Fatal Tree CSFF Tour Day 3 - All is Not Lost, God is Still In Control

THE FATAL TREE
THE BRIGHT EMPIRES - Book 5
by

Stephen R Lawhead

(click image for book link)

DAY 3 - All is Not Lost, God is Still In Control

      On this third, and last, day of the Fatal Tree blog tour I wanted to discuss how things work out in The Lord's time, that often isn't our time schedule. But, I don't want to give away the ending. One of the main characters, Wilhelmina, or Mina, seemed a bit nonchalant about God and religion in general back in the first book of the series, the Skin Map. To me, she seemed miserable, and blamed the world for her misfortune.  Over time her travel along the ley lines, and more importantly the gentle kindness of Englebert, or Etzel,  led her to an understanding of a higher purpose for her life. Mina's look to heaven and a prayer of thanks after a safe return seemed to bring home this point.

     To me, Etzel represented the mind-set and attitude Christians should portray. From the beginning, he took newcomer Mina under his wing and grew a business with her. Lord Burleigh and his henchmen attack and harm Etzel, yet Etzel is able to forgive them through Grace, and he brings the five prisoners food and drink to feed them in their cell. Etzel's continued kindness and compassion sway the four henchmen, and Etzel is able to secure their release from prison. Left alone in his cell, Burleigh has weeks to ponder his plight, and begins to reconsider his actions and how his choices had brought him to where he had sunk so low. Yet again, Etzel's actions brought others closer to The Lord. 

     I wondered how past events were important, then remembered how Mina returned to an earlier time to help Kit. When Kit fell through the Spirit House and ended up seeing Arthur Flinders-Petrie carry Xuan Li into the Well of Souls. This happened in the past, yet Kit needed to see Arthur's walk into the waters to help explain why time needed to seek its balance. Turms the Immortal saved the life of Benedict, Arthur and Xuan Li's son. Years later, Turms is unable to save the life of Douglas Flinders-Petrie, Arthur's great-grandson. A balance of sorts is achieved. 

     The Skin Map is a road map of the ley lines through time, but it is also a guide to the balance of all that works into The Lord's plan for mankind. As humans, we are given free will to chose our responses and actions. When we chose wisely we move toward The Lord's plan for our life. When we go against God's plan, stronger measures are called for, and many detours through tough times we wouldn't have needed to  make. Burleigh saw no need for The Lord, or being kind to others. He brought about his own chastisement of a solitary prison cell. He thought he was in control, and master of his own fate. 

Instead, Burleigh learned that God is in control, whether you are lost in far places or times, or in the midst of multitudes. Mina learned that God is there when you seek him; he's been watching over you all along. My take-away from the series is that The Lord has a plan bigger than all of time, and he knows the outcome. 

We have the choice of whether to work toward His Goal, or work against it.

*The Fatal Tree -    http://www.amazon.com/The-Fatal-Tree-Bright-Empires/dp/1595548084/
Author Website -  http://www.stephenlawhead.com/
Author Facebook page - http://www.facebook.com/pages/Stephen-R-Lawhead/84503526872


I received a review copy of The Fatal Tree by Stephen R Lawhead from Thomas Nelson in conjunction with the December CSFF Blog Tour



Extra: If you're like me and like to read a complete story collection, and read Kindle books, Amazon has the complete Bright Empires set for $16.99
     Stephen Lawhead Bright Empires Set on Kindle

Youtube of First Book:

CSFF Tour Links:
  Julie Bihn Thomas Clayton Booher Beckie Burnham Jeff Chapman Karri Compton April Erwin Victor Gentile Jason Joyner Janeen Ippolito Carol Keen Emileigh Latham Rebekah Loper Shannon McDermott Meagan @ Blooming with Books Rebecca LuElla Miller Nissa Jalynn Patterson Writer Rani Nathan Reimer Audrey Sauble Jojo Sutis Rachel Starr Thomson Robert Treskillard Steve Trower Shane Werlinger Phyllis Wheeler

Fatal Tree CSFF Tour Day 2 - It's All Down Hill from Here

THE FATAL TREE
THE BRIGHT EMPIRES - Book 5
by

Stephen R Lawhead

(click image for book link)

DAY 2 - It's All Down Hill from Here

Stay tuned tomorrow. Day 3 - All is Not Lost, God is Still In Control

*The Fatal Tree -    http://www.amazon.com/The-Fatal-Tree-Bright-Empires/dp/1595548084/
Author Website -  http://www.stephenlawhead.com/
Author Facebook page - http://www.facebook.com/pages/Stephen-R-Lawhead/84503526872


I received a review copy of The Fatal Tree by Stephen R Lawhead from Thomas Nelson in conjunction with the December CSFF Blog Tour

Yesterday, I mentioned some of the problems caused by tampering with time. Today, I wanted to mention some of the way things have grown worse for the ley travelers. Raising arms, or hands, at some locations helps trigger ley-line travel. When Kit and Cass watch a small bird die after a jolt from the Fatal yew tree, Cass tries to save Kit from stumbling into the tree and instead opens a ley-line portal at the tree that surges between Cass and Kit, throwing the pair apart. The path is blocked and they are caught for a time in the distant past.

