Talk about an emotional baggage check! The truth is costly but far more valuable than whatever it is we’re trying to hide.

Meet a marriage counselor who’s hiding things to the point that his own marriage is falling apart. One final gift from Grandpa has the power to turn his world upside down. or maybe, just maybe, it will turn things right side up again!

If you change the details a little, this could be almost any of my acquaintances at one time or another. Including my family. Stress, secrets, anger, escape plans…

I love how this story reminds us of the power of our secrets. Luke 8:17 in living color. The consequences of our actions have ripple effects far beyond what we might imagine. When we are WILLING to see the truth and make the changes necessary, God’s forgiveness is amazing. There is normally still a price to pay, but that’s because of cause and effect.

I received a copy of this book from @netgalley. I chose to review it here, all thoughts are my own.

How would YOU feel if you had a camera that looked into your inner soul? It can see what you are thinking and feeling!! Scary, isn't it?! That is exactly the feelings that Daniel experienced in this book.

The characters are described so vividly that I easily identified with them. The fears and worries became mine as I walked alongside Daniel and his wife, Kelly. Although I rarely read books involving the mystical and magical world, this author has changed my opinion. A magic camera is certainly not realistic but the author has used it with such deep meaning that the characters and plot kept me glued to my chair. I could not put this book down. The hidden truths that were uncovered were intense and soul searching. Unexpected twists and turns were in every chapter as these characters found their way through all that was thrown at them.

This novel gives the reader lessons to be learned. Many good messages came through loud and clear.

A great read and one that left me deep in thought.


This book was received from CelebrateLit. The thoughts and opinions expressed are honest and my own.

Daniel Whitely ia a successful marriage counselor, an author of a best-selling book, and he, his wife, and twelve-year old daughter should be living the dream. Instead, their family seems to be falling apart. When his grandfather dies and leaves him a letter, a photo album, and the camera that he had used to take so many pictures, Daniel finds himself unnerved by what the pictures show. He discovers that Gramp's older camera is  extraordinary because it produces final photographs that are nothing like the original shot. Was someone doctoring the photos? Was it a magical camera, able to project the true feelings of the person being photographed? Over and over, Daniel is told that ''the camera never lies". As he seeks answers an eccentric character named Simon reminds Daniel that  "The camera reveals how our lives truly are. We can't trick it, even if sometimes we think we can trick ourselves and everyone around us."

I found this book to be very intriguing and I wondered what my photograph would show if this camera was used to take my picture! The Camera Never Lies is a reminder that we often keep secrets to avoid pain or embarassment but these secrets can destroy our lives and the truth needs to be made known. It doesn't have a strong spiritual presence in the plot but author David Rawlings does convey in his story the need for honesty and he mentions the consequences and dangers of alcohol abuse, addiction, and acting on physical attraction.
If you are looking for an entertaining story that will also make you think, you will want to read The Camera Never Lies.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from Thomas Nelson via NetGalley but I wasn't obligated to write a positive review. These are my own thoughts.

I love a book where the location or something else other than a person is a character in a book and in this book the camera is a character. I thought the premise was interesting and different that most books that are out there to read. The book was engaging, the characters were well developed and some were likable and others you really had to dislike.

I thought there were a lot of plot points that allowed the reader to really think about things and what the meanings of those things might be. The were opportunities to really feel for and with the characters and at other times you wanted to slap someone to help them understand what was going on.

A really interesting book that I'm glad I had the opportunity to read.

What a good book and it’s a quick read too.
This book was so engaging, I wanted to keep reading to see what the camera would capture next and what did it all mean. And then it captures something that opens up the eyes of the reader and things make a bit more sense.
The temptation that Danial was facing made me want to shake him and say get out of that situation, stop trying to fix it yourself. Fire Monique before something bad happens, that is the only way to deal with something like that.
But you’ll just have to read the book yourself to see how it all plays out, because there is his wife and daughter that have their own stuff going on as well. Very good

A copy of this book was given to me through the Celebrate Lit Team. All opinions are my own.

