PDF - Christian Library Journal

ADULT
FICTION
Rockies series. She captures the essence of the
surroundings and plunges the reader into the
heart and soul of the main characters with a
gripping intensity. This novel offers a twist of
mystery, legend, romance, and foul play brought
to justice by the citizens due to the disablement
of the law. The response to the effects of the
gospel is reminiscent of the Bible’s parable of
the sower with the seed falling on a variety of
conditions. Character interaction chastely
crescendos to just prior to the consummation of
marriage, then resumes with the thought and
emotions that follow. The conclusion, though
adequate will tantalize the reader’s desire for the
sequel.
Debbie Lindsay, Homeschool Parent, Eatonville, Washington
Second chances, by Debra White Smith.
(Seven sisters ; book 1.) LCCN 99048824.
Eugene, Ore.: Harvest House, 2000. ISBN
0736902767, PAP, $9.99.
F. Divorced women--Fiction; Clergy--Fiction;
Stalking victims--Fiction; Christian fiction. 334 p.
The awakening, by Debra White Smith.
(Seven sisters ; book 2.) LCCN 00243160.
Eugene, Ore.: Harvest House, 2000. ISBN
0736902775, PAP, $9.99.
F. Americans--Travel--Vietnam--Fiction; Stalking
victims--Fiction; Models (Persons)--Fiction; Vietnam--
Fiction; Christian fiction. 332 p.
Adult.
Despite attempts to reconcile with her
adulterous pastor husband, newly-divorced
Marilyn Thatcher insists that she will never
marry again. However, when Josh, her friendly
neighbor, is injured during a tornado, Marilyn is
quick to help him out—even if he is a pastor,
and she is no longer on speaking terms with
God. Marilyn once felt a strong call to be a
pastor’s wife; now, despite her undeniable
attraction to Josh, Marilyn resists with all her
strength, determined never to make herself
vulnerable again.
When one of her seven “sisters,” good college
friends she’s kept in touch with for years, asks
her if she has prayed about her relationship with
Josh, Marilyn becomes very angry. However,
the Lord works on Marilyn’s heart and
surprisingly, she finds herself praying for her exhusband
and his new wife. Eventually she is
able to let go of her bitterness towards them. As
she ceases striving with the Lord, she realizes
that she has been disobedient in denying his
clear call to a relationship with Josh and serving
as a pastor’s wife once more.
Second Chances is book one in the Seven Sisters
series which follows the lives of seven college
friends who have kept in close touch since
graduation, supporting each other through
regular conference calls and biannual gettogethers.
Although the story drags a bit,
Second Chances clearly illustrates the
forgiveness of God and his redemptive power as
Josh’s past life of social sins and living on the
edge of the law is revealed, and threatens his
pastorship. Second Chances affirms the
cleansing power of God’s forgiveness and his
ability to use anyone who surrenders to him,
regardless of his or her past.
Book two, The Awakening, tells the story of
supermodel Kim Lan. Under strong conviction
by the Lord to deepen her walk with him, Kim
Lan signs up for a missions trip to Vietnam.
Although she is engaged to the handsome and
wealthy movie star Ted Curry, Kim finds herself
incredibly attracted to the mission trip leader,
Mick O’Donnel. She resists him fiercely,
clinging desperately to the pleasure she finds in
her up-scale lifestyle, and status-symbol fiancé.
But as the Lord impresses Kim Lan with the
need to surrender completely to him, including
her wealth, the “perfect man,” and maybe even
her modeling career, Kim finds true happiness in
a godly relationship with Mick.
The Awakening is the stronger of the two books.
The spiritual struggle is real and compelling,
and the story is kept interesting with a side-plot
of a sinister stalker, and the struggles of the other
seven “sisters.”
Sherri Beeler, Teacher, Cascade Christian High School, Medford,
Oregon
Serenity Bay, by Bette Nordberg. LCCN
00010526. Minneapolis: Bethany House,
2000. ISBN 0764223968, PAP, $10.99.
F. Puget Sound Region (Wash.)--Fiction; Female
friendship--Fiction; Married women--Fiction; Abused
wives--Fiction; Christian fiction; Psychological
fiction. 320 p. Adult.