Wilhelmina is traveling to meet Kit and Cass, but instead keeps returning to Egypt at the beginning of the previous century. After five failed attempts, she makes the jump and meets with Thomas to discuss a matter of life and death; everyone's.

Englebert the baker has tried time after time to see the Chief Magistrate, but is turned away. On the ninth attempt, the steward convinces the judge to see Englebert who begs for leniency concerning the same Burleigh Men who attacked him. The Burleigh Men seem to have come around to treating Englebert better, but the Magistrate will have none of the forgiveness Englebert claims he has for Lord Burleigh's men. Instead, Englebert is sent away.

Lord Burleigh seems to have lost the most. His men appreciate Englebert's kindness and have left his prison cell. When Burleigh is brought food yet again by the kind baker, Burleigh ignores him and stares at the wall until the baker leaves. As the chapter unfolds, Burleigh realizes that it's no Englebert he dislikes so, it is Englebert's savior Jesus. Englebert explains that is is because of Jesus that he must show kindness, and forgiveness. The Burleigh men can accept this, but Burleigh can not. He remains convinced Englebert has an ulterior motive. So, it seems like Lord Burleigh has lost the most, his freedom, his care for his men, and most importantly, the peace inside from following only what he knows and believes. His spirit is quenched and all he possesses is emptiness inside as he sits alone in a prison cell.

Amazon has the complete Bright Empires in a Kindle collection for $16.99
     Stephen Lawhead Bright Empires Set on Kindle

CSFF Tour Links:
  Julie Bihn Thomas Clayton Booher Beckie Burnham Jeff Chapman Karri Compton April Erwin Victor Gentile Jason Joyner Janeen Ippolito Carol Keen Emileigh Latham Rebekah Loper Shannon McDermott Meagan @ Blooming with Books Rebecca LuElla Miller Nissa Jalynn Patterson Writer Rani Nathan Reimer Audrey Sauble Jojo Sutis Rachel Starr Thomson Robert Treskillard Steve Trower Shane Werlinger Phyllis Wheeler

Fatal Tree CSFF Tour Day 1 - The Beginning of the End of Everything

THE FATAL TREE
THE BRIGHT EMPIRES - Book 5
by

Stephen R Lawhead

(click image for book link)

DAY 1 - The Beginning of the End of Everything

Mr. Lawhead manages to tie all the Bright Empires storylines  together in this fifth and final book of the series. I mention this because I've always enjoyed his rich story details, scenes, and characterization. He brings everything to life. The tale began back in the first book, The Skin Map, when Kip's great-grandfather introduces him to ley-line travel. By this fifth book, it seems everyone is traveling at times. That's where the problem seems to compound. All this travel has unsettled the universal order.

We found out in the previous book, The Shadow Lamp, that Arthur Flinders-Petrie had disrupted the natural laws by his actions at the Spirit Well. In The Fatal Tree, time itself is trying to regain its balance as people and things from different eras are dropped in other time and other places. Things like disappearing bridges holding cars were strange enough, but one poor mother had fed her three children and husband, who were all back at the table to eat breakfast even though their dirty dishes were in the sink but really strange. Even stranger, was the lady who kept running into herself coming from another direction. This early section of the story really made me wonder about what might happen if time stopped flowing normally, and took a side trip.

To give you an idea how bad things are by the first few chapters, Wilhelmina has traveled to the Ice Age and finds out the saber tooth cat, Baby, arrived after her, Kip and his group are back in the Stone Age trying to get around a well-charged yew tree that is right over the badly needed main ley-line, Lord Burleigh is stuck in a prison cell and his men have been moved after showing their appreciation of Etzel's continued kindness in prison because of his faith, and Zetetic members are meeting their selves coming and going; literally.
then, just when you think things can't get any worse... guess what?

Stay tuned tomorrow.

