Waiting for Morning

by Karen Kingsbury

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Although I read this series starting with book 3, it didn't ruin the series at all like I feared. If anything, I was more eager to read it and find out about some of the characters I met in book three. While the stories are linked by "acquaintances" of characters in future books, there really isn't a lot of content or character overlap so reading them out of order is not a problem.

This was a difficult book to read as the main character's obsession was so ever whelming that it coloured almost the entire novel with a heaviness and futility or darkness. While hope wins out in the end, it is a long, grueling process to get there - much like real life. Huh, go figure. Upon reflection, I consider it a sign of a true master when the reader experiences the hopelessness and depth of despair that the main character experiences. It was an emotional novel and centered around characters you can easily empathize with - including the "villain". Karen Kingsbury writes with such a compassionate and genuine "voice". Each character can be empathized with and experienced by the reader. This novel is simply another in a long line of awe-inspiring books by Karen Kingsbury. Go out and pick up this book today - you won't regret it!

A Moment of Weakness

by Karen Kingsbury

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I thought this book was a slight departure from her normal pattern of novels. While a romantic relationship is often woven throughout a novel, rarely do her novels center around one but this novel is an exception. The jury is still out on whether it is a good departure or not. I often think of love stories "as more fluff" so I'm not sure how to categorize this novel. While it does center around a specific couple and their love, their mistakes, and their lives apart, it also deals with some very real issues that Christian's deal with - the consequences of sin and how our actions have very real consequences that can separate us from God for a time.

What I really, really liked about this story was although the mistake the couple made early in their relationship had consequences in both their lives, the author did not rant and rave about the evils of premarital sex. Instead, the story revealed how this sin had very real consequences and showed how each character chose to deal with it. It was such a mature, thoughtful way to present a problem that Christians do deal with without being preachy, haughty, self-righteous or condemning about it. I so appreciated this different view point and the very real way it was presented.

My one niggling draw back was the relationship between the two characters at the beginning of the book was full of chemistry and tension, but somehow that was lost during the middle chunk of the book. When they meet again at the end, the chemistry was somehow lacking and I found this disappointing as a reader. I guess I should be appreciative that it didn't follow the typical stereotypical ending that many romance novels do, but instead I feel a little let down.

However, this is another amazing Karen Kingsbury novel! I have a friend that does not miss a single book by this author and I am firmly in line behind her! I adore this author and her genuine, real life characters.

 

 

Halfway to Forever

by Karen Kingsbury

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Halfway to Forever is the first novel I have read by author, Karen Kingsbury. I have read acclaims by other authors about her writing and was eager to have a taste of it myself. This novel is a sequel to A Moment of Weakness which is a sequel to Waiting for Morning.

Halfway to Forever could be considered the third in a trilogy. I found that it stands alone quite well and it isn't necessarily important to have read the previous two. However, one of my complaints of this book may be explained away if I had read the previous too. For example, one concern I had was that the two families in this novel (the Bronzan's and the Eastman's) were apparently such good friends and yet I really felt that didn't come across in this novel. I am giving the author the benefit of the doubt that if I had read the previous two, the basis for their "strong" friendship would have been developed during them. However, because it does appear that this novel stands alone as well as being the final in a trilogy, I felt she could have developed their friendship or demonstrated the strength of their friendship in this novel more in order to make it more authentic. There are really only two or three scenes in the story where the women spend any time together. That certainly didn't seem to support the idea that they were "best friends." If anything, the men in the two families demonstrated a little more care and support of one another as when Matt takes over Tanner's legal case for him. However, even that act is not done purely friendship as they own the business together and it would be expected that the "next in command" would take over the responsibilities if the one was incapacitated. All of this left a pall over the story line for me. It sometimes felt like two separate families going through separate trials and difficulties, but never really involved in one another's lives in a real concrete manner. I was definitely unconvinced that they were best friends.

I found the writing to be unremarkable. It flowed smoothly and nicely but I never stumbled upon a turn of phrase that made me stop and want to run it over my tongue a time or two. That is what truly makes me love a book. An author who can make me visualize something with an unique description, a few words crafted together in a way I haven't seen before, that is what I long for. I didn't find it in this novel though.

The cover is absolutely beautiful; the models gorgeous, making you wonder which person is which character. I can really appreciate the sensory details on the cover which make me imagine the texture of the sand in the sandwalk, see the beauty of the sunset, feel the curved lines of the raised letters, feel the sea breeze against my face, and smell the salt in the wind. Bravo to the artist who captures such meaning and allure in the cover of the book. It is the cover and all the sensory elements it evokes that made me want to pick up this book and read it!

What is with the title of this book though? I never saw a strong connection with it to the storylines within the book. It's romantic and beautiful, but I am still undecided about what the author wanted to elicit with this title. Maybe some of you have an idea?

This novel is very strong in the realism it portrays as these individual families struggle against very real problems that many encounter in their own lives in regards to being unable to have a baby, deciding on adoption, becoming dangerously ill, being active in advocacy etc. It touches on a handful of "social issues" and does it quite well. You are able to glimpse into the lives of people who deal with these issues in a very real and emotional way. I appreciated the author's skill and realism in portraying sometimes very painful and ugly emotional responses to things that must be faced.

You will definitely want to read this novel with a box of kleenex nearby as your heartstrings will be pulled and twanged more than once. I believe the ending is worth getting too though and you probably won't want to put this book down.

Once you get a glimpse into the lives of these two families, you will most likely want to get your hands on the previous two novels and read them too. If you read them in order, I would be curious to hear from you in regards to my comments above.