Book Recommendation ~ Looking Glass Lies by Varina Denman

Book Description:

A poignant and relatable novel, Looking Glass Lies captures the war women wage against themselves, and the struggle to see beauty reflected in a mirror not distorted by society’s unrelenting expectations.

For most of her adult life, Cecily Ross has compared herself to other women—and come up short. After a painful divorce from her emotionally abusive husband, Cecily returns to her hometown of Canyon, Texas, looking to heal.

But coming home isn’t what she expects. In a town as small as Canyon, her pain is difficult to escape—especially with her model-perfect ex–sister-in-law working at the town’s popular coffee-shop hangout. With help from her father, a support group, and an old friend who guides her to see her own strengths, Cecily may have a shot at overcoming her insecurities and learning to love again.

The true test comes when tragedy strikes, opening Cecily’s eyes to the harmfulness of her distorted views on beauty—and giving her the perfect opportunity to find peace at last.

Narelle's Thoughts:

Wow. That's what I thought when I finished reading, and I read the book fast, within twenty-four hours. I've been a fan of Varina Denman's writing since I read her debut novel, Jaded, and Looking Glass Lies didn't disappoint.

The story opens with a prologue. We meet Cecily Ross when she's curled up in the back of her closet in her LA home, hiding away from the world and her emotionally abusive husband. Brett is addicted to porn and has shattered Cecily completely by wanting a divorce.

Fast forward eleven months and Cecily has returned to her home town of Canyon, Texas. She stays in her childhood home with her dad who's a widower and park ranger. Her father is worried about her and he asks the local therapist, Doctor Graham Harper, to call her.

Graham had a secret crush on Cecily in high school when she was dating her future husband, Brett Ross. Graham has overcome his teenage drug addiction and has a busy practice in town. He offers Cecily a receptionist job. Instead of providing counselling, he sets Cecily up in a women's support group with married mom of four Shanty and college student Nina.

Cecily meets with Shanty and Nina at Midnight Oil, the local coffee shop owned by celebrity sports star Michael Divins. Cecily struggles to deal with her gorgeous and perfect looking ex-sister-in-law, Mirinda, who works at the cafe and is dating Michael.

Cecily learns that to become emotionally healthy she needs to confront and deal with issues from her past. Secrets are revealed that rock the small community of Canyon and challenge them to face the lies they believe. Body image issues are a core theme in the story, plus the devastating effects of porn addiction and other emotional issues.

The characters are realistic and they deal with real world problems in the story. Edgy issues that may be uncomfortable for some readers are addressed, and the story has a Christian worldview with only a few references to faith.

The sweet romance between Cecily and Graham is complicated. A hero who's a therapist will, by definition, be cautious in his personal life. Cecily and Graham develop a friendship that is challenged by the events in the story.

I highly recommend Looking Glass Lies to readers who enjoy edgy and realistic Christian romance stories that deal with tough issues.

Many thanks to Waterfall Press and NetGalley for the Advanced Reader Copy.

A fun loving Aussie girl at heart, NARELLE ATKINS was born and raised on the beautiful northern beaches in Sydney, Australia. She has settled in Canberra with her husband and children. A lifelong romance reader, she found the perfect genre to write when she discovered inspirational romance. Narelle's contemporary stories of faith and romance are set in Australia.

Website: http://www.narelleatkins.com

Blog: http://narelleatkins.wordpress.com

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/NarelleAtkinsAuthor

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ACRBA Tour Looking Glass Lies by Varina Denman

1 - 5 May 2017

Australian Christian Readers Blog Alliance

is Introducing 

Looking Glass Lies 

(By the Waterfall Press, 2 May 2017)

By Varina Denman

About the Book:

A poignant and relatable novel, Looking Glass Lies captures the war women wage against themselves, and the struggle to see beauty reflected in a mirror not distorted by society’s unrelenting expectations.

For most of her adult life, Cecily Ross has compared herself to other women—and come up short. After a painful divorce from her emotionally abusive husband, Cecily returns to her hometown of Canyon, Texas, looking to heal.