*The Fatal Tree -    http://www.amazon.com/The-Fatal-Tree-Bright-Empires/dp/1595548084/
Author Website -  http://www.stephenlawhead.com/
Author Facebook page - http://www.facebook.com/pages/Stephen-R-Lawhead/84503526872


I received a review copy of The Fatal Tree by Stephen R Lawhead from Thomas Nelson in conjunction with the December CSFF Blog Tour



Extra: If you're like me and like to read a complete story collection, and read Kindle books, Amazon has the complete Bright Empires set for $16.99
     Stephen Lawhead Bright Empires Set on Kindle

Youtube of First Book:

CSFF Tour Links:
  Julie Bihn Thomas Clayton Booher Beckie Burnham Jeff Chapman Karri Compton April Erwin Victor Gentile Jason Joyner Janeen Ippolito Carol Keen Emileigh Latham Rebekah Loper Shannon McDermott Meagan @ Blooming with Books Rebecca LuElla Miller Nissa Jalynn Patterson Writer Rani Nathan Reimer Audrey Sauble Jojo Sutis Rachel Starr Thomson Robert Treskillard Steve Trower Shane Werlinger Phyllis Wheeler

The Shadow Lamp CSFF Tour - Day Three

 

 The Shadow Lamp

Bright Empires - Book Four by Stephen R. Lawhead

Last Day of the Shadow Lamp Blog Tour

The End of It All, or Only the Beginning?-  

click image for Amazon link or click link below) Shadow Lamp- available from:

Amazon -    http://www.amazon.com/Shadow-Lamp-Bright-Empires-Quest/dp/1595548076/
CBD -    http://www.christianbook.com/the-shadow-lamp-bright-empires/9781595548078/pd/548078?product_redirect=1&Ntt=548078&item_code=&Ntk=keywords&event=ESRCP
Author Website -  http://www.stephenlawhead.com/
Author Facebook page - http://www.facebook.com/pages/Stephen-R-Lawhead/84503526872

I received a review copy of The Shadow Lamp by Stephen R. Lawhead from the nice folks at Thomas Nelson in conjunction with the Nov CSFF Blog Tour

 

I wonder if the reason for ley lines is to illustrate the connections between The Creator's plan and our actions as humans? Kit finds that at some point, the strongest ley lines connect back to the Spirit Well. Maybe I'm looking for allegory where none exists, but I wonder if The Spirit Well is an allegory for Christ; who referred to himself as the Well of Life and a provider of Living waters? Lord Burleigh denies God's existence, yet never stops to consider how all the wonders of the world came into existence in perfect harmony. Could stronger ley lines connect stronger occurrences of faith in those locations or by those people with the Spirit Well's living water? Maybe ley lines are like tributaries leading back to the Spirit Well. The Spirit Well waters were described by Kit as full of light; having an inner glow. I pictured the ley lines as glowing lights beneath the ground, kind of like fiber-optics, that connect back to the source - The Spirit Well. Shadow Lamps reveal hidden ley line locations by reflection ley line locations. Are we acting like Shadow Lamps to a lost world by reflecting the source of life, and living waters, Jesus?

I enjoyed The Shadow Lamp. The author delves deeper in each volume in the series. The fifth book is due out next year, and I'm looking forward to having all my new questions answered by the final chapter in The Bright Empires storyline.
 

*Participants’ links:
 

Julie Bihn Red Bissell Thomas Clayton Booher Thomas Fletcher Booher Beckie Burnham Jeff Chapman Karri Compton Theresa Dunlap April Erwin Timothy Hicks Christopher Hopper Becky Jesse Becca Johnson Jason Joyner Carol Keen Rebekah Loper Shannon McDermott Meagan @ Blooming with Books Rebecca LuElla Miller Mirriam Neal Writer Rani Nathan Reimer Chawna Schroeder Jojo Sutis Rachel Starr Thomson Robert Treskillard Steve Trower Rachel Wyant Phyllis Wheeler Deborah Wilson

The Shadow Lamp CSFF Tour - Day Two

 

 The Shadow Lamp

Bright Empires - Book Four by Stephen R. Lawhead

Second Day of the Shadow Lamp Blog Tour

Coffee, Doughnuts, and the Burley Men, or Everything is Part of the Bigger Plan 

click image for Amazon link or click link below) Shadow Lamp- available from:

Amazon -    http://www.amazon.com/Shadow-Lamp-Bright-Empires-Quest/dp/1595548076/
CBD -    http://www.christianbook.com/the-shadow-lamp-bright-empires/9781595548078/pd/548078?product_redirect=1&Ntt=548078&item_code=&Ntk=keywords&event=ESRCP
Author Website -  http://www.stephenlawhead.com/
Author Facebook page - http://www.facebook.com/pages/Stephen-R-Lawhead/84503526872

I received a review copy of The Shadow Lamp by Stephen R. Lawhead from the nice folks at Thomas Nelson in conjunction with the Nov CSFF Blog Tour

 

The Burley Men and Lord Burleigh have been a thorn in the side of Kit and Mina, and the rest of the good guys at the Zetetic Society for the past three volumes of the Bright Empires series, and the Shadow Lamp is no exception to Burleigh and group's interference. Today I wanted to discuss The Master Plan, as hinted at in the series. Actions occur as part of The Creator's Master Plan. When Mina accidently arrives in Prague, all seemed lost. Yet she meets and befriends Etzel, the baker, on the way to town. Mina and Etzel go into business together, and open the very first coffee house. Their Grand Imperial Kaffehaus is such a success it gains the attention of the court alchemists, especially Balthazar, who is hired by Lord Burleigh to manufacture the Shadow Lamps.

