Sixteen years ago, I attended Mount Hermon’s Writer’s Conference in California’s Santa Cruz mountains. It wasn’t the first time I’d attended, and it wouldn’t be the last. But something very special occurred that particular year—I met another wannabe author named Blossom Turner who traveled all the way from British Columbia.
We had both signed up for a special two-day pre-conference session hoping it would improve our writing skills and maybe give us a leg up on publishing. What started as a seemingly happenstance acquaintance grew into a very special friendship. Of course, there is nothing coincidental in God’s plans.
It’s critical to have the encouragement and support of other writers, especially when publishing is a dream that feels impossible. As it turned out, we both got our first contracts the same year and we’ve been on this journey together ever since.
Blossom has published several historical romance novels in her Shenandoah Brides Series with Misty Beller’s Wild Heart Books. It’s crazy to remember talking about that first book in the series all those years ago and then seeing how it has developed into a five-book series. She also wrote a contemporary romance titled Anna’s Secret and Christmas at the Jekyll Island Club, which is a gilded-age romance.
And although Blossom is gifted with historical romance, the Lord put a different genre on her heart that hits very close to home for her which she is publishing independently. Two years ago, at the Blue Ridge Christian Writer’s conference, we talked extensively about her idea to create a series focused on one main character to bring awareness to readers of the spiritual battle we all deal with daily, whether we’re aware or not.
Mara Howland is that character who struggles with the unseen spiritual realm throughout The Victory Series. Mara: The Unseen Battle is Book One (now available on Amazon) and spans Mara’s first sixteen years. It sets the stage for the horrific abuse she suffers at the hands of her mother—a woman who is supposed to love, protect, and provide.
What sets this book apart from any other I’ve read is how well Blossom brings to life the forces of good and evil. There are shades of Frank Perreti’s This Present Darkness, although Blossom’s book is more personal in nature, which kept me drawn to the story.
Often people ask why a good God allows horrible things to happen to His children, and Blossom’s novel effectively answers this question.
While delving into Mara’s nightmare-of-a-life, the reader is privy to the battle that rages behind the scenes. A guardian angel who is only given what power the Father allows to fight the enemy’s minions for control over this girl’s soul.
It’s the same battle every human being must face at one time or another. Will we choose holiness, grace, and mercy or will we choose bitterness, unforgiveness, and selfish ambitions?
Mara is a very sympathetic character, and there are times I cringed while reading this book. I despise cruelty, and it’s even more heinous when it’s at the hands of someone who is supposed to offer a tangible unconditional love above any other human.
But in Mara’s mother, we see the brokenness that allows the devil a foothold into her soul, like so many people in the world today. Maybe getting a glimpse of what occurs in the spiritual realm will give us more compassion for the lost. It may also help us to be able to better understand why the Lord allows us to deal with hardship and pain. His plans and purposes for us are far greater than we can fathom.
This poignant and beautifully written novel is a must-read, and I look forward to delving into the next phase of Mara’s story in Book Two. Mara In The Face of Battle is scheduled to release on April 22nd. This series is also available on Kindle Unlimited, for those of you who have it.
Here is the back cover copy:
Where Angels Whisper and Demons Lurk, A Battle for Sweet Mara Unfolds…
Growing up in 1970s small-town Canada, Mara Howland strives to meet her mother’s impossible demands—yet the sting of failure always follows. Each punishment leaves another wound to hide, another cruelty to hush, until that dark summer evening. Now she holds a secret she must bury…if she wants to survive.
But more is going on than the human eye can see.
The mystery of the supernatural unfolds. Mara’s guardian angel and the sinister forces of evil battle for her well-being and her soul. In this unseen world, the rulers of the darkness prey on the innocent and unwary. Will Mara’s spirit be crushed by the malevolent powers who spawn her mother’s cruelty or is there a loving God who has a plan for her?
In the first of this gripping three-book series, Mara’s life journey will bring startling awareness of our daily spiritual battles. Step with Mara behind the veil of the visible world into a realm where prayer is a weapon, faith is tested, and all must choose between the light or the darkness.
