Realm of Darkness by C. F. Dunn (Book Review)

Realm of Darkness

The Secret of the Journal, Book Four

By C. F. Dunn

(received in exchange for an honest review)

 

Genre- Fiction / Christian / Suspense

Published by- Lion Fiction

Copyrighted- 2016

Number of pages- 496

Age Group- Adult

Description of book- paperback, listed price- $14.99, ISBN: 978-0-78264-196-4

Emma has been working hard to put current life first and forget about the past.  It has been very hard, but she is confident she has succeeded.  She is looking forward to living with Matthew and is getting close to her family again.

Unfortunately her past is catching up to her, and she doesn’t know how scary it will become.  Who or what is it going to be?  Will she be able to get past it?

About the Author-

C. F. Dunn lives in South-East England and has written Mortal Fire, Death be not Proud, and Rope of Sand.  She has a specialist dyslexia and autism school.

My Thoughts-

Realm of Darkness, by C. F. Dunn, was the fourth book in The Secret of the Journal series.  It capitvated me.  The first book focused on Emma’s infatuation with Matthew, the second book focused on their relationship and Matthew’s secret, the third book focused on their relationship and the trials they faced with Matthew’s long life, and this book focused what their future could be like, until her past comes to town.

I was liked that this book had a list of characters from Maine and England.  I also liked the synopsis of the other three books.  It really helped me remember who was who and what happened in each book.  Seeing what the Lynes Coat of Arms looked like was fun. 

Once I was reminded of what happened in the other three books, I was ready to get started.  Dunn did a wonderful job of including a lot of detail, which kept me captivated until the end.  I had to keep reading.  I wanted to know what Guy wanted from Emma and more about Emma and Matthew’s wedding plans.

You don’t need to read the other books in the series first, but I recommend it, so you can know everything that has happened.  I’m looking forward to the last book in the series, Fearful Symmetry.

Disclosure of Material Connection- I received Realm of Darkness, by C. F. Dunn, for free from the Kregel Publications’ Blog Tour.  All links were current when posted.  I was not required to write a positive review.  The opinions I have expressed are my own or those of my family.  I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255.

Rope of Sand by C. F. Dunn (Review)

Rope of Sand (Book 3, The Secret of the Journal)

By Sue Duffy

(received in exchange for an honest review)

 

Genre- Fiction /

Published by- Lion Fiction

Copyrighted- 2014

Number of pages- 462

Age Group- Adult 

Description of book- paperback, listed price- $14.99, ISBN 978-1-78264-087-5

Rope of Sand, by C. F. Dunn, is the third book in The Secret of the Journal series.  Emma learned what Matthew’s secret was in Death be not Proud and now she is going to meet his family.  She isn’t sure what to think and they are not either.  His family is leery, because it has not always gone well when people learn the family’s secret.

Emma’s problems with Professor Staahl have not ended either.  He  has taken her to court.  Will Emma have to expose Matthew’s secret to keep herself safe?  Will Matthew’s family accept her?

About the Author-

C. F. Dunn lives in South-East England and has written Mortal Fire and Death be not Proud.  She has a specialist dyslexia and autism school.

My thoughts-

Rope of Sand, by C. F. Dunn, was the third book in The Secret of the Journal series.  I thought it was as intriguing as the other books.  The first book focused on Emma’s infatuation with Matthew, the second book focused on their relationship and Matthew’s secret, and this book focused on their relationship and the trials they faced with their special situation.

I was very glad that this book had a list of characters and a synopsis of the other two books.  It really helped me remember who was who and what happened in each book.  I was ready to start the book and enjoy it after that.  It was a long book at 462 pages, but Dunn did a wonderful job of including a lot of detail, which kept me captivated until the end.

While you do not need to read the other books in the series first, I do recommend that you do, so you can know everything that has happened.  I am looking forward to the next book in the series, Realm of Darkness.