On Mina's earlier ley travels, she finds a much needed mentor in Brother Lazarus. Brother Lazarus travels with Kit, and later Cass, who's father, Tony, is an astrophysicist. Brother Lazarus and Tony's discussion lead to their discovery that the universe's expansion is slowing. If that's not bad enough, Lord Burleigh finds out about the Grand Imperial Kaffeehaus and pay Etzel a not so friendly visit one night. In the Shadow Lamp, we learn more about the formation of The Burley Men, and about Etzel. Before the fourth book, Etzel seemed more a less a hard-working, every day kind of support character. In The Shadow Lamp we learn more about Etzel's faith, and his integrity to protect his friends. Even in hard times, Etzel vows to protect their location as The Burley Men try to beat the answer out of him.

I also like Kit and Cass's almost accidental discovery. It seemed to tie the Shadow lamps, The Skin Map, and the Ley Lines together nicely. One of the many things I enjoy so well about Mr. Lawhead's books, is his rich, eye to details. His far-ranging storylines illustrate so well, to me, that we all play a part in the grander scheme of things. While we may think we matter little, to The Creator, each of us are important and our actions and choices have far-reaching consequences.
 

Day 3 Blog: The End of It All, or Only the Beginning?- Day Three how The Bright empire series may explain some spiritual truths
 

*Participants’ links:
 

Julie Bihn Red Bissell Thomas Clayton Booher Thomas Fletcher Booher Beckie Burnham Jeff Chapman Karri Compton Theresa Dunlap April Erwin Timothy Hicks Christopher Hopper Becky Jesse Becca Johnson Jason Joyner Carol Keen Rebekah Loper Shannon McDermott Meagan @ Blooming with Books Rebecca LuElla Miller Mirriam Neal Writer Rani Nathan Reimer Chawna Schroeder Jojo Sutis Rachel Starr Thomson Robert Treskillard Steve Trower Rachel Wyant Phyllis Wheeler Deborah Wilson

The Shadow Lamp CSFF Tour - Day One

 

 The Shadow Lamp

Bright Empires - Book Four by Stephen R. Lawhead

First Day of the Shadow Lamp Blog Tour

Who Turned the Lamps Out?

click image for Amazon link or click link below) Shadow Lamp- available from:

Amazon -    http://www.amazon.com/Shadow-Lamp-Bright-Empires-Quest/dp/1595548076/
CBD -    http://www.christianbook.com/the-shadow-lamp-bright-empires/9781595548078/pd/548078?product_redirect=1&Ntt=548078&item_code=&Ntk=keywords&event=ESRCP
Author Website -  http://www.stephenlawhead.com/
Author Facebook page - http://www.facebook.com/pages/Stephen-R-Lawhead/84503526872

I received a review copy of The Shadow Lamp by Stephen R. Lawhead from the nice folks at Thomas Nelson in conjunction with the Nov CSFF Blog Tour

 

   The title, The Shadow Lamp, seemed a contradiction at first. Why would a lamp dispel light? But, when Kit and other ley line travelers use the lamps, they are able to locate the ley lines for travel. The lines are hidden to sight, but the small brass boxes enable them to find their way across space and time. If you're not too sure about ley line travel, here's a short video from the third book in the Bright Empires series, The Spirit Well:

 Book four, The Shadow Lamp, begins with Kit, Mina, and Brother Lazarus examining a burned out ley lamp. It sounded as if the lamp overloaded and had a melt down. Melt down seems like a good theme for this book in the series. Kit is returned to the future from the time of the River City Clan, but he realizes he was most at peace and contented with them. Newcomer, Cassandra Clarke, goes looking for information about Kit's grandfather, Cosimo, and seems to fall for the grandson. Anthony Clarke, Cass's father, searches the ley lines for his daughter and instead encounters the Zetetic Society. Even Lord Burleigh encounters problems with his plans, and we learn a bit more about the beginnings of the Burley Men. I know that's a lot of names, new and old, but Mr. Lawhead's story is as big as time and space.

This latest addition to the Bright Empires series deepens many existing characters, and adds some interesting new one. Cass and Kit seem an item, so I wondered if Min and Etzel are a pair. I liked the character of Cass's mentor, Brother Lazarus. He seems wise beyond his years, and many he comes into contact with seem better for Brother Lazarus' guidance. Mr. Lawhead has a knack for explaining complex theories in simple terms by way of Brother Lazarus. It kind of struck me that Cass's dad, Tony, is able to speak to her about matters of science and logic. As a counter-point to Tony, Brother Lazarus explains matters of faith and knowledge beyond normal human understanding.

