Tears in Crystal Vials

What if the angels caught each tear we cried In crystal vials trimmed with silver and gold, To lay at the feet of the One Who resides In Heavenly places to bless and behold?

What if the tears that we shed were collected And strewn in the sky to catch the Son's rays; His brilliant Light by each teardrop reflected Painting a bow to remind and amaze?

The Sovereign Lord can change crying to laughter And wipe every tear from our eyes; Replacing our sorrows with joy-filled hereafters And ashes with rainbows to color our lives.

Tears in Crystal Vials
by Belinda van Rensburg

"I found Elijah Hael - The Last Judgement really interesting and a new spin on how Angels are formed. And that no matter how dark you think things are, that there is a light at the end of the tunnel. That maybe there is hope for everybody.

I would read this book again and I would recommend it to other readers."

Caryolyn - via Goodreads

A must read for Christians young and old!

"Sophia was raised in an orphanage and had no idea how special she truly was. Her best friend Anne came to the orphanage when they were both 4 years old. Little did Sophia know that she was written about in a prophecy that would take the girls on an amazing adventure across England.

I thoroughly enjoyed this story. I found out that this is the backstory to Steve Goodwin's Elijah Hael series. Although I haven't read the other novels, my interest has certainly been peaked. I loved how realistic the interaction among the characters were. The bond between Michael, Sophia, and Anne was unbreakable. The things I loved most about the story were the Christian values that it repeatedly taught and the fact that they were backed up with scripture. This was a fantastic tale about faith, love, and God's plan for our lives. A must read for Christians young and old!"

Review for The Angelic Gene by Simone Lilly-Egerter via Amazon US

Captivating and thrilling

"Once again Goodwin created a great read. The twists and turns in every direction keeping the flow of the story intriguing."

Rhonda Umphrey
Review for "The Angelic Gene" via Amazon US

Sandra Tibbetts thoughts of the Elijah Hael series.

On "Elijah Hael - The Last Judgement - A Thoughtful story

"Rated Elijah Hael and the Last Judgement 5 stars because it is thoughtfully composed and a really different kind of fiction. Glad I found Goodwin's books"

On "Elijah Hael - The Genetic Code" - Steve Goodwin really surprised me

"I will recommend this book to my family & friends. It is a good book on Christian living and a super new interpretation of angels."

On "The Angelic Gene" - Great easy read

"Though fiction it was a thoughtful look at angels. I would recommend this book to anyone . Made me happy & sad at the same time."

Sandra R. Tibbetts, via Amazon U.S.

Thanks Sandra, appreciate the feedback.  Glad you enjoyed all three.

A Creative Novel Shining a Light on the Spiritual Realm

"The Angelic Gene imagines a cadre of angels who long ago volunteered to enter the human race and create offspring who would carry their angelic genes for the good of humanity. Unfortunately, dark forces of the underworld became aware of this line of gifted and spiritually attuned humans. The dark forces, one evil persona in particular, began tracking them and killing them off. One person remains carrying the angelic gene, and she is unaware of her angelic pedigree. It will be up to her and a troupe of highly trained monks to destroy the evil forces that have been raised to end the angelic gene.

The narrative occurs in late 19th Century Great Britain and involves one of the most infamous killers of history who serves his dark master by murder.

Goodwin's The Angelic Gene is a prequel to two previously published books in the series. It is an intriguing set of characters and plot to want to follow. Since this is the first that I have read, reading the other two appeals to me. Readers who have read the other books in the series may better appreciate getting the back story of Sophia and learning how she has developed and matured. It seems that Goodwin assumed some prior knowledge among readers and didn't fully elaborate on characters and plot in a way he would have if this was the first book written in the series.

The story moves along at a steady pace except for a few areas that seemed to bog down and could have been trimmed. This could have been better developed to give readers a better feel for the historical, cultural and geographic settings of the book.

Goodwin inserts some discussions of Christianity into the story. These subjects are relevant to the story and characters. Some of the spiritual interactions are Biblical and some involve imaginative creativity by the author.

A few times the author seems to write some historical inconsistencies that interrupt the development and flow of the book's setting. For example, he has a baptism scene in which the two teen girls are baptized in a pond or river. Both girls spent their childhoods in a Roman Catholic orphanage and attended Mass at a Catholic Church. There is practically no way they would not have been baptized as infants in such a setting.

Other than a few inconsistencies like that, the book is enjoyable and broaches myriad topics of the spiritual realm. It also pulls on the heartstrings more than once. The characters are appealing -- who wouldn't love a monk who is like a ninja warrior? The Angelic Gene carrier begins the battle she will apparently continue through the series of fighting the shadows that have entered our world from the underworld."

- C. Stephans - via Amazon US

Best book I have read since Steve Goodwin's last one

"I enjoyed The Angelic Gene very much, the story line was very catching I did not want to put it down, i really like the way Steve Goodwin writes it's very easy to lose your self in his writing, can't wait for his next book, or better still the movie version would be wonderful."

Irene Dyer, via Amazon US