Friday, January 10, 2014

My Hope is Found by Joanne Bischof A REVIEW

After finally finding love with his sweet bride Lonnie, Gideon’s heart was torn when a woman from his past claimed to be his true and rightful wife, forcing him away from his family. God’s merciful hand saw Gideon through the heartache, and with Cassie’s blessing, he is able to return home. But his journey back through the Blue Ridge Mountains will hold a trial he never anticipated.

Meanwhile, Lonnie determines to seal off her heart from Gideon, convinced he is lost to her forever. Strengthening her resolve to move on is her growing fondness for the handsome Scotsman, Toby McKee—the young reverend she has come to care for deeply. His proposal of marriage offers a bright future for her and her young son.

Yearning to allow joy back into her life, Lonnie must put aside the broken pieces of her heart that still love Gideon. When he returns to find her betrothed to another, he has to place his hope in God, trusting that the One who redeemed their love once can do it again.

Series: The Cadence of Grace (Book 3)
Paperback: 352 pages
Publisher: Multnomah Books (October 15, 2013)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1601424256
ISBN-13: 978-1601424259
Product Dimensions: 8.1 x 5.5 x 1.1 inches
Shipping Weight: 11.2 ounces



ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Christy Award-finalist and author of Be Still My Soul and Though My Heart is Torn, Joanne Bischof has a deep passion for Appalachian culture and writing stories that shine light on God’s grace and goodness. She lives in the mountains of Southern California with her husband and their three children. When she’s not weaving Appalachian romance, she’s blogging about faith, folk music, and the adventures of country living that bring her stories to life. You can visit her website at www.joannebischof.com.


MY REVIEW
   My Hope is Found by Joanne Bischof is book three in the Cadence of Grace series. I didn’t read book one, but loved book two. Book three My Hope is Found is good, but it lacked what book two had.
  I’m glad at how it ended but to get to that end it wasn’t that great. It didn’t keep my attention and was hard to finish.
  I don’t want to give the story away but I find it hard to believe that someone who loved someone would give them up and how someone could love another person when they loved that person so much in the first place.
  Some parts were rather touching and it was full of love and tenderness, but just not what I expected or hoped would happen in this third book. Lonnie, Gideon and Toby are intriguing characters but they could have been so much better. I do recommend this book, but it wasn’t a favorite of mine.

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Thanks to WaterBrookMultnomah for providing this book for review. 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

The Wedding Planners of Butternut Creek, Jane Myers Perrine A REVIEW

The ladies of Butternut Creek Christian Church known as the Widows have always taken pride in their infallible matchmaking. They've succeeded again, and having found the perfect wife for Pastor Adam, they're ready to start planning the wedding. The one problem is that Adam has yet to propose. Clearly he still needs their help.

Meanwhile, Adam's sister Hannah, a doctor, has returned from work in refugee camps, exhausted from the horrors she's seen. Though physically weak, Hannah becomes animated when verbally sparring with Gabe Borden, the high school basketball coach. The Widows, however, see sparks of a different kind between them and are soon up to their matchmaking ways once again.

Series: Butternut Creek (Book 3)
Paperback: 384 pages
Publisher: FaithWords (November 5, 2013)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0892969032
ISBN-13: 978-0892969036
Product Dimensions: 8 x 5.1 x 0.6 inches
Shipping Weight: 11.4 ounces



ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Jane Myers Perrine started writing while in grade school. Although her spelling was terrible--she blames that on dyslexia--her third-grade teacher predicted she'd be an author. Jane attended Kansas State University. Majoring in both English and Spanish, she read the best literature in both languages. After years as a Spanish teacher and minister, she began writing. Her novels include Regency settings and Western historicals as well as stories which take place in the beautiful Hill Country of Texas where she now resides. An award-winning author, she presently writes about a young minister, Adam Jordan, and his life in Butternut Creek, TX.

