The Remaining by Travis Thrasher (Review)

• Paperback: 368 pages
• Publisher: Tyndale House Publishers, Inc.; MTI edition (September 1, 2014)
• ISBN-13: 978-1414397528

In one day, everything changes forever.

As a group of college pals gathers for the wedding of two friends, celebration turns to terror when many of the guests die suddenly with no apparent cause. With the big day turned into a nightmare, the friends are left to figure out what’s happening. With mysterious and devastating catastrophes striking the city―and reports of similar events coming in from around the world―they must address the ultimate question.

Is this the end? Or just the beginning of something more horrifying than they ever could have imagined?

Faith, family, and the future are all hanging in the balance.

The Remaining is a novelization of the apocalyptic movie from Sony Affirm. Just after a young couple says their vows, the earth shakes, and some people die suddenly and are taken away. The rest of their wedding party and friends are left to wrestle with what happened and with their faith. Characters struggle with secret love, dreams, hopes, and beliefs as they continue to evaluate their faith. This book 

and movie are both action-packed thrillers that will encourage audiences to think about their beliefs.

My Review:

This book held my attention from beginning to end. I was captivated. This is the book version of a movie by the same name. The author did a good job at description and developing the characters and plot. There are several ideas about how the rapture/end times will happen. One of them is used in this book. This is a character focused book more than plot. The plot revolves around the different characters and the thoughts going through their mind. There are multiple narrators but it was not confusing at all. The faith element of course is present and well developed. It gets real so there is a lot of death and disturbing scenes. It really made me think. We get so caught up in our day to day lives that we forget what could happen at any moment. If you have read the Left Behind series this book is different in the viewpoint taken but still a good story. Recommended. 

Critically acclaimed author Travis Thrasher has made a career out of defying expectations. He's written over twenty-five books that have crossed the spectrum between love stories and supernatural thrillers. His variety of inspirational stories have included collaborations with filmmakers, musicians, and pastors. He's also helped write memoirs and self-help books. He lives with his wife and three daughters in a suburb of Chicago.

For more information on Travis, visit www.travisthrasher.com

Review copy provided by Tyndale Blog Network in exchange for an honest review.

The Life-Seek Find Give by Tyndale House Publishers (Review)

• Series: Project 29
• Paperback: 112 pages
• Publisher: Tyndale House Publishers, Inc. (September 1, 2014)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1414396368
• ISBN-13: 978-1414396361

A refreshingly unconventional Biblezine for spiritually curious teens. A full-out visual feast, presenting timeless scriptural truth with unique energy and passion. The Life moves teens beyond religion to an introduction to Jesus’ personal story and his Word. Powered by the clear and accessible New Living Translation.

The Life was collaboratively developed in partnership with Youth for Christ, whose mission is to bring the message of Jesus to young people across the world. Youth for Christ has more than 160 chapters impacting thousands of communities.

The New Living Translation breathes life into even the most difficult-to-understand Bible passages, but even more powerful are stories of how people’s lives are changing as the words speak directly to their hearts.

 My Review:

This is a small book in size and number of pages but it is full of good information. It is bible verses in sections put into everyday language. There are pictures and the paper is like a magazine. It might be a good way to get a teen to read bible verses without a big bible. Recommended.





Review copy provided by publisher in exchange for an honest review.

The Truth About You: Your Secret to Success by Marcus Buckingham

The Truth About You is actually a three part kit packaged in a book shape. There is a 20 minute DVD of the author speaking, a short book, and a Re Memo notepad. The notepad has two sides. One is blue and is the I loved it side where you are supposed to complete the sentence I felt strong when... and the other side is the black side or I loathed it and you are supposed to complete the sentence I felt weak (drained,bored) when...

The 5 points and chapter titles are:

The best advice you'll ever get.

1. Performance is alway the point.

2. Your strengths aren't what you are good at, and your weaknesses aren't what you are bad at.

3. When it comes to your job, the "What" always trumps the "Why" and the "Who".

4. You'll never find the perfect job.

5. You'll never turn your weaknesses into strengths

Within each section there are questions for you to answer to help you figure out what your strengths are and how to captialize on them. The author does not encourage you to work on your weaknesses but to neutralize them. Instead focus on identifing your strengths and play them up.

My only complaint are the video is basically what is in the very short book. I do recommend it because it will help reveal your real strengths and weaknesses if you dig deep in yourself and be honest.