My still unanswered question, is what is the purpose of the inter-temporal ley lines? Are they a cosmic accident, or all part of the greater plan hinted at in this book? Like an onion, each new layer peeled away in the Bright Empires saga, seems to yield more questions than answers. The Shadow Lamp is one of those books I enjoy reading because it makes me stop and think long after turning the last page.

 

Day 2 Blog: Coffee, Doughnuts, and the Burley Men, or Everything is Part of the Bigger Plan - Day Two I'll discuss how Lord Burleigh secretly helped Kit and Mina when he developed the Shadow Lamp they borrowed for ley travel. 

*Participants’ links:
 

Julie Bihn Red Bissell Thomas Clayton Booher Thomas Fletcher Booher Beckie Burnham Jeff Chapman Karri Compton Theresa Dunlap April Erwin Timothy Hicks Christopher Hopper Becky Jesse Becca Johnson Jason Joyner Carol Keen Rebekah Loper Shannon McDermott Meagan @ Blooming with Books Rebecca LuElla Miller Mirriam Neal Writer Rani Nathan Reimer Chawna Schroeder Jojo Sutis Rachel Starr Thomson Robert Treskillard Steve Trower Rachel Wyant Phyllis Wheeler Deborah Wilson

Stephen Lawhead Spirit Well CSFF Tour - Day 3

The Spirit Well
Book Three in the Bright Empires series - by Stephan R. Lawhead

Blog Tour - Day 3  No Matter Where You Go, Then You Are
 

(click image for Amazon link or click link below) The Spirit Well - available from:

Amazon - http://www.amazon.com/Spirit-Well-Bright-Empires/dp/1595548068/

Amazon Kindle - http://www.amazon.com/Spirit-Well-Bright-Empires-ebook/dp/B0078FAC26/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1350842830&sr=8-2&keywords=The+Spirit+Well

You can add the Amazon Audible version for $9.99 when purchased with the eBook, to switch between reading and listening to the book - http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0095PEMIW/ref=kics_hp_dp_narration

CBD - http://www.christianbook.com/the-spirit-well-bright-empires/stephen-lawhead/9781595548061/pd/548061?item_code=WW&netp_id=976466&event=ESRCG&view=details

CBD (Audio CD) - http://www.christianbook.com/the-spirit-well-unabridged-audiobook-on/stephen-lawhead/9781613752067/pd/752067?event=AAI

Author’s Web site -            http://www.stephenlawhead.com/

Author's Facebook Page -  http://www.facebook.com/StephenRLawhead

 

I received a review copy of The Spirit Well from Thomas Nelson in conjunction with the CSFF Blog Tour

I wanted to return to something that came to mind during yesterday's blog. As each traveler followed their ley line, they didn't always end up at he same place or even time. I'm not sure if it was intended, but couldn't the landing time have been what each needed to grow into the person they needed to become? Kit landed in a quiet, fairly peaceful time. He needed the introspection from that period. Mina landed centuries ago, but followed a trail forward to end at a monastery, where she found fulfillment in quiet servitude and worship. Cass landed in a near modern time, so the change was less abrupt, and she found answers to her question.

 

A theme that seemed to run through the Spirit Well, is that nothing happens by chance. each landed where they did for a reason. I think Lawhead used this part of the plot to show readers that God is in control. Even in the small things, he can use us and others to nudge someone in the direction they need to go. Like the cast of characters in The Spirit Well, life often doesn't make sense. Just when we think we have things figured out, we gain new knowledge and opportunities. The Lord wants what is best for us in the long run. As Kit, Mina, and Cass found, no matter where you go, then in life you are, and The Lord is there with you.

 

I had one last question about ley travel. While you can't meet yourself, could you send a warning back from a future event? Guess we'll have to wait for the next book to find out more about Stephen Lawhead's Bright Empires universe. Hope it's soon.

*Participants’ links:
Jim Armstrong
Julie Bihn
Red Bissell
 Jennifer Bogart
Thomas Clayton Booher
Thomas Fletcher Booher
Beckie Burnham
Brenda Castro
Jeff Chapman
Christine
Karri Compton
Theresa Dunlap
Emmalyn Edwards
April Erwin
Victor Gentile
Jeremy Harder
Bruce Hennigan
Timothy Hicks
Janeen Ippolito
Becca Johnson
Jason Joyner
Carol Keen
Emileigh Latham
Rebekah Loper
Shannon McDermott
Meagan @ Blooming with Books
Rebecca LuElla Miller
Anna Mittower
Joan Nienhuis
Lyn Perry
Nathan Reimer
Chawna Schroeder
Rachel Starr Thomson
Robert Treskillard
Steve Trower
Dona Watson
Shane Werlinger
Phyllis Wheeler

 

Stephen Lawhead Spirit Well CSFF Tour - First Day

The Spirit Well
Book Three in the Bright Empires series - by Stephan R. Lawhead

Blog Tour - Day 1 Ley Lines and Time Streams and Newbies, Oh My!