MY REVIEW
  I read book two in the Butternut Creek series entitled The Matchmakers of Butternut Creek and really loved it. This book The Wedding Planners of Butternut Creek was really good, but not as good as book two in my opinion.
  I love the description of Butternut Creek and it reminds me of Jan Karon’s Mitford books, but this story was a little slow and lacked what the last one had.
  I don’t think anyone would let a bunch of older ladies plan their wedding and tell them what to do and how to do it. It doesn’t matter that they are members of the church or not.
 Then they try to be a matchmaker to the pastors sister and she is still recovering from illness and isn’t doing well. I didn’t like that part.
  The part I did like of this book was how everyone helped when a tornado went through a small town close by. How they worked and supported the victims and lent a hand in all ways they could.
  This was a fine book, but not on the top of my favorites. I will although recommend it for it is full of fun, hardships and love.

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I received my free copy from Sarah Reck at Faith Words/HachetteBookGroup, for my review. 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

To Know You By Shannon Ethridge and Kathryn Mackel

Julia Whittaker’s rocky past yielded two daughters, both given up for adoption as infants. Now she must find them to try to save her son.

Julia and Matt Whittaker’s son has beaten the odds for thirteen years only to have the odds—and his liver—crash precipitously. The only hope for his survival is a “living liver” transplant, but the transplant list is long and Dillon’s time is short. His two older half-sisters, born eighteen months apart to two different fathers, offer his only hope for survival.

But can Julia ask a young woman—someone she surrendered to strangers long ago and has never spoken with—to make such a sacrifice to save a brother she’s never known? Can she muster the courage to journey back into a shame-filled season of her life, face her choices and their consequences, and find any hope of healing?

And what if she discovers in her own daughters’ lives that a history of foolish choices threatens to repeat itself? Julia knows she’s probably embarking on a fool’s errand—searching for the daughters she abandoned only now that she needs something from them. But love compels Julia to take this journey. Can grace and forgiveness compel her daughters to join her?

Paperback: 368 pages
Publisher: Thomas Nelson (October 15, 2013)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1401688667
ISBN-13: 978-1401688660
Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.4 x 1.1 inches
Shipping Weight: 8 ounces



ABOUT THE AUTHORS
Shannon Ethridge is a million-copy best-selling author, speaker, lay counselor, and advocate for healthy sexuality with a master's degree in counseling/human relations from Liberty University. She has spoken to youth, college students, and adults since 1989 and her passions include: Challenging adults and teens to embrace a life of sexual integrity, encouraging married couples in their pursuit of sexual and emotional fulfillment, counseling women who have looked for love in all the wrong places and equipping parents to instill sexual values in children at an early age.

Her passion for healthy sexuality actually began in mortuary college. Her first career choice, becoming a mortician, led Ethridge to work on dead bodies. Many she embalmed were young people who had died from AIDS or committed suicide as a result an HIV positive diagnosis. Because of her own promiscuous teenage years, she knew it was a miracle that she was standing over the embalming table rather than laying on top of it. These experiences inspired her to begin speaking boldly and bluntly to teen, college-age, and adult audiences about the benefits of sexual integrity. She has taught and counseled thousands of young singles and married couples over the past decade. She is the author of 18 books, including the best-selling Every Woman's Battle series, the 5-book Completely His series, and her new book for the mainstream market, The Sexually Confident Wife.

Shannon has been featured on the cover of Today's Christian Woman Magazinee, and is a frequent guest on international radio & television shows such as The 700 Club, Life Today with James & Betty Robison, FamilyLife Today with Dennis Rainey, and New Life Live! with Stephen Arterburn. She has also been published in numerous magazines such as Focus on the Family, Brio, and LifeWay and is the winner of a Gold Medallion Award for Excellence in Publishing.

Although grateful for the opportunities to influence this generation as a writer and speaker, Shannon remains most passionate about her role as a wife and best friend to her husband of 18 years, Greg, and a mother and cheerleader to their two children, Erin (17) and Matthew (14).

