young daughter, the estrangement from her husband and the rendering of her faith. As Libby, her devoted friend and gruff father-in-law tackle the magnificent Canadian wilderness in the hope of finding Greg, Libby learns that small discoveries can bring hope and healing to the darkest, most hidden pain of the soul. While the ending felt a little rushed, it did not detract from the poignancy of emotions and penetrating characterisation that make They Almost Always Come Home an essential read.

With thanks to the author for my review copy

Relz Reviewz Extras

Visit Cynthia's website and blog

Buy Cynthia's book at Amazon or CBD

Thursday, 6 May 2010

Character Spotlight ~ Cynthia Ruchti's Libby Holden


Libby Holden



Cynthia Ruchti's debut novel has garnered some great endorsements as well as 5 star reviews on popular book sites. Even the notoriously tough Publishers Weekly states, "Ruchti shows imagination and promise."

Enjoy this look behind Libby Holden, a women who has lost so much....


Brief physical description

Libby Holden can't take a shower without mourning her spider veins and cellulite. She wishes her hair, teeth, and eyes had more sparkle and can't imagine what her husband sees--or saw--in her. She smiles, but can't sustain it, the weight of her grief tugging at the corners of her mouth and curving her shoulders forward.

Libby doesn't know it, but she actually looks a lot like the actress Diane Lane.

Strengths and weaknesses

Libby's a world-class worrier and worst-case-scenario imaginer. And for good reason. Worst cases happen in her life. She lost her grip on hope when her daughter died, and she forgot how to lean on her husband or the Lord. She thought toughening up would help her survive. But she's stronger than she realizes, more courageous than she dreamed. If she can turn her determination in the right direction, she might find where hope is hiding.

Quirk (if any)

With the exception of anything related to her daughter, Libby finds humor in humorless situations, a trait all but her best friend Jenika see as disconcerting.

Your inspiration for the character

Libby represents women whose hearts have been devastated and don't know what to do with their pain. It doesn't take much time to discover women like that around us. Libby is their spokesperson.

Background to the story

When Libby's husband Greg fails to return from a solo canoe trip to the Canadian wilderness, the authorities write off his disappearance as an unhappy husband's escape from an oatmeal marriage and unrewarding career. Libby would leave him…if she could find him.

With the help of her father-in-law and her best friend, Libby plunges into the wilderness to search for her husband and the remnants of
her flagging faith. He was supposed to be fishing. He was supposed to come home. And she was supposed to care.

Cynthia ~ thanks for sharing about Libby. I'm so looking forward to reading her story :)


On Monday, the spotlight shines on Linda Lee Chaikin's Eden Derrington & Rafe Easton from her long awaited new series starting with the just released first novel, The Spoils of Eden.

Relz Reviewz Extras

Visit Cynthia's website and blog
View the trailer
Buy Cynthia's book at Amazon or CBD

Wednesday, 26 August 2009

Coming in April/May from Abingdon Press

I wonder if this post will create such an enthusiastic response from you as did yesterday's post of Abingdon's February/March releases!! You can check that post and the comments, here :)

With the releases below, Abingdon is pushing some boundaries and thinking outside the square - I really like that :) There is something about each one of these stories that appeal ~ how about you?

Need something else to look forward too in the New Year in addition to these interesting titles? I will be shining the spotlight on many of the characters from these books - it is going to be fun!

Enjoy:~

Wildflowers of Terezin by Robert Elmer

Wildflowers of Terezin is a sweeping historical novel set against a backdrop of danger. A Danish Lutheran pastor’s complacent faith is stretched to the breaking point during World War II when he meets a young Jewish nurse Hanne Abrahamsen and becomes deeply involved in Resistance efforts to save Denmark’s Jews from the Nazi prison camp at Terezin, Czechoslovakia—also known as Theresienstadt.

Challenged by his evangelical brother and swayed by his own attraction to Hanne, Pastor Steffen abandons his formerly quiet, uninvolved life and hesitantly volunteers to help smuggle Denmark’s Jews out of the country before a Nazi roundup. Steffen finds that helping his Jewish neighbors is the most decent, spiritual thing he has ever done. As he actually does God’s work, rather than just talking about it, Steffen’s faith deepens and he takes greater risks in his sermons.