 

(click image for Amazon link or click link below) The Spirit Well - available from:

Amazon - http://www.amazon.com/Spirit-Well-Bright-Empires/dp/1595548068/

Amazon Kindle - http://www.amazon.com/Spirit-Well-Bright-Empires-ebook/dp/B0078FAC26/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1350842830&sr=8-2&keywords=The+Spirit+Well

You can add the Amazon Audible version for $9.99 when purchased with the eBook, to switch between reading and listening to the book - http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0095PEMIW/ref=kics_hp_dp_narration

CBD - http://www.christianbook.com/the-spirit-well-bright-empires/stephen-lawhead/9781595548061/pd/548061?item_code=WW&netp_id=976466&event=ESRCG&view=details

CBD (Audio CD) - http://www.christianbook.com/the-spirit-well-unabridged-audiobook-on/stephen-lawhead/9781613752067/pd/752067?event=AAI

Author’s Web site -            http://www.stephenlawhead.com/

Author's Facebook Page -  http://www.facebook.com/StephenRLawhead

 

I received a review copy of The Spirit Well from Thomas Nelson in conjunction with the CSFF Blog Tour

The Spirit Well is third book in Stephen R. Lawhead's Bright Empires series. Mina and Kit return in the newest addition to The Bright Empire series by author Stephen R. Lawhead. If you read The Bone House, book two in the series, you may remember Kit was stuck in the distant past. He was in a time long before recorded history. It seemed like life was exceptionally hard, but Kit's character finds his place in their society as he learns to communicate in a kind of basic telepathy. Yes, that makes sense. Language hadn't been developed this early, and the River City Clan needed a way to communicate. Lawhead's explanation sounded believable and it doesn't conflict with many scientific theories about early man's physiology. The amazing breadth of knowledge encountered in Mr. Lawhead's books never ceases to amaze me. With so much research, I often wonder how he finds time to write.

While Kit wanders around the Ice Age landscape, Mina procures a new, improved ley line detector model from her friend, Gustavus. The new model tracks directionally a little too efficiently for Mina, so she leaves Prague for an extended time in search of Kit . She finds a ley-travel mentor in an unexpected place and time, and learns time isn't always linear when it comes to ley travel. She answered one of my questions. Why don't ley travelers ever run into an earlier or later version of themselves; like Marty in Back to the Future?
Cassandra Clarke is the newbie ley-traveler. She happens upon a ley portal during an palaeontological dig in the American Southwest. This Ghost Road, as it is called by Native American Shamans, leads Cass to the strangest place yet in the series. Arid volcanic gravel covered the ground as far as she could see, only broken in the far distance by black hills. Cass didn't know how she had arrived, and what's worse, didn't know how to get home. No one knew she was gone and wouldn't know to look for her.

  Tomorrow I'll discuss how moving in four dimensions makes it that much easier to get lost. Even if you return to the right place, returning to the wrong time is even worse.
  And what does the Zetetic Society really know about traveling the ley lines?

Day 2 Blog: Are We Then Yet? Traveling the Ley Line Express.

*Participants’ links:
Jim Armstrong
Julie Bihn
Red Bissell
 Jennifer Bogart
Thomas Clayton Booher
Thomas Fletcher Booher
Beckie Burnham
Brenda Castro
Jeff Chapman
Christine
Karri Compton
Theresa Dunlap
Emmalyn Edwards
April Erwin
Victor Gentile
Jeremy Harder
Bruce Hennigan
Timothy Hicks
Janeen Ippolito
Becca Johnson
Jason Joyner
Carol Keen
Emileigh Latham
Rebekah Loper
Shannon McDermott
Meagan @ Blooming with Books
Rebecca LuElla Miller
Anna Mittower
Joan Nienhuis
Lyn Perry
Nathan Reimer
Chawna Schroeder
Rachel Starr Thomson
Robert Treskillard
Steve Trower
Dona Watson
Shane Werlinger
Phyllis Wheeler

The Bone House

The Bright Empires - Book Two by Stephan R. Lawhead

Blog Tour - Day 3
End of the Ley Line?