Disclosure of Material Connection- I received Rope of Sand, by C. F. Dunn, for free from the Kregel Publications’ Blog Tour.  All links were current when posted.  I was not required to write a positive review.  The opinions I have expressed are my own or those of my family.  I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255.

Death Be Not Proud by C. F. Dunn (Review)

Death Be Not Proud (Secret of the Journal, book 2)

by C. F. Dunn

(received in exchange for an honest review)

 

Genre- Christian / Fiction

Published by- Lion Hudson

Copyrighted- 2013

Number of pages- 384

Age Group- Adult

Description of book- paperback, listed price- $14.99, ISBN 978-178264-034-9

Death Be Not Proud, by C. F. Dunn, begins where Mortal Fire ended.  Professor Emma D’Eresby goes home to England after being viciously attacked by a colleague.  After she begins to recover from the attack she spends time reading the journal that discusses Matthew Lynes, the man from America she has fallen in love with.  Will she be able to face what she has learned?  Will she still love Matthew?  Can her family accept him?

Also included in the book is a list of characters, maps of Stamford and Rutland, author’s notes, and what has happened in the story thus far. 

Excerpt from Death Be Not Proud!

About the Author-

C.F. Dunn lives in England with her husband and daughters where she writes and runs a specialist dyslexia and autism school.

 

My thoughts-

I thought Death Be Not Proud, by C. F. Dunn was better than the first book in the series, Mortal Fire.

While the first book focused primarily on Emma D’Eresby’s infatuation with Matthew Lynes, this book focused more on finding out the mystery behind who Mathew is.  I was very glad to have that as the focus, not so much the desperate woman.  I’m not going to spoil any surprises, but I was surprised when I learned the mystery of Matthew.

I always enjoy reading any extras about the book, the author may share, you can often learn a lot.  I enjoyed learning about the area of England that is represented in this novel.  Dunn took a lot of time to research the area and she did a good job of mixing fiction and fact.

I would recommend this book to those who like mystery and a little romance.  I’m looking forward to the next book in The Secret of the Journal series, Rope of Sand. 

Disclosure of Material Connection- I received Death Be Not Proud, by C. F. Dunn, for free from the Kregel Publications’ Blog Tour.  All links were current when posted.  I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own or those of my family.  I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255.

Mortal Fire by C.F. Dunn

Series- The Secret of the Journal

Genre- Mystery/Suspense

Published by- Monarch Books

Copyrighted- 2012

Number of pages- 382

Age Group- High School

Description of book- paperback, listed price- $14.99, ISBN 978-0-85721-202-3

 

A young professor, Emma, has come to the United States from England to search for a journal that has interested her for years.  She gets more than she expected.  She makes new friends, has one man interested in her, is interested in another man, and that’s not all.  There have been attacks on campus.

She finds the journal and begins to read it, but will she be able the truth of her life and what the journal may reveal.

Excerpt from the book!

About the Author-

C.F. Dunn lives in England with her husband and daughters where she writes and runs a specialist dyslexia and autism school.

 

 

 

 

 

 

My thoughts-

I have read this book twice and it gave me more to think about the second time.  I noticed more of the mystery and intrigue, especially that which surrounded Matthew.  I am very curious about him; he doesn’t eat, drink, or seem to sleep.  Emma is also an interesting character.  She becomes so dependent upon Matthew both before and after she was attacked.  All of the danger and the romantic drama made this first book in the series seem like the Twilight series by Stephanie Meyer.

Emma believes in Christ, but she doesn’t seem to take advantage of the comfort that Jesus could offer her.  She seems to be really focused on protecting her virtue from Matthew.  It seems normal to me, but still strange to be protecting her virtue so much as she is so dependent on him.

I thought this book was good and I am looking forward to the next one.  You will have to read the book yourself to see what you think. 

Disclosure of Material Connection- I received Mortal Fire by C.F. Dunn for free from the Kregel Publications’ Blog Tour.  All links were current when posted. I was not required to write a positive review.  The opinions I have expressed are my own.  I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255.