When things go terribly wrong and Hanne is sent to Terezin, Steffen finds his heart fully engaged. He undertakes protests and rescues that are more and more dangerous, never imagining where it will lead him, or the ultimate cost of his decision to get directly involved.


Releasing April, 2010



Code Blue by Richard Mabry, MD


In the first book of the Prescription for Trouble series, “Code Blue” means more to Dr. Cathy Sewell than the cardiac emergency she has to face. It describes her mental state as she finds that coming back to her hometown hasn’t brought her the peace she so desperately needs. Instead, it’s clear that someone there wants her gone…or dead.

Cathy returns to her hometown seeking healing after a broken relationship, but discovers that among her friends and acquaintances is someone who wants her out of town…or dead. Lawyer Will Kennedy, her high school sweetheart, offers help, but does it carry a price tag? Is hospital chief of staff Dr. Marcus Bell really on her side in her fight to get hospital privileges? Is Will’s father, Pastor Matthew Kennedy, interested in advising her or just trying to get her back to the church she left years ago?

When one of Cathy’s prescriptions almost kills the town banker, it sets the stage for a malpractice suit that could end her time in town, if not her career. It’s soon clear that this return home was a prescription for trouble.


Releasing April, 2010



Highland Blessings by Jennifer Hudson Taylor


Highland Blessings is the story of a highland warrior who kidnaps the daughter of his greatest enemy and clan chief to honor a promise he made to his dying father. Bryce MacPhearson, a highland warrior, kidnaps Akira MacKenzie on her wedding day to honor a promise he made to his dying father. While Akira’s strength in the Lord becomes a witness to Bryce, she struggles to overcome her anger and resentment when he forces her to wed him, hoping to end a half-century-old feud between their clans. While Akira begins to forgive, and Bryce learns to trust, a series of murders leaves a trail of unanswered questions, confusion, and a legacy of hate that once again rises between their families.

Clearly, a traitor is in their midst. Now the one man Akira loves no longer trusts her, and her own life is in danger. Can Bryce look beyond his pain and seek the truth? Will Akira discover the threat against her before it’s too late? How will God turn a simple promise into bountiful Highland blessings?

Releasing May, 2010




They Almost Always Come Home by Cynthia Ruchti

When Libby’s husband Greg fails to return from a two-week canoe trip to the Canadian wilderness, the authorities soon write off his disappearance as an unhappy husband’s escape from an empty marriage and unrewarding career. Their marriage might have survived if their daughter Lacey hadn’t died…and if Greg hadn’t been responsible.

Libby enlists the aid of her wilderness savvy father-in-law and her faith-walking best friend to help her search for clues to her husband’s disappearance…if for no other reason than to free her to move on.

What the trio discovers in the search upends Libby’s presumptions about her husband and rearranges her faith.

Releasing May, 2010




The Narrow Path by Gail Sattler

Miranda Klassen’s Mennonite church is big and modern and she loves the mixture of faith, action, and activity. But in order to follow her dream she moves across the country to a small town to organize the 25th anniversary celebration of an Old Order Mennonite church.

Ted Wiebe has been assigned to assist and guide Miranda, feeling good that his church has chosen another Mennonite. But except for sharing the same basic faith and denomination, their churches have nothing else in common. His church embraces old-style roots, so Ted expects to find someone similar at the airport: a woman who never wears pants, no body piercing (including pierced ears), no makeup, and wearing a head covering as a sign of modesty, someone else who lives in accordance with old-fashioned values. But the woman who acknowledges him is wearing unreasonably high and outlandishly expensive shoes, denim jeans, and makeup, including bright red lipstick. As she gets off the plane she’s fiddling with an iPod and yapping on the cell phone. When Miranda enters Ted’s church and community she feels like she’s been transported back into Little House On The Prairie.

Ted is supposed to help Miranda fit in, and Miranda is supposed to help his church reach out into the community. When it’s time to start planning and organizing for the celebration, then the fun really begins.

Releasing May, 2010


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