The free offer has ended and I’m blessed to announce that there were over 50,000 free downloads of Awakening Mercy.  That’s a lot of books and means a lot to me for several reasons.  Following David Letterman’s model, I’ve listed the Top 10 Reasons I’m Blessed by 50,000 Free Downloads of Awakening Mercy.

10.  No trees had to die.

9. I didn’t have to store the books in my house.

8.  No postage was required.

7. 50,000 people can no longer say that I’ve never given them anything.

6. Awakening Mercy has over 90 reviews on Barnes and Noble, the most reviews any of my books have garnered.

5. Awakening Mercy and Abiding Hope now sit prominently on the Multicultural and Christian Romance Bestsellers Lists on Barnes and Noble.  Both books also go on and off the Multicultural Romance Bestseller List on Amazon regularly.

4. Sales for both books have increased.

3. People who have never read an Angela Benson book had a no-cost chance to sample one.

2. I was able to show appreciation to my longtime friends and readers by giving them a free book to read or to share with a friend or loved one.

1.  People have been blessed by reading the books.  Many people have told me via twitter, Facebook, e-mail and reviews how Awakening Mercy and Abiding Hope have blessed them and made a difference in their lives.  There’s no higher compliment I could get on my work. This is the best blessing from those free downloads and why it’s #1 on my list.

I’d like to share a few of the blessings I’ve gotten:

E-mail:  I truly just want to say thank you 10 times over for such great,wonderful and inspirational works. It was such a blessing for me to stumble across these books at a time in my life where life and its circumstances can make you question what and who God is.

E-mail: I just wanted to email you and let you know how amazing and life changing your books are. I have read two of them at this point and plan on reading everything you write. The first book I read was awakening mercy, it touched so many places close to my heart. I am a single mother who has been searching for love in all the wrong places. This book gave me hope that there [are] still guys out there that follow in gods direction.

E-mail: I think God guided me into reading your book, so that I too can let go of past hurt and pain. It is not easy forgiving the person you love who have wrongfully hurt you. My prayer is that God gives me the strength to move forward in this new year with the forgiveness in my heart for the person who have hurt, humiliated and used me.

BN Review: Its more than just a book…I am a 15 year old girl dealing with somewhat stereotypical issues in a not so stereotypical way. My boyfriend and i recently had a rough spell and in the past 3 or 4 years ive grown away from essentially all of my good friends, and in the process, my faith. But after reading this book i have been able to change my outlook on life. This book changed me for the better, i believe it could do so to anyone who read it. It simply an amazing book.

BN Review: This story seemed to come at just the right time for me in my life. There were so many things that the main character CeCe was going through that I was also so our thoughts were the same. This book opened my heart and mind more to God and gives me the faith that I need to continue to work through my problems.

BN Review: This book gives insight on the importance of being led by God’s spirit and truly forgiving people when they hurt you. Often times the enemy has us trapped in our own circumstances we are blinded in the fact the others around us are hurting as well, possibly concerning the same situation just a different point of view. This was truly a grreat read!

These readers tell me they were blessed, but I was blessed most of all.  Thanks to each and everyone who downloaded a free copy of Awakening Mercy.  May reading it encourage your heart and empower you to continue your faith journey just as your kind words have done for me.