But coming home isn’t what she expects. In a town as small as Canyon, her pain is difficult to escape—especially with her model-perfect ex–sister-in-law working at the town’s popular coffee-shop hangout. With help from her father, a support group, and an old friend who guides her to see her own strengths, Cecily may have a shot at overcoming her insecurities and learning to love again.

The true test comes when tragedy strikes, opening Cecily’s eyes to the harmfulness of her distorted views on beauty—and giving her the perfect opportunity to find peace at last.

About the Author:

Varina Denman enjoys writing fiction about women and the unique struggles they face. Her novels include the Mended Hearts trilogy: Jaded, Justified, and Jilted, as well as her latest release, Looking Glass Lies. She seems to have a knack for describing small town life, and her debut novel, Jaded, won the ACFW Genesis Contest, the BRMCWC Selah Award, and the INSPYs Bloggers’ Award for Excellence in Faith-Driven Literature.

Varina attended three universities over a span of five years, majoring in four subjects and earning zero degrees. However, she can now boast sixteen years as a home educator, volunteering in her local cooperative where she has taught numerous subjects including creative writing and literature. Varina lives in North Texas where she volunteers in local marriage and family ministry. She is represented by Jessica Kirkland of Kirkland Media Management.

More information:
https://varinadenman.com/

Interview Questions

In Looking Glass Lies as well as the Mended Hearts series, you touch on subjects that are not often talked-about. How do you choose your topics, and what is your motivation? In all my books, my goal is to help women deal with issues in their lives, and generally the issues we women need the most help with are the ones we keep hidden, the secret ones that nobody likes to talk about. Those are the subjects I want to crack open, so that my readers and I can poke them with a stick, see what’s really happening in our lives … and heal a little.

All your books deal with female leads who are struggling with unique issues, but they seem to portrayed from the heart. How much of the plots come from your own life experience? Each book is different, but generally my books begin with a nugget of my own life story, or maybe just a feeling or an impression, and then I completely blow it up into an elaborate, exaggerated story. So I guess you could say, each plot line comes from my own life … but just barely.

Could your writing best be described as women’s fiction or romance? Why? It’s taken me a while to learn about myself as an author. At first, I thought I was a romance writer, but now I’m confident my books fit neatly into women’s fiction. All those issues I pile into the plots just don’t lend themselves to the romance genre, but I always add a touch of romance just for fun.

So far, all of your books are set in Texas. Do you have plans to pursue other settings in the future? Not yet, but I’m not limiting  myself either. As for now, my next book will be set in Texas, but after that, I’m not sure where my stories will take me.

What is your background, and how did you end up writing novels? When I was young, I never dreamed I’d be a writer when I grew up. In school, writing assignments were drudgery, but then again, most of my papers were research not creative writing. My lifelong goal was to marry an awesome guy, settle down, and have a bunch of kiddos. Once I did all that, I surprised myself by developing an increased interest in books which led to an interest in writing. Now I’m having the time of my life.

Interview with Varina Denman

by Andrea Grigg

Hi everyone. Today it is my pleasure to introduce you to Varina Denman, author of Jaded

and Justified, the first two books in the Mended Hearts series. You can read my reviews hereand  here. I adore Varina's work, and am thrilled to be hosting her on ACW today.

Welcome, Varina, and here come the questions!

Where were you born and raised? Where do you live now? 

I was born in Post, a small town in West Texas, but I don’t remember living there. The Dallas/Fort Worth metroplex is where I spent my young years, and I lived in a small town during high school. Now, my husband and I live in a suburb of Fort Worth, so I’m Texas bred through and through.

I'm kinda partial to Texas. I spent some time in Tyler way back in 1980. It's probably changed a bit since then ;)

Tell us a little about your family. 

We’ve been married for twenty-eight years and have five children (three daughters and two sons). The oldest two are married, and the third is in the Marine reserves. The baby girls are still at home, and we have loads of fun together. They’re in high school now, and since I home school them, we see a LOT of each other.