The author, David Rawlings, writes an inspirational and enlightening story similar to those of James Rubart. The Camera Never Lies is full of thought-provoking situations, real connectable characters, and twists that you won't see coming.

I enjoyed this second book of his as much as The Baggage Handler. Similar style, with a storyline that will leave you scratching your head, bring tears to your eyes, and will give you some, " Ah, Ha!" moments.

You will definitely come away examining your own life when you turn the last page. I couldn't put it down.

Highly recommended.

I received a free digital copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This was a great read! I really enjoyed the story line and it kept me interested. I felt it was super thought provoking and just keeps you enamored into this creative world that the author has built.

The characters are really wonderful too. This is the first book I have read by this author, and I genuinely enjoyed it. The book itself felt very busy.. Almost too busy at times. I did find this book easily predictable.

I am not usually one to pick up books about faith, but it was a good read. I enjoyed it. Thank you so much to the author, the publisher, and NetGalley for allowing me to review this title.

I received a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. Thank you NetGalley..

This was my first book by this author.
This book draws the question... what would you do if all your secrets were revealed?

this was a great read... easy to follow.. easy to like.

David Rawlings, author of The Baggage Handler, returns with another probing story: what would you do if your secrets were revealed to those around you?



Daniel Whiteley is a successful couples counselor who regularly puts families back together, helping them face up to the things in life they hide. But his own marriage is falling apart.



His wife, Kelly, knows Daniel is hiding something from her, but she doesn’t dare probe for fear her own secrets will be revealed.



When his grandfather dies, Daniel inherits an old SLR camera from a time when cameras pointed away from the person taking the photograph. On the camera is an inscription: “Use this camera wisely and remember, regardless of the picture you think you took, the camera never lies.”

When Daniel first uses his new camera he finds someone has already filled the roll of film. Annoyed, he processes the film and finds photos of a secret that he’s been hiding from his wife and daughter.

He has no idea who took them.



Now every time he uses the camera, the photographs reveal another secret about himself the he is desperate to keep-as well as those of his wife, which he is desperate to uncover.



My Thoughts: This is a thought-provoking book that the reader will be unable to put down. The author David Rawlings has written a story that deals with the results of having secrets in our lives. Every untruth we have will affect us or someone close to us in one way or another. In this book we see how secrets affect a family. The author has a unique way of telling the story. It keeps the reader spellbound and entertained.

The characters are easily identified with by the reader; the author has a way of drawing the reader in wanting to keep reading until the end of the book. This is the second book I have read by the author and I look forward to reading more from David Rawlings.

The author was very imaginative, which is vital to an author. The book itself's main theme was the ability to keep secrets. My favorite part of this book was trying "magic" camera. I love the thought of it being able to see
the " truth".

I found some difficulties throughout the story. I felt that the character development was lacking. The characters did not feel multi - dimensional. They felt flat and underdeveloped. They didn't seem to be able to connect when they should have.

When all things are said and done, this book is a quick read and carries an interesting thought.

I would like to thank the author/ publisher/Netgalley for the opportunity to read this book for a fair and honest review.

All throughout the book I kept having this pop into my head; "A picture is worth a thousand words." In this story I was hoping for words to set people free from shame, lies, deceit and temptations. The author missed the mark in getting his message across with too many characters with problems and a twist on seeing someone's inner thoughts.

The main character is a marriage counselor and a bestselling author. He is finding success in his life, but what if it was based on lies? Daniel wasn't easy to like because he just felt like a person who goes through the motions but his heart isn't really there. Over and over he continues to help couples while his own marriage is in shambles. It is funny that there were signs that his life was turning upside down, but he pushed it aside until pictures he takes with a special camera makes him face reality.