Patricia Koehler’s seemingly perfect life as the
wife of a doctor on an island in the Puget Sound
is a lie. Although she has a daughter and is
pregnant with her second child, it is only when
her best friend, Susan, stops by unannounced
and overhears the obvious sounds of violence
that Patricia’s secret is revealed. Her husband,
Russell, beats her. Patricia continues to believe
that her husband’s abuse can somehow be
controlled if she just finds the correct way to
respond to him. He is always so loving and kind
after each episode of violence. Surely she could
not have been so mistaken in her choice of men
to marry.
He had seemed like the answer to her prayers
when she first met him. Russell Koehler began
courting her during her second year of teaching
elementary school and soon after her mother had
died of cancer. The son of wealthy parents, he
had the means to plan wonderful, fairy-tale dates
for her around Seattle while diligently pursuing
his schooling as a doctor. And when he chose
her even though his parents argued that she had
no pedigree, Patricia felt that his love was strong
enough to protect her against anything.
It takes Russell’s physical violence against their
daughter, and his smashing of Patricia’s
treasured cello while telling her, “Don’t you
ever forget..I can do the same thing to you” to
break his hold over her. And it takes Susan’s
friendship to provide her with the emotional
courage to leave. But that is only the beginning
of Patricia’s search to find true shelter. Through
Susan, Patricia is also introduced to a
relationship with Jesus. While Beete
Nordberg’s novel, Serenity Bay, realistically
portrays how difficult it is for women to leave
abusive relationships, the aspect of Patricia’s
spiritual awakening and growth seems rather
forced.
Lillian Heytvelt, Librarian, Pomeroy, Washington
A slender thread, by Tracie Peterson.
LCCN 99051016. Minneapolis: Bethany
House, 2000. ISBN 0764222511, PAP,
$10.99.
F. Motion picture actors and actresses--Family
relationships--Fiction; Mothers--Death--Psychological
aspects--Fiction; Grandmothers--Fiction; Sisters--
Fiction; Christian fiction; Domestic fiction. 380 p.
Adult.
Five sisters were abandoned by a mother they
never knew and raised by a grandmother who
loved them dearly. Now in their twenties and
early thirties, the five women, all with different
lifestyles, must discover who they really are.
They come together for their mother’s funeral,
but none feel any grief. Instead they haggle over
the hurts that haunt them and question their
relationships with one another. Through it all
their grandmother, Mattie, stands silently by,
knowing the only thing that can heal their hurts
is the power of God. Mattie creates a
powerfully illustrative quilt of how she sees the
family. It is made of six large blocks,
representing Mattie and the girls, and has a thin
slender thread woven throughout that connects
the blocks, just they are all connected.
Disagreements and spiteful words pull the
sisters apart, but tragedy reunites them and
opens their eyes to the importance of
forgiveness and love.
A Slender Thread by Tracie Peterson tackles the
difficult subject of parental abandonment and all
the issues that accompany it. Her characters are
realistic and the dialogue and action compelling
enough to keep the reader’s attention. One of
the sisters, Deirdre, develops a gambling
problem. Although Peterson deals with the
problem and has the character come to accept
her addiction, Deirdre does so easily compared
with real life. However, this was the only
weakness noted in plotting. The author
examines the meaning of true forgiveness and
allows the reader glimpses at the heartwrenching
agony living with unforgiveness
brings.
Eileen Zygarlicke, Freelance Writer/Editor, Grand Forks, North
Dakota
Solemn oath, by Hannah Alexander.
LCCN 99050972. Minneapolis: Bethany
House, 2000. ISBN 0764223488, PAP,
$10.99.
F. Physicians--Fiction; Medical novels; Christian
fiction. 351 p. Adult.
Cowboy Casey and Buck Oppenheimer, along
with Arthur and Alma Collins, meet disaster in
Solemn Oath’s first four pages. From those
scenes, Hannah Alexander, the pseudonym for
the husband and wife writing team of Cheryl
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