Wow! Five kids! And having been a teacher myself, I admire anyone who home-schools. It amazes me how you find time to write! Which brings me to my next question ...

How do you find time to write? 

I strategically carve out time in my schedule and guard it like a mother bear protecting her cubs: ferociously.

I'm not surprised! 

How did you and your husband meet? 

We met on a blind date (sort of). Actually, I had seen him from a distance, and he had seen me from the back, but we agreed to go out. Our sisters set us up, but when they first wanted to introduce us, I was a junior in high school, and he was a junior in college … so they had to wait until I grew up!

That's funny. I get teased about that too except I'm the cradle snatcher :)

Five interesting facts about yourself -

I eat very little sugar because it makes me intolerably cranky. (My family could tell you stories). I attended three colleges over five years studying four majors and earning zero degrees. I once performed in the halftime show at a Dallas Cowboy football game. I played with baby dolls until junior high school, and even then, I only put them away because I was embarrassed. I didn’t start writing until I was forty-two-years-old. (I was real busy before that.)

Now those are interesting facts! Can't imagine what was stopping you from writing ...

Name three fabulous books you’ve read this year: 

I haven’t had much time to read this year (and I’m feeling QUITE deprived because of it), but here are my faves so far: The Girl on the Train, by Paula Hawkins; The Storyteller, by Jodi Picoult; and … (don’t laugh!) … The Good Girl’s Guide to Great Sex, by Sheila Wray Gregoire.

Not laughing. They're now ALL on my TBR pile.

Three favourite authors: 

Eww, that’s a hard one, but I’ll go with Jane Austen, Sophie Kinsella, and Nicholas Sparks.

Great choices. (I have all the Nicholas Sparks books)

What would be your dream vacation? 

Water, sunshine, and a lounge chair. And my husband. And a glass of caffeine-free diet Dr. Pepper. And a good book.

Well, just come on over to the Gold Coast with your husband. You might have to bring your own Dr Pepper but we have everything else!

Choose any three people (past or present) you would like to have dinner with. What

would you talk about? 

Robin Williams, Tim Conway, and Bob Newhart. I would let them talk about whatever they wanted, and I would laugh until I got that painful stitch in my side.

Could I please join you? Lol. Literally.

What are you working on at the moment? 

Right now, I’m finishing up final edits on Jilted, the final book in the mended hearts series. Here’s the back cover blurb: 

Lynda Turner has struggled with depression for years, ever since her husband abandoned her and their young daughter. Now, the town’s ex-convict begins to show her interest, but Lynda hesitates to consider him a viable option, knowing the townspeople will have a heyday with their gossip. When long-hidden mysteries begin to unravel, Lynda must fight, not only for her emotional stability, but also for the promise of happiness she has sought all along.

I can't wait to read Jilted. I was hoping I'd get to find out about Lynda's story. All the best for the edits and thank you so much for joining us. 

Andrea, thank you for inviting me to the ACW blog. I've enjoyed being here!

Andrea is an author and avid reader of contemporary romance. She has written two novels: A Simple Mistake and Too Pretty.

Andrea would love to hear from you via her website or Facebook page:
http://www.andreagrigg.com/
https://www.facebook.com/author.andreagrigg

Book Review: Justified, by Varina Denman

Review by Andrea Grigg

I’m the first to admit I’m a harsh critic. So if I tell you I’ve not only got Varina Denman’s two books on Kindle but I’ve also bought print copies you’ll know I think they’re really, really good!

Justified follows on from Varina’s 2013 ACFW Genesis Award winner, Jaded. (You can read my review here). Having said that, Justified is a stand-alone novel, and equally as good as Varina’s debut work.

  

Fawn Blaylock is unmarried, pregnant, guilty, and the subject of small town gossip. Luckily, she has the support of Ruthie, (the heroine from Jaded) despite the fact their families don’t speak.

