Last to Call - a short story

This is the first of the short stories inspired by YOU, my dedicated readers. I appreciate all of you so much, and the contest I held a while back was only the beginning of showing you how deeply I appreciate your following my blog. This short story is a little longer than I intended, but once I began discovering the characters and situation, I simply couldn't stop until they'd had at least a piece of their say. In fact, I'm thinking of expanding this one into a full-length novel at some point. After you read it, please tell me: What would you think about this one becoming a full-blown novel?

*Copyright 2018 by Andrea Cox.

Last to Call

inspired by Angela R. Watts

An owl screeched as Tristan tromped through the dusk-shadowed Garden of the Gods park. It was his favorite place to think after a long day’s work at the shop. Being a mechanic was tough, but he wouldn’t trade it for anything.

He checked his phone. No texts or voice mails. Why was it that the one person you wanted to ring you was always the last to call?

Complex Grace

Hello, everyone. Today (Sunday) is one of those days where I'm not exactly sure what I want to write about. Nothing is really jumping to mind other than a One Word update. Now, I'm still contemplating what I'm learning, so I am unable to fully express everything. Please bear with me as I share with you as much as I can.

It's been a fascinating journey so far. I just hope my failing words shine at least a little light on the beauty of God's work in my life. Perhaps His Light will shine through this article to someone.

If it's one thing I've learned about grace this year it's that it's complex. Grace is complex in and of itself, but there are even more complexities about how many things it is connected with.

So far, I've found out it's connected to trust in God, faithfulness (of God to us and us to God), and it's forgiving others (especially when they don't deserve it, which reflects what Jesus did for us on the cross) and ourselves. That last one--the forgiving of oneself--is sometimes the trickiest one to learn, but I'm certainly trying hard. I figure it will be greatly freeing once I get the hang of it, thanks be solely to God.

No Other Will Do by Karen Witemeyer

Last month, I enjoyed a fun story written by Karen Witemeyer that features a women's colony. Here's my review, as posted on Goodreads and NetGalley:

FTC DISCLAIMER: I received a complimentary copy of this book from NetGalley. A positive review was not required. These are my honest thoughts and opinions.

Boy, oh boy! Or should I say, Gal, oh gal!

This adventure featuring a women’s colony was a delightful tale that kept me in stitches from page one through the finale. I can hardly wait to get to the next installment or two. I really liked how it featured an explosives expert as well as the suffragette movement. Though the latter is not my favorite topic ever, and a couple of moments in the story were a tad abrasive in pushing women’s rights, I thought it was handled in a funny way in most instances, which took the sting right out of the women-only stance that irks me. Ms. Witemeyer’s trademark humor was laced into every aspect of this book, sometimes delicately while other times were in-your-face hysterical.

Nothin' Beats a Classic!

I love a good classic. I've been trying to add in a few classics to my reading list in the last few years, as I didn't read very many of them when I was growing up. Are there any other contemporary-written novel lovers out there who'd like a bit of a nudge to dip back into the classics?

I think I can help with that!

In June, the challenge is to read classic or vintage books. To me, these are books published at least 50 years ago. Please include the year of publication when sharing which books you'll read for this challenge.

Need some ideas?

A Perfect (for me) Stay-cation!

Summer is practically upon us, as thermometers and The Weather Channel folks have been telling us. What are your plans? Are you getting ready for a vacation?

Or how about a stay-cation?

That's what I'm doing right now!

I have two weeks off from my copyediting and tutoring jobs but no money to travel this time. So, I've decided a stay-cation is the perfect vacation for me. How am I spending it?

Catching up on household chores, for one thing, but that sounds like too much work to focus on for long.


The fun stuff includes:

Things I Never Told You by Beth K. Vogt + GIVEAWAY

Beth Vogt recently switched from writing contemporary romances to penning women's fiction. She's talented at both genres, but I think she's found her niche. I guzzled her latest story, Things I Never Told You, in only three days.

Here's my review, as published on Goodreads. The pictures here are new for your benefit, friends. They include a few of my favorite quotes from the book. Stay tuned for the giveaway at the end.

FTC DISCLOSURE: I received a complimentary copy of this book. A positive review was not required. What follows are my honest thoughts and opinions.

This five-star, page-flying book felt very much like a soul-deep, sister-love letter to Ms. Vogt's own sisters, which enhanced the emotional aspect of this story for me. Surprisingly, I only teared up a couple of times in this maiden read. I have a feeling that will change in future readings. This is an amazing and deeply emotional story.

One thing I really enjoyed about it was how the mood reminded me of one of my favorite movies: Collateral Beauty. Both that movie and this book feature journeys toward accepting the realities of loss and grief. That's a journey that's crucial to our existence, because nothing lasts forever here on Earth.

The pace of this story was super fast. I flew through over 400 pages in only three days. Three days, y'all! That's pretty epic for me and that many pages. The content of the story -- all the ups and downs, drama, misunderstandings, love, passion, and heart of the Thatcher sisters' lives -- wasn't always easy to read about, but the toughness of this story is handled with such exquisite grace and redemption and humor that I couldn't help but become completely immersed in the story world Ms. Vogt had created. Of course, her characters helped out a lot, because they were very realistic and, quite frankly, studies in human nature. I admire how Ms. Vogt was able to craft such true-to-life perspectives and draw out the inner thoughts that make familial relationships so tricky to navigate.

Giggle and Butterflies - a Short Story + Contest

Are you ready for another original short story?

I had a blast writing this one, and I hope you enjoy the lightheartedness of it. Stay tuned till the very end, because there's an opportunity for you to help me figure out what to write next.

* All material under COPYRIGHT by Andrea Renee Cox. This story may not be copied, reprinted, or quoted without prior written permission. *

Perspiration dribbled down the arm Jessica was scrubbing with. She wiped her brow with the other, just-as-sweaty forearm, and pushed herself to finish cleaning the base of the shower stall. Would the soap scum spots never come completely clean, no matter how many different cleaning products she applied, along with elbow grease? She huffed, and the puff of air flicked a few stray strands of ginger-colored hair away from her face. Unfortunately, the hair flopped back and stuck to her cheek.

A few minutes later, when she felt her arm was going to fall right out of its socket, the upbeat tones of one of her favorite classic songs tripped into her range of hearing. Fred Astaire’s voice lilted about dancing cheek to cheek with his gal. A smile spread across Jessica’s face, and she found new vigor for her chore.

Suddenly, the rag was ripped from her hand.