Shannon Ethridge, M.A.
Author and Advocate for Healthy Sexuality & Spirituality
www.sexuallyconfidentwife.com
www.shannonethridge.com

Kathryn Mackel is a best-selling author and acclaimed screenwriter for Disney and Fox. She was on the screenwriting team for Left Behind: The Movie and Frank Peretti's Hangman's Curse. She is the acclaimed author of The Surrogate, The Departed, and The Hidden and resides in Boston, Massachusetts, with her husband.


MY REVIEW
  To Know You by Shannon Ethridge and Kathryn Mackel is an excellent book that I loved reading. It is full of real life situations and drama.
  I love the daughters Destiny and Chloe/Hope. They have problems and hurts, but also have sweet hearts even though they try to hide them.
  Each of the girls are at decision points in their lives. Very critical points that holds many outcomes.
 This book isn’t lighthearted and full of love and fairy tale endings. It is about what life is like sometimes.
 The characters and scenery are very well developed. They seem like real people and you want them to make the right decisions and be happy.
 I also love Julia and Matt’s son Dillon. He’s thirteen years old and dying but has a heart of gold and is full of optimism.
  This book To Know You will have you laughing, crying and reading until the wee hours of the morning.
I highly recommend this delightful book full of life.


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Disclosure of Material Connection: I receive books free from Thomas Nelson Publishers as part of their Book Review Blogger program/BookSneeze. I am not required to write a positive review. The opinions I express are my own. This is true of any book I review for any publisher or author; I will not review books where a positive review is required and I will always express my own opinions of each book received and read.

National Geographic's Who's Who in the Bible by Jean-Pierre Isbouts A REVIEW



NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC’S WHO’S WHO IN THE BIBLE: Unforgettable People and Timeless Stories from Genesis to Revelation (ISBN: 9781426211591;


Written by best-selling author Jean-Pierre Isbouts, Who's Who in the Bible is the ultimate reference guide to the men and women in the Bible, featuring more than 2,000 entries spanning Genesis to Revelation.

From the author of In the Footsteps of Jesus and The Biblical World comes a vibrant family reference that brings to life the fascinating characters of the Old and New Testatments of the Bible. From the fall of Adam and Eve to Judas' betrayal of Jesus, the key events of the Bible are expressed through the lives of hundreds of people. Told through exquisite art and artifacts, intriguing sidebars, and unique family tree features, this illuminating volume tells the stories of Biblical characters and highlights their greater meaning for mankind. Illustrated with lavish color photography and exquisite historical artwork, this reference runs chronologically, with each person listed by order of appearance.

a vibrant family reference that brings to life the fascinating characters of the Old and New Testaments written by JEAN-PIERRE ISBOUTS, the bestselling author of “In the Footsteps of Jesus” and “National Geographic’s The Biblical World: An Illustrated Atlas.”
From the fall of Adam and Eve to Judas's betrayal of Jesus, the key events of the Bible are expressed through the lives of hundreds of people. Each of the five chapters begins with a comprehensive historical overview that sets the stage for the events and characters that follow and detail the political and historical forces at play in the events described. This overview is augmented with award-winning maps, stunning National Geographic photographs that lend the text a sense of place, a time line that places the events in context. The chapters end with a comprehensive alphabetical directory of the characters that appear in that part of the Bible.



Hardcover: 384 pages
Publisher: National Geographic (November 5, 2013)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1426211597
ISBN-13: 978-1426211591
Product Dimensions: 10.9 x 9.4 x 1.3 inches
Shipping Weight: 3.8 pounds



ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Dr. Jean-Pierre Isbouts is a humanities scholar and graduate professor at Fielding Graduate University in Santa Barbara, California. He has published widely on the history of Judaism, Christianity and Islam. His website is www.jpisbouts.org.







MY REVIEW
 This is a very beautiful book with exquisite art from artists such as Rembrandt and Michelangelo to name a few with very informative maps and family trees.
  It goes from Genesis to Revelation telling of the good and evil people in the Bible.
 I like the alphabetical listings of all the people in each book. It tells you their parents, siblings, spouse and children. What they did in the Bible.
  It is full of liberal views and some information is wrong the time lines and about who wrote some of the books.
  If you know your Bible this is a very nice book to have, but if you are a young Christian and don’t know the Bible well you shouldn’t believe everything you read here. It's looked at through a lens of history and science, but not God's story and plan for mankind.
This is taken at a non-denominational perspective and does not be consistent with  any particular theological direction. So you know it is from a Science view and not something that is believed.
  I believe that the author thinks of this as a story and not as fact. Not much is mentioned about Jesus.
  So I will recommend this book only to those who know their Bible and can see the right and wrong written in these pages.