(click image for Amazon link or click link below) The Bone House - available from:

Amazon - http://www.amazon.com/dp/159554805X/
CBD - http://www.christianbook.com/the-bone-house-bright-empires/stephen-lawhead/9781595548054/pd/548054?item_code=WW&netp_id=897894&event=ESRCG&view=details
CBD (Audio CD) - http://www.christianbook.com/the-bone-house-unabridged-audio-book/stephen-lawhead/9781401685119/pd/685119?item_code=WW&netp_id=898032&event=ESRCG&view=details

Author’s Web site - http://www.stephenlawhead.com/

I received a review copy from the nice people at Thomas Nelson of The Bone House
in conjunction with the CSFF Blog Tour

Here on the last day I thought I'd mention some questions I had about the series, and ley travel in particular. Kit's great-grandfather Cosmo explained his slowed aging by travel the ley lines. I wondered if ley travel leaves some type of temporal field around the traveler. Since you can travel to multiple places in the past, and Kit's servant traveled with Kit to the servant's future, can Kit find a ley line leading to Kit's future? Could Kit, or Lord Burleigh, travel back to the time just before Kit first left and stop him from leaving? If Kit can't travel to his future, would he be safe from Lord Burleigh in a time-line after Burleigh existed? And, does the time spent in another ley time line equal the time gone on their home time-line? I guess I'm wondering if Kit and Mina will encounter a Rip Van Winkle effect and return years after they first left London. If it sounds like I'm thinking too deeply on the Bone House and The Bright Empires series, then that says something about how well I enjoyed the book.

The Bone House reminded me a bit of an earlier Lawhead book series, The Paradise War. In that series, two college students travel by means of a Scottish stone cairn at a special time of day to another place that seems another time. Both series involve moving two modern day people o another place, but The Bright Empires story adds another wrinkle by including travel through time. One of the things I enjoy about the Bone House is how the author works in real places, real times, and even a few real people. His eye to detail shows in how well he crafts the story and places the reader in a place and time totally foreign to a modern reader and still brings it to life.

Some readers may find The Bone House a harder read than most books, but I appreciate an author who writes to make you think rather than spoon feed you each detail to make sure you understand. I enjoyed the second book in the Bright Empires series, and look forward to reading what new twists and turns Mr. lawhead can manage to pull off in the third book of the series.

*Participants’ links:
Noah Arsenault
Red Bissell
Thomas Clayton Booher
Beckie Burnham
Morgan L. Busse
CSFF Blog Tour
Jeff Chapman
Carol Bruce Collett
Karri Compton
D. G. D. Davidson
Theresa Dunlap
April Erwin
Victor Gentile
Tori Greene
Ryan Heart
Bruce Hennigan
Timothy Hicks
Christopher Hopper
Janeen Ippolito
Becca Johnson
Jason Joyner
Julie
Carol Keen
Krystine Kercher
Marzabeth
Katie McCurdy
Shannon McDermott
Rebecca LuElla Miller
Joan Nienhuis
Chawna Schroeder
Kathleen Smith
Donna Swanson
Rachel Starr Thomson
Robert Treskillard
Steve Trower
Fred Warren
Phyllis Wheeler
Nicole White
Rachel Wyant

The Bone House

The Bright Empires - Book Two by Stephan R. Lawhead

Blog Tour - Day 2
Been There, Done That, Got the Papyrus T-Shirt

(click image for Amazon link or click link below) The Bone House - available from:

Amazon - http://www.amazon.com/dp/159554805X/
CBD - http://www.christianbook.com/the-bone-house-bright-empires/stephen-lawhead/9781595548054/pd/548054?item_code=WW&netp_id=897894&event=ESRCG&view=details
CBD (Audio CD) - http://www.christianbook.com/the-bone-house-unabridged-audio-book/stephen-lawhead/9781401685119/pd/685119?item_code=WW&netp_id=898032&event=ESRCG&view=details

Author’s Web site - http://www.stephenlawhead.com/

I received a review copy from Thomas Nelson of The Bone House
in conjunction with the CSFF Blog Tour

Skin Map(1st book in series) Trailer:

One thing that came to mind as I read The Bone house was how some of the locations were revisited, yet no one seemed to run into their self. This seemed confusing until I read that Mina told Kit to meet a man known as the Last Man on Earth Who Everything before a later meeting when the group would reconnect. The plan to collect an item before the Burleigh men seemed like a good idea. As long as Kit's group arrived earlier, they could gain the advantage. Yet even with this type of foreknowledge, plans didn't always work out as planned. In one timeline, a close run-in with the Burleigh Men and the Duke himself led to Kit's sidekick getting shot and almost captured. Kit tried to escape, but the ley lines failed to work as expected. He became separated from his team, and then Mina couldn't locate him. Kit became stranded in another place, in another time, and with no easy way out.

