Authorpreneur Dashboard – J B Hawker
A Body in the Belfry
Mystery, Thriller & Suspense
When a new woman pastor, a widowed pastor's wife, herself, comes to seaside Bannoch, Oregon, the First Ladies Club becomes her support through the challenges of being accepted by her congregation while encountering a puzzling array of mysterious deaths and vandalism. Is she the target or is something even more sinister going on?
Rough-Cut Book Bubbles from A Body in the Belfry
Preconceptions die hard
When two people,one a man and the other a woman, are sitting in the pastor's office, the visitor immediately assumes the man is the pastor. This is simply human nature based on preconceptions, not necessarily a case of gender bias. Merrill handles it smoothly, without making an issue of the mistake. If only we all could overlook unintended slights so graciously.
Life goes on
When tragedy strikes, we can often find comfort in the most mundane aspects of daily life.
Fear Changes Everything
When we are frightened, our perceptions can become skewed and we focus on what we either want to see...or what we fear most to behold.
Vain Pursuits (Bunny Elder Series)
Mystery, Thriller & Suspense
Bunny and her sister, Dolly Parton look-alike, Linda, try to recover from widowhood by taking a dream trip to romantic Italy. Ah, Italy, home of gondolas, art, pasta, pizza and Italian mobsters. What souvenirs will the sisters bring home...if they return, at all?
Book Bubbles from Vain Pursuits (Bunny Elder Series)
Doubts grow in darkness
Live your faith boldly in the light and doubts will disappear like the nighttime mirages they are.
Wifely wisdom is universal
Italian wife, Oriana, knows how to keep her husband happy. She protects Luigi's pride without sacrificing anything. Many a liberated woman could learn from her.
Shopping for a Nativity Set in Naples
Some will travel far and wide to find the perfect Christmas ornament. Taffy and Bunny travel all the way to Italy for an authentic Neapolitan nativity set, but the perfect ornament of Christmas is the love of Christ in one's heart.
Foreign travel reminds us of home
No matter where I travel in this world, I find myself looking for familiarity, in the midst of the new and different. Once found, I feel more content, somehow.
Air travel is an adventure
This chance encounter on the airplane is not the last Bunny sees of the unfortunate gentleman landing in her lap. When strangers come into our lives, we never know how important they may become.
Savor every moment God gives
As one nears death it is common to try to cherish our relationships and experiences, but we seldom know the moment of death in advance. Can we ever learn to treat each experience in life as a precious gift?
The First Ladies Club (The First Ladies Club Mysteries, #1)
Mystery, Thriller & Suspense
Share mystery, mirth and a dose of mayhem with the eclectic group of ministers' wives who make up the First Ladies Club in the fictional seaside community of Bannoch, Oregon. Join them as they set aside differences in denomination, culture and heritage while having a rollicking good time supporting each other through all life's trials and blessings.
Book Bubbles from The First Ladies Club (The First Ladies Club Mysteries, #1)
A Rose by any other name...
It is tempting to repackage our ministry or ourselves to become more attractive to others, but until we consider the well-being of the other people, rather than only our own success, we are not offering our best.
Self-delusion
Even the most depraved among us, perhaps them most of all, can rationalize and excuse the most heinous acts. This is something to remember whenever we're tempted to do something we know is wrong, telling ourselves we have a really good reason for stepping outside our own moral code.
The simple pleasures
Although grand romantic gestures can thrill, it is the little things, the gentle touches and mundane loving acts which enrich a marriage and make it last.
Vision or Blind Instinct?
When it is difficult to see our way clearly, sometimes we must rely on instinct. Those instincts become finely honed by constant prayer and listening to the Holy Spirit.
A pastor's marriage is sometimes fair game
As a pastor's spouse it important to be sensitive to all the things the pastor can't share with you. A pastor is privy to confidential information about the congregation and must be careful. Try to be understanding of the many unshared and unsharable burdens he or she carries.
The Blessing
When a family shares a meal around the table at the end of the day, it is an opportunity to connect with each other and the Creator. The time of sharing, healing, and nourishment is as much a blessing as the spoken prayer of thanks.
Real Wealth is Priceless
Maizey has little money, but her simple life is filled with beauty, love and friendship. While she was happy to get some extra cash, she never felt poor, because her needs were met and she had known love.
Hollow (Bunny Elder Mysteries)
Mystery, Thriller & Suspense
Can a newly widowed pastor's wife find new purpose when her life is turned upside down by the reappearance of her first love and the even more disturbing grisly Halloween antics of a serial killer?
Book Bubbles from Hollow (Bunny Elder Mysteries)
The mind of a cat
We love our pets. We dote on them, worry about them and credit them with human emotions and motivations, but in the end, when all is said and done...a cat is still a cat.
Graveyards
Some people see cemeteries as uncomfortable reminders of loss, death and oblivion. Those with the hope of eternal life often find peace and reassurance in these selfsame "spooky" locations. As in so much of life, it's all a matter of perspective.
One person's fun decoration can be another's fear
As cooler weather ushers in the fall harvest of autumn holiday displays and you begin to plan your Halloween decor, consider your guests' feelings before going for the most macabre and gory selections available. Not everyone is crazy about zombies, corpses and dismembered body parts. And you never know what such scenes might inspire...as Bunny discovers in "Hollow".
What do you want to see at Halloween?
In autumn, we have many beautiful vistas to enjoy, all framed in colorful autumn leaves. Some folks like to concentrate on the darker side of things, especially in their Halloween celebrations. If you want a delightfully creepy, deliciously grisly Halloween read, pick up "Hollow." You can enjoy the shivers, knowing there will always be a happy ending with Bunny and her friends.
Day of the dead
Death comes to us all and we acknowledge it in our own way. While Halloween in the US can be a grisly festival of spooks and gore, emphasizing death in all its most fearful aspects, the Mexican Day of the Dead festival honors the lives of the dearly departed.
We all have filters
When the unexpected comes into our lives, each one sees it from a different perspective. The homeowner was upset about the violation of his property, while the newspaper man just wanted to get the bigger story.
Trust can be a tricky thing
Bunny fears the strange man, not because of anything he's done, but because of warnings, nightmares and memories. When she finally turns her thoughts to the Lord, she is able to find peace. There is a lesson in that.