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Free copy from Media Masters Publicity and National Geographic for the purpose of review. 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

Friday, December 6, 2013

When Calls the Heart DVD Review


ABOUT WHEN CALLS THE HEART
When Calls the Heart is the story of Elizabeth Thatcher (Drayton), a young teacher accustomed to her high society life, who receives her first classroom post in a prairie town in the Western Frontier lead by headstrong coalminer widows Abigail (Loughlin) and Frances (Smart). She is determined to prove to her family that she is brave enough to live on her own, but struggles with her own fears and doubts. When she discovers her late Aunt Elizabeth's (Grace) secret diary, Elizabeth learns she was a pioneer woman herself, a teacher in the frontier who struggled with prairie life and fell in love with a Royal Canadian Mountie (Amell). Inspired by her aunt's hopeful words and unfaltering determination, Elizabeth decides to embark on her own adventure, using the diary as her guide and family friend Edward, another Mountie (Sharman), as her support. Based on the Canadian West Book Series by Janette Oke, well renown author of over 75 books, most notably Loves Comes Softly

Actors: Maggie Grace, Stephen Amell, Lori Laughlin, Jean Smart
Directors: Michael Landon Jr.
Format: Color, NTSC, Widescreen
Language: English
Region: Region 1 (U.S. and Canada only. Read more about DVD formats.)
Number of discs: 1
Rated: Unrated
Studio: Millennium
DVD Release Date: December 31, 2013
Run Time: 89 minutes


Michael Landon Jr. – Director:  Michael Landon Jr., son of the late television legend Michael Landon, has been in the film business for over 25 years.  With two of the highest rated films in the history of the Hallmark channel, and several top ten releases targeted to the Christian market, Michael has become known for creating heartfelt, inspiring films that connect to the family.  He has developed and/or produced, directed, and written screenplays for Fox, CBS, NBC, Disney, Sony, Lifetime, and others.

About Word Entertainment:  A leader in the music industry for over 60 years, Word Entertainment, a Warner/Curb company, is a unique, comprehensive entertainment company comprised of multi-faceted artist service departments including publishing, merchandising, booking, and online initiatives. Word Entertainment represents some of the top names and brands in music, including Meredith Andrews, Chris August, BarlowGirl, Francesca Battistelli, Big Daddy Weave, Jason Castro, Patrick Ryan Clark, Everfound, for KING & COUNTRY, Group 1 Crew, Love & The Outcome, Dara Maclean, Point Of Grace and Sidewalk Prophets and is home to 25 Entertainment, Word Distribution (representing Curb Records and Big Idea/VeggieTales among others), Word Print, Word Films, Word Music Publishing and Word Label Group’s Word Records, Word Worship and Fervent Records.



MY REVIEW
I’ve read all of Janette Oke’s Canadian West series which starts with the book When Calls the Heart. I really loved this series and while this DVD When Calls the Heart is a lot alike the book it is different also. I wish the DVD was more like the book. In the book it just tells the story of Elizabeth and Wynn but the DVD tells of two separate stories. The Elizabeth of the book is the Aunt in this DVD while another Elizabeth is the niece. They both are from privileged families and both want to be school teachers, both ends up teaching in the Wild West. Another thing both start to like Canadian Mounties.  It’s like a story told twice in this movie.
  I do love the characters and the acting is tremendously good. The settings and scenery are excellent. This could be a 5-star DVD if it only had one story line.
  Even though I don’t like the two story lines I still think this is an excellent DVD to buy and watch. Great love story.