Through it all, a greater plan is in place for Kit, Mina, and the others' life. It's a plan the Master Planner has had in place since the beginning; a plan that existed long before the Skin Map. The idea of a Master Plan seemed a central theme of the book, and maybe the series. Life doesn't occur haphazardly. Things often happen because of choices made. Making a bad choice doesn't cancel the Lord's plans for a life, but it may require extra work one someones part for the same result. This is something I felt Kit has yet to discover. Though Evil may seem to be winning at times, the conclusion is already known and Evil is destined to be defeated.

*Participants’ links:
Noah Arsenault
Red Bissell
Thomas Clayton Booher
Beckie Burnham
Morgan L. Busse
CSFF Blog Tour
Jeff Chapman
Carol Bruce Collett
Karri Compton
D. G. D. Davidson
Theresa Dunlap
April Erwin
Victor Gentile
Tori Greene
Ryan Heart
Bruce Hennigan
Timothy Hicks
Christopher Hopper
Janeen Ippolito
Becca Johnson
Jason Joyner
Julie
Carol Keen
Krystine Kercher
Marzabeth
Katie McCurdy
Shannon McDermott
Rebecca LuElla Miller
Joan Nienhuis
Chawna Schroeder
Kathleen Smith
Donna Swanson
Rachel Starr Thomson
Robert Treskillard
Steve Trower
Fred Warren
Phyllis Wheeler
Nicole White
Rachel Wyant

The Bone House

The Bright Empires - Book Two by Stephan R. Lawhead

Blog Tour - Day 1
Ley, Ley, La Ley Lines

(click image for Amazon link or click link below) The Bone House - available from:

Amazon - http://www.amazon.com/dp/159554805X/
CBD - http://www.christianbook.com/the-bone-house-bright-empires/stephen-lawhead/9781595548054/pd/548054?item_code=WW&netp_id=897894&event=ESRCG&view=details
CBD (Audio CD) - http://www.christianbook.com/the-bone-house-unabridged-audio-book/stephen-lawhead/9781401685119/pd/685119?item_code=WW&netp_id=898032&event=ESRCG&view=details

Author’s Web site - http://www.stephenlawhead.com/

I received a review copy from Thomas Nelson of The Bone House
in conjunction with the CSFF Blog Tour

Author Trailer:

The Bone House is second in the Bright Empires trilogy by Stephen R. Lawhead. It's rare that a second book holds my interest as much as the first. Some how, Mr, Lwhead pulls it off. Kit and Mina are back and closing on the Skin Map's location. In this book, Kit strikes me as a character akin to Ralph Hinkley in the 1980's TV series, The Greatest American Hero. He's learning as he's going becasue he doesn't have an instruction manual. This makes for an exciting read as the reader isn't quite sure what to expect as Kit rides the ley lines from place to place and time to time. Wilhelmina, Kit's former girlfriend who goes by Mina, has hit her stride in the past. She's co-owner of the hottest, and only, coffeehouse in Prague, part owner in a shipping company, and knows the Austrian Prince. Just when things seemed darkest for Kit, Mina shows up with a ley line-type GPS.

One of the things I enjoyed about the Bone House is the history slice of life Mr. Lawhead brings the reader. He seems to understand each period, easily moving between changes of manerisms and speech as the characters travel the ley lines. One of the most interesting examples for me was the character ported to the Stone Age. We know little about the people and period, but the author brought the world to life. There was little dialogue, but you almost feel the excitement as modern man learns to communicate with stone age man.

Ley lines connect times and places and we find out they aren't always running. As I read, I wondered if ley lines farther from Kit and Mina's home time and place require some kind of re-charge period. This might explain the Stone Age ley line's limited window of opportunity. The leys remind me of a computer processor. Circuits open and shut, and sometimes one-way travel is allowed, but shunted off in a new direction. Billions of possible combinations exist, and it seems impossibly complex. Yet, to the one who design it all, it makes sense.

Day 2 Blog: Been There, Done That, Got the Papyrus T-Shirt

*Participants’ links:

Noah Arsenault
Red Bissell
Thomas Clayton Booher
Beckie Burnham
Morgan L. Busse
CSFF Blog Tour
Jeff Chapman
Carol Bruce Collett
Karri Compton
D. G. D. Davidson
Theresa Dunlap
April Erwin
Victor Gentile
Tori Greene
Ryan Heart
Bruce Hennigan
Timothy Hicks
Christopher Hopper
Janeen Ippolito
Becca Johnson
Jason Joyner
Julie
Carol Keen
Krystine Kercher
Marzabeth
Katie McCurdy
Shannon McDermott
Rebecca LuElla Miller
Joan Nienhuis
Chawna Schroeder
Kathleen Smith
Donna Swanson
Rachel Starr Thomson
Robert Treskillard
Steve Trower
Fred Warren
Phyllis Wheeler
Nicole White
Rachel Wyant