Author: teishpriest

Yesterday I shared some of the books I’ve read this past year and loved. Today, I’ll give you a peek at some of the books on my personal wish list, along with suggestions for who they might be the perfect gift for!

Mom Heart Moments is a devotional book by Sally Clarkson. I’ve always found Sally’s books to be encouraging, and just a pleasure to read. If you have a mom on your list, this would be a lovely book to gift! Include some good tea or coffee and a pretty bookmark and you have everything you need for a gift basket.

Fight Write by Carla Hoch is a must-have for any writer whose stories include some sort of fight. Carla has a blog that’s a fantastic reference for writers, and she’s given plenty of workshops on how to effectively and realistically write a good fight. Published and aspiring novelists alike will appreciate this reference book.

Psalms of Sherlock by Gail Ann Swales is a novel based off the character of Sherlock Holmes. Since Holmes is one of my favorite fictional detectives, the concept of the book intrigues me, and I want to see how the author weaves faith into the story! Classic mystery fans who enjoy Christian fiction will be interested in this one.

Get to the Margins is a collection of devotionals written by authors for authors. I’m familiar with the work of some of the contributors, and this is one book that I’ve had in my wish list since it released! This is another great option for published or aspiring writers. In fact, maybe bundle this with Fight Write and your writer friends favorite caffeinated beverage for a writer gift basket!

52 Lists for Calm by Moorea Seal is a journal with weekly lists intended to promote calm. Given the fact that I’m constantly being told to reduce stress or chill out, this is definitely on my wish list. I’ve used a couple of Moorea’s previous 52 list journals, and quite enjoyed the practice of sitting down and making a weekly list for the given prompt. This is a great idea for the journaler, or list-maker on your list. (Maybe throw in some nice calming tea if they’re like me and could do with a little chilling out!)

Adorning the Dark: Thoughts on Community, Calling, and the Mystery of Making by Andrew Peterson is a book that’s come highly recommended by a number of writers and publishers who I respect. Being a Christian and an artist can seem like a tricky path to walk at times, and a book that’s part memoir and part handbook appeals to me. This is a wonderful gift idea for the Christian artist on your list!

I also promised a couple of non-book gift ideas for the bookish person on your list! First up would be one of the fantastic t-shirts by Lorehaven. I’m actually wearing the one pictured right now, but they have four options to choose from, and they’re all great. I quite liked the one with the Narnia quote too, but I couldn’t pass up a t-shirt with an astronaut!

If you have a short fiction fan on your list, you might consider a gift membership to Havok. Havok publishes a daily dose of flash fiction. While you can read the flash fiction for the day for free, a membership gives you access to the complete collection of flash fiction that’s been published on Havok’s website. You could pick up their anthology if you want something to wrap with the gift membership.

If you have a Christian speculative fiction author on your list, consider a Realm Makers membership! Membership gives them access to monthly content for writers, discounts on conference tickets, and much more! Bundle it with a t-shirt or mug from the Realm Makers store if you’d like something to wrap up with the membership.

“You can never get a cup of tea large enough or a book long enough to suit me.” — C.S. Lewis

Books and tea make wonderful gifts in my opinion! I’ve put together a list of my top suggestions for books to gift this year in case you’re looking for ideas. None of the authors have asked me to include their books, and while I may have received ARC copies of a few of the titles, they were so good, that I went out and purchased a copy of their book once it released. I’m not recommending anything that I haven’t spent my own money on!

Encircled is a fun anthology with speculative fiction retellings of fairy tales. The genres represented in the anthology represented a good variety, though my favorite story was one of the science fiction retellings! I enjoyed every story in the collection, and this would be a nice gift idea for the fairy tale fan on your list.

Fawkes by Nadine Brandes is a speculative spin on the story of Guy Fawkes and the Gunpowder Plot. I knew a bit of the history behind that, and I found Nadine’s magical spin on the story delightful! Fawkes was one of the rare YA books that I thoroughly enjoyed. I was pleased that the author included information in the back of the book about what was fact and what was fiction. History buffs and YA fiction fans will love reading this one.

Space Murder by NL Haverstock is a mix up of space opera and cozy mystery. I loved it! I love a good space opera, and the cozy mystery element was an interesting twist. It was a fun read that I couldn’t put down once I started reading. The mix of mystery, humor, and spaceships was just right. This one is a must read for fans of sci fi and mysteries.

Nameless by Tamara Leigh is one of the not-speculative books on the list, but Tamara’s books are always on my must-read list! A medieval tale set in the aftermath of the Norman conquest of the Saxons, Nameless is a romance with plenty of action and history. It’s also the third book in a series, so you could gift all three books! It’s an excellent choice for fans of historical romance with a fair amount of sword-fighting thrown in.