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“Disclosure of Material Connection: I received one of the products  mentioned above for free in the hope that I would mention it on my blog. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

Thursday, December 5, 2013

Unspoken by Dee Henderson A REVIEW

ABOUT UNSPOKEN
Charlotte Graham is at the center of the most famous kidnapping in Chicago history.

The task force of FBI and local cops found her two abductors, killed them, rescued her, but it took four very long years. The fact she was found less than three miles from her home, had been there the entire time, haunts them. She's changed her identity, found a profession she loves, and rebuilt her life.

She's never said a word--to the cops, to her doctors, to family--about those four years.

A family legacy has brought her back to Chicago where a reporter is writing a book about the kidnapping. The cops who worked the case are cooperating with him. Her options are limited: Hope the reporter doesn't find the full truth, or break her silence about what happened. And her silence is what has protected her family for years.

Bryce Bishop doesn't know her past, he only knows she has coins to sell from her grandfather's estate--and that the FBI director for the Chicago office made the introduction. The more he gets to know Charlotte, the more interested he becomes, an interest encouraged by those closest to her. But nothing else is working in his favor--she's decided she is single for life, she struggles with her faith, and she's willing to forego a huge inheritance to keep her privacy. She's not giving him much of an opening to work with.

Charlotte wants to trust him. She needs to tell him what happened. Because a crime cops thought was solved, has only opened another chapter...

Paperback: 448 pages
Publisher: Bethany House Publishers (October 1, 2013)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0764211714
ISBN-13: 978-0764211713
Product Dimensions: 5.5 x 8.5 inches
Shipping Weight: 14.4 ounces

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Dee Henderson is the author of 14 best-selling novels, including the acclaimed O'Malley series and the Uncommon Heroes series. As a leader in the inspirational romantic suspense category, her books have won or been nominated for several prestigious industry awards, including the RWA's RITA Award, the Christy Award, the ECPA Gold Medallion, the Holt Medallion, the National Readers' Choice Award, and the Golden Quill. Dee is a lifelong resident of Illinois and is active online. Visit her at www.deehenderson.com.




MY REVIEW
  Unspoken by Dee Henderson isn’t one of my favorite books. I LOVE the O’Malley series and it is so well written. Unspoken started our really slow. It talks a lot about Bryce’s coin business and the coins Charlotte sells him. It is very boring for people who don’t know or like coins. It really took a lot to get into this book.
  I love how well Bryce treated and took care of Charlotte. He married her even though he didn’t love her, because he thought it was the right thing. I really don’t see many people if any who would marry someone just to help them.
  Charlotte inherits a lot of money and doesn’t want it and wants someone else to help her give it away.
  This was a really long story and I did enjoy the last part. I like how tender and loving Bryce is to Charlotte even though I don’t think a person would be without loving them.
This was an O.K. book, but if you want to read some fantastic books of Dee’s read her earlier books.


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Thank you to the  Author/Publicist  for providing this book for review. 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

The Promise: Birth of a Messiah REVIEW & GIVEAWAY

ABOUT THE PROMISE: BIRTH OF A MESSIAH
In ancient Israel, during the days of King Herod, a young couple’s world is turned upside down when the prophecy of a long-awaited deliverer unfolds upon their lives. They must trust in God’s promise in the midst of rising challenges, and their faithfulness is rewarded as they witness the most surprising and glorious event of all human history – the promise fulfilled in the birth of the Messiah.

The Promise: The Birth of the Messiah is an animated musical celebration of one of the most pivotal events in all human history, the birth of Jesus Christ.

This beautifully crafted musical is a faithful adaptation of the birth narrative from the Gospel of Luke in both story and song. The animated production leverages optical motion technology to blend traditional animation techniques with the performance talents of ballet dancers and dramatic stage actors. The result is a unique and worshipful story experience that will inspire audiences young and old for years to come.