There is a lot going on in the book and at times I felt it was too busy. We have a man on the brink of disaster, a wife who has to choose between integrity or hiding the truth about her company and a troubled daughter who screams for help but no one hears her. I understand where the author was going with the book, but I wanted more meat and less whining. I may be one of the few but I was't as blown away about the book as others. I didn't see any faith elements in the book but perhaps the author had that thought while letting us glimpse inside characters thoughts. Secrets are huge in this book and as we all know they always find a way to come out.

I liked the book to a point but I guess I could already figure out what was going to happen. I wanted the author to give examples of what happens if a character chooses the wrong path or even giving readers a reason to sympathize with characters. I didn't really like Simon and couldn't quite connect with him. He didn't seem to fully have compassion for others and almost couldn't wait for the pictures to expose the truth of someone's thoughts. Although I didn't like the book as much as others, I hope readers will give the book a try and come to their own conclusions.

I received a copy of this book from Celebrate Lit. The review is my own opinion.

David Rawlings writes fiction that is as revealing as it is fictional. On the surface, the book is about a man, one David Whiteley, whose family, whose job, and whose reputation, stand on a precipice - one that will crumble beneath his feet if something does not change. Beginning with the death of his grandfather and the unexpected camera left to him at his grandfather’s death, life begins to unravel.

But this camera is special. The resulting pictures have exceptional clarity, and they often reveal more truth than the photographer is planning for. Ultimately the question becomes, what will the photographer respond to that truth. And that is the question that David faces as he retrieves his prints from Simon, the owner of the camera shop around the corner from his work as a mental health counselor.

The author has the very nice ability to ask both David Whiteley and the reader to answer the same two questions: Are we willing to have the truth revealed; and how will we respond to the truth. The answers do not come easily and the cost of difficult truths is often less than the cost of hiding that truth.

David Whiteley finds The Camera Never Lies. Are we willing to look at our lives with the same clarity?
______________
This review is based on a free electronic copy provided by the publisher for the purpose of creating this review. The opinions expressed are my own.

I love the characters in this one and how David brings them to life. I feel like this is a story that a lot of people can relate to.

This book hit me more deeply than I would ever like to admit. It wasn’t so much the storyline with the individual characters, because in all honesty I didn’t really relate to them. I actually felt pretty distant from them, but maybe it’s because of what I was really focusing on. The biggest takeaway from this novel was from what was learned from the camera. It’s not just about keeping secrets from others–but refusing to see the truth ourselves. It’s the hiding behind a smile because you don’t want to deal with the hard feelings. It’s the feelings you didn’t even realize you had until you’re confronted with the truth. And the hardest part of all of it is that you can’t start to heal until you acknowledge the truth. This was a highly thought-provoking read that gets the reader to look at themselves and how they would handle the situations. Because here’s the deal, whether or not you can relate personally to Daniel or his family throughout the read, you can still contemplate how you would feel and react when you are forced to be vulnerable, or a secret you’ve tried keeping is revealed, or truth is discovered that throws you for a loop, or any other number of circumstances that threaten your peace. I don’t want to share too much because I don’t want to be a spoiler but this was one powerful read that I know is going to stay with me for a very long time.

*I received a copy of this book through JustRead Tours. Thoughts and opinions expressed are mine alone.

I would never wish to have a camera like this one. I think it would be very scary to have a camera take pictures where every truth comes out. I would not want the responsibility to help these people. This story made me laugh and cry. The characters were not always real likable but that is just like real life. This was a wonderful book. I received a copy of this book from Celebratelit for a fair and honest opinion that I gave of my own free will.

The Camera Never Lies is well written. The plot and characters are well crafted. The author is new new to me and I probably would read most books by him. My thanks to the publisher for my advance ebook. This is my unbiased review.