Oath of the Outcast by C.M. Banschbach is a Celtic fantasy novel that starts out with an interesting protagonist who has a backstory that’s hinted at. I wanted to keep reading not only to find out how the story turned out, but what his story was! I’ve an interest in the history of Scotland and Ireland, and so the Celtic flavor of this book appealed to me. This is a great idea for fans of historic fiction, fantasy, and books with no romantic subplot!

Heroes of the Realm is an anthology published by Realm Makers Media. This entry is a bit self-serving, since my own short story is one of those featured. However, I plunked down my own money for the Kickstarter campaign before I even submitted a story because the other authors featured are among my favorites! You’ll find all sorts of speculative genres from sci fi to fantasy included in this collection of stories about heroes. (There’s a prequel to the Space Drifters books included by Paul Regnier that you won’t want to miss if you’re a fan!) This is an ideal gift for a fan of many speculative genres who enjoys short stories.

Iggy & Oz and the Plastic Dinos of Doom by J.J. Johnson is technically a MG book, but all four of the kids and I adored it! How could I resist a story about plastic dinos in the attic coming to life to wreak havoc throughout the neighborhood? Normally, I don’t enjoy books written for this age group this much, but this was one book that I didn’t mind reading aloud to the kids. This is the perfect gift for a kid who’s reading chapter books, or for the grownup who’s still a kid at heart.

Chasing Eden by Cherilyn Clough is actually a memoir. Cherilyn may have grown up in an abusive home, but she writes about it with surprising compassion. Her memoir never comes across as an angry rant. Her story intrigued me, and I was alternately saddened by things that happened, and happy to see Cherilyn’s persistence pay off by the end of the book. Fans of memoirs would appreciate this book.

Shattered Honor by Anne Wheeler is the third book in the Shadows of War series. I’ve said more than once that space opera is my first love when it comes to sci fi genres, and this series is one of my favorite space operas! I have them all in e-book format, but I love the books so much, that print copies are on my wish list! The fourth book in the series is coming in January, so if you gift the first three books to the space opera fan on your list, they might have time to read them all before the fourth book releases!

Paranormia by Paul Regnier is a genre that I wasn’t interested in, but since I loved Space Drifters so much, I gave it a try anyway. His take on urban paranormal did not disappoint! The healthy dose of humor mixed in kept me laughing, while the gripping spiritual warfare part of the book kept me turning pages. Readers who like fiction that includes spiritual warfare, urban fantasy, or comedy would all enjoy this one. (And did I mention the sports cars?)

Dear Author: Letters from a Bookish Fangirl by Laura A. Grace was just the burst of encouragement that I needed as a writer. As a reader, I was nodding my head with all of the letters from the fangirl! It’s a short book, but a lovely little addition to the bookshelf of a book fangirl or a writer who could use a little extra encouragement!

A Storm Grows is a poetry anthology by Janeen Ippolito. It’s not rhyming poetry, but rather poems exploring what it’s like to have been through the storm. While some of the poems are understandably heavy, there’s an element of hope too. I read through it in one sitting! It’s a short anthology, but wonderful for the poetry-lover on your list.

Airfoil: Origins by Steve Rzasa is a book that I haven’t finished reading yet, but I had to include! When the protagonist is a librarian who ends up with superpowers, it’s the kind of book that needed to be included in my reading list. So far, I’m enjoying the story, and I think it would be an excellent pick for the superhero/comic book fan on your list.

I hope you found a book that’s perfect for one of the recipients on your gift list, or even a few to add to your own TBR pile! If you need a few more ideas, be sure to come back tomorrow for my post about the books that are on my own wish list, as well as a couple of other “bookish” gift ideas!

I’m so happy to be part of the Dear Author blog tour, celebrating the release of Laura A. Grace’s fabulous new book! I did get a sneak peek at an ARC as part of the blog tour, but I’d already pre-ordered my copy by then, because this is a book I didn’t want to miss!

As a reader, I may have a tendancy to fangirl just a bit over my very favorite authors and their books. (OK, so I fangirl a lot, but who can blame me when there are such great books out there!)

As a writer, I’ve got my own share of angst about my writing and it’s hard some days to not feel discouraged when I look at my work and see only the flaws.

Dear Author: Letters from a Bookish Fangirl by Laura A. Grace appeals to both the reader and the writer in me. The book is a series of letters written from a fangirl to her favorite author. I can completely identify with the fangirl writing the letters, so it was fun to find out that I’m not the only fangirl out there! As a writer, I found the letters heartwarming, and they encouraged me to keep writing.

Dear Author is a fairly short book, but it’s the perfect gift for a reader or a writer. The black and white illustrations in the book are delightful, and make reading it all the more fun! If you’re gifting the book, definitely spring for the paperback. Get a second copy for yourself while you’re at it!

While Dear Author released earlier this week, the Facebook Release Party is tonight! Be sure to join in tonight at 8:30 EST! In addition to Laura A. Grace, special guests will include Janeen Ippolito and Katie Phillips. You won’t want to miss the fun and the giveaways, so grab a cup of tea and log on tonight!