Monday, December 2, 2019

Lone Falcon by Merrijoy Wennerlind Buist


About the Book


Book: Lone Falcon
Author: Merrijoy Wennerlind Buist
Genre: Christian Romance/Coming of Age
Release Date: October 2, 2018

 What if you had to choose between your friends and your faith?

It is 1971. Eighteen year-old Carrie Falconer goes to college and joins the rowing team, where she receives praise and popularity for the first time. She also finds her first boyfriend. Not just anyone, but the heart-throb men’s crew captain! As coxswain of the varsity squad, she leads her team to four gold medals, allowing them to qualify for Nationals. However, while pursuing her collegiate dreams, she has left behind most of her traditional religious beliefs. While preparing for the National tournament, she is hit by a life changing consequence and is forced to decide between pleasing her team or letting them down by following what she believes to be the right path.  












Click HERE to get your copy.









 








My Review



Lone Falcon really speaks to the college-age kid who finds their faith challenged like never before. We start college many times as teenagers still and for most of us, it's our first time out from our parent's roof. We have to figure out things, and sometimes that includes questioning, including faith that seems so irrelevant when surrounded with so many peers. Carrie is no exception. This book really shows the slow fade that sin brings us to starting with just skipping church which seems innocent enough until you just don't go anymore, and then start making decisions based around peer pressure, etc. The book wasn't overly judgmental especially for the time frame it is set in. I found the backdrop with the rowing team and all the ins and outs to be an interesting dive into something I have no knowledge of. The book was a little slow for me, and it took me a while to get interested. I'm not sure how applicable this would be to YA readers because it's not contemporary with contemporary language, but I feel any of us regardless of age should be reminded about the importance of staying firm in the faith.











I received a complimentary copy of this book, and all opinions given are entirely my own.























About the Author







The first four chapters of Lone Falcon and the general plot were written when Merrijoy Wennerlind, was a student at the University of Washington. The rest was finished up years later by Merrijoy (MJ.) Buist who worked hard to keep her 24-year-old spirit alive.








MJ. is currently a Diaconal Minister at the Anaheim United Methodist Church. A native of Seattle and a UW graduate, she lives in Santa Ana, California with her husband and two sons. She is currently working on the sequel, Lone Choices, which tells how Carrie lives out her decision. You can reach MJ. at her facebook page: Merrijoy Wennerlind Buist@mjwb





 

 

 








More from MJ







How far would you go to research your book? Would you sit on a narrow crew boat with eight other women and learn to row? That’s what I did to get a feel for what my main character, Carrie Falconer, in Lone Falcon experiences as she joins and excels in the college crew team.

Why did I choose rowing over another sport? I couldn’t resist the metaphor of steering your own boat, which led me to the sport of rowing and its navigator, the coxswain. I fell in love with the idea of choosing your own path and what happens when one goes off course.

You, the reader, will follow Carrie from her strict Christian upbringing to attending a secular college, experiencing her joys and victories as she rises to popularity, and of her first love, the hunky Lenny, men’s team captain. You will struggle along with her as she makes a life decision of whether to turn back to her faith or do what her friends ask.

I originally wrote Lone Falcon in response to all the Young Adult (YA) books and T.V. shows of the times which said, “Your parents and their beliefs are all wrong, do what your friends and the times say.” In the wisdom I’ve acquired in my years of mothering, earning my master’s degree, and becoming a Minister, I adjusted my theme to making your own choices, not what others and society may tell you to do.

I hope this book will encourage other brave young women to live up to what they believe within and not be influenced by what others without tell them to do.












Blog Stops






Rebecca Tews , November 23



Blossoms and Blessings, November 24 (Author Interview)



CarpeDiem, November 25






Texas Book-aholic, November 29



janicesbookreviews, November 30



Through the Fire Blogs, December 1 (Author Interview)




A Reader’s Brain, December 3




Godly Book Reviews, December 5

















Giveaway















To celebrate her tour, M.J. is giving away the grand prize of a $50 Barnes and Nobles Gift Card, autographed copy of Lone Falcon, and autographed copy of Lone Choices when it comes out!!



Be sure to comment on the blog stops for nine extra entries into the giveaway! Click the link below to enter.











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