Worlds Collide

by Alison Strobel

Colorado Springs, CO - When the headlines screamed "Hollywood Heartthrob Marries Girl Next Door," the public relationship of Jack Harrington and Grace Winslow looked picture perfect. Yet once celebrity biographer Jada Eastman decides to chronicle their love story, she finds there's more to this couple than anyone would guess. Author Alison Strobel weaves the fabric of her contemporary novel, Worlds Collide, with threads of romance, honesty and raw emotion, forming an effective frame for her vivid character portrayals and their search for truth.

The start of Jack and Grace's relationship could have been a scene from one of Jack's movies. Leaving behind a dead-end relationship and the bitter Chicago winter, Grace moved to southern California to start a new life. Meanwhile, Jack had established himself as an up-and-comer with considerable acting talent. When a fateful accident pulled the two of them together, they couldn't avoid their initial attraction or the vast differences in their values and lifestyles.

Now, against the back drop of Beverly Hills and the 24/7 nature of the entertainment world, Jada grapples with her own beliefs as she encounters the spiritual chasm of this famous couple. Can Grace and Jack face the consequences of their own personal histories, and can the biographer avoid being affected? As the three of them examine the couple's bittersweet story, it becomes clear that private heartache and spiritual struggles were threatening to pull them apart.

Worlds Collide offers a poignant and engaging look at the complexities, passion and pain of a glamorous couple struggling with the past and the present. Alison Strobel's novel packs a powerful message about the dynamics and far-reaching consequences of decisions. Worlds Collide will resonate with a wide audience, including Gen-X and younger readers looking for fresh fiction with a spiritual bent, as well as to fans of celebrity stories. Its rich and thoughtful plot demonstrates how everyday choices can ultimately carry a high cost when individual worlds collide.(© News Release, WaterBrook Press, 2005)

I really enjoyed this story! I'm not a famous people "watcher", but there was something quite alluring about hearing the personal story of a famous person (albeit it fictional). Besides that allure, the story itself was one begging to be told. Grace could so easily be one of any number of people in today's society. The consequences of her decisions and the affect they have on another person's life is also very real and often over-looked into today's promiscuous and "if it's right for you" world. I think it is doubly heartbreaking when your past actions affect a loved one in the future; someone who didn't have anything to do with you or your old actions way back when, but are living the nightmare consequences of it now.

As for literary style, I thought the characters were genuine and strong, knowable and normal. The plot was fast-paced enough to keep my interest page after page. I liked how the story changed perspectives each chapter. Hearing the story from Jack's point of view and then again from Grace's point of view lent a certain depth to it. The author definitely has the ability to wrench emotions from the reader. I felt like I was often in the living room with Jada as she interviewed and listened to Jack and Grace, shedding tear after tear.

Although the story itself will evoke tears of sadness at times, it has a joy and celebration of life that makes it powerful and important to read. It shares a faith in Jesus Christ in a comfortable, genuine, friend-like manner - not violently proclaiming the only way to heaven is through a faith in God - but through the gentle sharing of life between friends. It's this manner of sharing faith in God that will appeal to the post-modern (or Gen-X) reader, as well as the very real social issues that the story is based around.

While the cover of the book did not inspire me, the pages within were definitely worth the time. You will not be disappointed in this book! Bravo, Alison Strobel! I hope to see more written by you in the years to come.

~ Tracy