Fawn isn’t on great terms with her parents, either. Not only is their love horribly conditional, especially on her father’s part (I wanted to sign him up for parenting classes!) but they think she should marry the father of her baby, Tyler Cruz, because he comes from a rich family like theirs. More importantly, because it would help get rid of the embarrassment of having an unwed mother for a daughter

Tyler thinks Fawn should marry him too. He doesn’t like the fact Fawn is showing an independent side, but Fawn wants to have as little to do with him as possible. She wants to show the world she can make it on her own, but how can she? She comes from a well-to-do family from which she is now cut off, and has no idea how to cope with being poor.

Help comes to Fawn in unexpected ways. She’s been given a house to live in rent free. It might be rundown and in need of repair, but why would anyone do that? And who is her benefactor?

Ruthie’s Aunt Velma and Uncle Ansel are a big help. Help also comes from their son, local high school teacher and football coach, JohnScott. Quite a lot of help. And Fawn isn’t quite sure how to take it any more than JohnScott knows why he’s giving it. After all, she used to be a student at the same school he taught at which makes them both feel a bit odd. Still, the more he looks after her, the more she accepts and the more their relationship grows.

I really liked Fawn. Her struggles are enormous but she’s determined to do the best for her unborn child. JohnScott is a great combination of tender and torn in his feelings toward Fawn and I warmed to him right from the start.

Again, like I did with Jaded, this Aussie/Kiwi girl loved reading about Texas. Varina writes so well, I had a movie going on in my head, featuring dialogue in a Texan twang and complete visuals of all the characters and their idiosyncrasies. I loved the way the small town gossip was portrayed, laughed out loud at many of the different sayings and colloquialisms, saw the perfectly described landscapes very clearly.

Justified is a fabulous contemporary Christian romance, full of realism in the spiritual journeys, a healthy dose of suspense, and loads of good old chemistry between the hero and heroine. I simply loved it.

Look out for the third book in the series, Jilted, coming soon. Also look out for my interview with Varina next Wednesday. She's a great gal!

Andrea is an author and avid reader of contemporary romance. She has written two novels: A Simple Mistake and Too Pretty.

Andrea would love to hear from you via her website or Facebook page:
http://www.andreagrigg.com/
https://www.facebook.com/author.andreagrigg

Book Review: Jaded - by Varina Denman

Review by Andrea Grigg

I love novels about small towns because I don’t come from one. The fact this (fictional) small town is situated in Texas, USA and not in my home country of Australia made it even more interesting.

Ruthie Turner intrigued me from the first page. It was clear Ruthie has a chip on her shoulder the size of … well, the size of Texas. And I couldn’t wait to find out why.

A hard-working and resourceful girl, she has a lot to contend with due to circumstances beyond her control. Her mother has a ‘past’ and because of this, she and Ruthie are shunned from joining the local worship service. If they ever wanted to, that is. Ruthie has a dim view of  church-goers in the light of what went on.                                   

Interestingly enough, Ruthie’s opinion of God isn’t completely negative, and her attitude toward Him is challenged when she meets the eye-catching new preacher, Dodd Cunningham. Despite Ruthie’s best efforts to avoid Dodd, their paths keep crossing and her barriers go up – barriers that Dodd does his best to break down.

This book had everything in it that I love. Complicated family dynamics, quirky characters, a mystery about the past, and best of all, romance. The chemistry between Ruthie and Dodd is fabulous.

But that’s not all. Varina Denman has written a story that shows all too well the dangers of becoming religious, and yet the themes of God’s love and grace come shining through. I will be recommending this fabulous debut novel for a long time to come.

Andrea Grigg lives on the Gold Coast, Queensland, and is a writer of contemporary Christian romance. Her first book, ‘A Simple Mistake’ was a finalist in the 2012 CALEB awards. Her second novel, ‘Too Pretty’ was released in August 2014.

Website: www.andreagrigg.com

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/author.andreagrigg?ref=hl

Twitter: @andreagrigg https://twitter.com/andreagrigg