“You shall know the truth and the truth shall set you free.” John 8:32
But the truth can’t set you free if you keep it hidden.
How easily white lies, fudged truths, become tangled webs of deceit and confusion. Daniel spins a sticky web that becomes not a safe cocoon but a suffocating mask. He thought he could skirt the consequences of keeping his secrets hidden but the more he scrambles to hide the truth the tighter the web constricts. I wanted to throttle Daniel every time he repeated his [SPOILER] mantra.
Kelly, too, and for very different reasons, faces a battle of integrity. The cost of her compromise is steep and heart wrenching.
Mr. Rawlings’ stories are filled with such passion, the characters so alive, the situations so raw. In his telling, he probes not only the characters on the pages but the reader turning the pages.

ROBIN’S FEATHERS
ALL | THE | FEATHERS!

I received a complimentary copy of this book, but was under no obligation to read the book or to post a review. I offer my review of my own free will. The opinions expressed in my review are my honest thoughts and reaction to this book.

#Blogwords, Tuesday Reviews-Day, #TRD, Book Review, The Camera Never Lies, David Rawlings

Secrets have a way of pulling us down especially if it's the wrong kind being kept. That's the premise of this book and the author tried really hard to highlight it in a fun an interesting manner. Our hearts may not necessarily be revealed immediately but our actions portray what we are thinking and the harder we try to hide our real intentions, the harder it becomes for us to love comfortably. Daniel and Kelly dealt with this throughout the course of the book. O love the way the realised the freedom that comes from being honest. That were much happier as a family even if they had to face certain consequences because of their actions.
It was a great read and recommended for those who love allegory.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from the author via Celebrate Lit for a blog tour. A favourable review was not required. All opinions expressed are solely mine.

This book should come with a warning label to read only if you are prepared for your heart to be challenged and changed. Fans of the Baggage Handler and James L. Rubart will absolutely want to read this book. Be prepared to devour it, then allow yourself to savor the depth of truth that it shares. Daniel is graciously gifted a camera that reveals the truth behind the masks we wear every day and what can happen when those truths are not addressed. It makes the point that lies, and sin, cannot only affect the person trapped by them, but do indeed spread to all those who interconnected in their life. A chance at redemption if you are willing to stop pretending and expose the truths you are desperately trying to hide behind.

I received a complimentary copy from the publisher via NetGalley and all opinions expressed are my own and freely given.

A marriage in danger. A grandfather's passing. A daughter pleading for her parents to love again. And a camera that reveals the truth in your heart.

The Camera Never Lies is a book unlike any other. Breaking the barrier between page and reader, David Rawlings challenges all who pick up this book to face the truth of their lives and strive to live a life of “No Secrets.”

Daniel Whitely is a successful marriage counselor and a best-selling author, but though his life looks perfect on the outside, on the inside, his family is falling apart.

After his grandfather’s tragic passing, Daniel inherits his camera; however, when Daniel begins taking pictures and has them developed, the images looking back at him reveal secrets that Daniel had hoped would remain hidden. Haunted by the truth and angry at himself for allowing his life to spiral out of control, this once precious gift from his grandfather soon becomes more a curse than a blessing. Will this "magical" camera encourage Daniel to restore the broken pieces of his life, or will his choices lead to a tragedy beyond repair?

When I began reading The Camera Never Lies, I was skeptical about where the narrative was heading. I hate characters who cannot see the trouble that's under their noses and make decisions that are obviously wrong; however, I was surprised at the outcome. As I read, the words of Luke 8:17 replayed in my mind, "For there is nothing hidden that will not be disclosed, and nothing concealed that will not be known or brought out into the open.”  We all hide parts of ourselves we wish people wouldn't see, and we all have our secrets, yet there is One who understands us better than anyone else and who sees all that we do and think. After reading this book, I have started praying that like Daniel, people's eyes would be opened to the truth of their lives, with or without the help of a camera.

The Camera Never Lies pulled me into its story and held me captive until my eyes were too heavy to remain open. Each night, before going to sleep, I would tell myself that I would read a chapter or two, but when can a bookworm resist just “one more chapter”? Though I wish there were an extended part of this thought-provoking book, I’ll be glad to have some of my sleep back!

~ A special thanks to NetGalley, and the publisher, for providing me with the digital copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. ~