Actors: Clara Scott, Michael Daniel Murphy, Lon Vining, Kathleen McAuliffe, Glen Bowser
Directors: Todd Shaffer
Producers: Ronald Mezey
Format: Animated, DVD Single, NTSC, Dolby
Region: Region 1 (U.S. and Canada only. Read more about DVD formats.)
Number of discs: 1
Studio: Glorious Films
Run Time: 45 minutes

http://www.gloriousfilms.com/thepromise/

TODD SHAFFER (Creative Director) has more than 20 years of production experience with a wide-breadth of versatility, having worked on over one hundred projects which include commercials, feature films, television shows, animated movie titles, and game cinematics. His career began as an assistant director and animator at the oldest commercial animation studio in Hollywood, Playhouse Pictures, and has since worked for a dozen notable animation studios in Los Angeles. For 15 of those years he has worked for studios in both Los Angeles and Montreal, working with A-list animated celebrities such as Mickey Mouse, Tony the Tiger and the Keebler Elves. His advertising clients have included many top tier corporations such as Microsoft, Disney and Pepsi.

Todd is also a preaching elder at Renaissance Church in Montreal which is part of the Canadian National Baptist Convention, an affiliate of the Southern Baptist Convention. He studied biblical hermeneutics in the Logos program at Grace Community Church, Sun Valley, California, pastored by Dr. John MacArthur, and served as a deacon there for many years. Todd and his wife have four children and live in a suburb of Montreal.

RONALD MEZEY (Producer) has worked in the film and television industry for over 25 years. He began his career as a production assistant, and over the next fifteen years became a successful 1st Assistant-Director. This experience brought him to the Motion Picture Bond Company, where as Vice-President of production he monitored risk for the company’s portfolio of productions. In 2000, Ron was recruited by Film Finances, the world leader in completion guarantees, as Executive Vice-President to manage their Canadian business. Three years later he became principal owner of Big Bang Digital Studios, producing high-end CGI animation for feature films, Imax, television, video games and commercials, including the Emmy-nominated children’s series Bigfoot Presents: Meteor and the Mighty Monster Trucks. Since 2010, Ron has been developing his own entertainment products under the Glorious Films and Classics Animated brands. Ron lives in Montreal with his wife and daughter.

LON VINING (Director of Outreach) has been an ordained Southern Baptist pastor and missionary for over 20 years. He has a B.A. in Biblical Studies and is pursuing a masters in theology. Since 2007, he has served in Montreal as a church planter with the North American Mission Board (SBC) and pastor of Providence Church of the Canadian National Baptist Convention. Previously he worked as Director of Mission Northwest Arkansas at the 20,000 member Cross Church in Springdale, Arkansas. He has also planted churches through NAMB in Colorado and Arkansas and served with the International Mission Board in Tanzania, East Africa. Lon is excited to bring together previous experiences as a writer and marketing director with that of missionary and pastor to his new role of Director of Outreach and Bible consultant at Glorious. Lon is also the voice of Gabriel in The Promise. He and his wife have four children and live west of Montreal.

MY REVIEW
  The Promise Birth of the Messiah from Glorious Films is one of the best Christmas animated DVDs I have ever seen. What is even better is this movie is a musical and very, very well done. The whole DVD  tells the story from when Joseph and Mary met, get engaged and up until Jesus is born and they see Simeon in the Temple.
  The Promise is a very uplifting, precious story and it tells the birth story of Jesus as it actually happened in the Bible.
  The scenes and costumes are very realistic. Clara Scott and Michael Daniel Murphy do a great job as Mary and Joseph. Their singing voices are so superb. This DVD The Promise is for the whole family, from your youngest to your oldest family members. It can and will be enjoyed by all.
 I highly recommend this DVD The Promise-Birth of the Messiah. A new Christmas movie to become a classic.

“Disclosure of Material Connection: I received one of the productS mentioned above for free in the hope that I would mention it on my blog. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

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SORRY THIS HAS SUCH A SHORT TIME FOR YOU TO LEAVE A COMMENT, BUT WE WANT YOU TO GET IT BEFORE CHRISTMAS

THE PROMISE GIVEAWAY
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Contest is only open in the U.S. and void where prohibited. Chances of winning are based on the number of entries and winner is draw from a non-biased third party- Random.org.  ENTRY DEADLINE December 12, 2013