Softly & Tenderly - Sara Evans & RAchel Hauck

Maybe in the wide-open country she can learn to breathe again.

Happily married and owner of two successful boutiques, Jade longs to begin a family with her husband, Max. But when she discovers that Max has an illegitimate son - who he wants her to help raise - Jade's life is turned upside down.

She flees to her childhood home, a rambling Iowa farmhouse, with enough room to breathe. There - while her mother's health grows fragile, and the tug of her first love grows stronger - Jade begins to question everything she thought she knew about family, love, and motherhood. In the wide-open landscape, Jade begins to see a future that doesn't rest on the power of her past, but in the goodness of God's tender mercies.

My Review

In Softly and Tenderly, Sara Evans and Rachel Hauck had me from the first sentence to the unexpected end! The story starts in spring in Whisper Hollow, Tennessee, with Jade and her mother-in-law in a favorite old pickup along a rough road. This sets the scene for a turbulent, fast-paced novel. It seems most novels I read these days are about women and relationships, and I am not sure if it is what's out there, or what I am attracted to. Having said that, this one stands out from the rest. Many issues are covered, from barreness, to infidelity, illigemate child(ren?) to big business ethics, but all interconnected in the way life is, and through it all God's mercy is underlying and sure.

These ladies have a way of drawing in the reader with words, and I could feel the jostling of the vehicle, the anger, the pain of a loved one suffering from cancer, the hopelessness, but also the peace. The scenes came alive and when the doe and her babies jump out in front of the truck, your heart about stops together with the women in the truck. When baby Asa calls for his Mom, the heart contracts with sympathy.

The reader will be anxiously waiting for the sequel, and not all issues are resolved in this first of a series.

I received this ebook free from ThomasNelson Publishers through their Booksneeze program for the sole purpose of writing an honest review. I was not required or asked for a positive one. The opinions expressed in this review are my own.

Product Description

A Place Called Blessing chronicles the story of five-year-old Josh. He and his two older brothers lose their parents in a drunk driving accident. After a series of foster homes and a shocking tragedy, he and his brothers are separated, leaving him angry, alone, and distrustful. At age eighteen, a step away from homelessness, he finds unconditional love and the gift of "the blessing." This book shows how to implement the five elements of the biblical blessing found in Trent's book, The Blessing. A Focus on the Family book.

 

My Review

I just finished reading a novel of unconditional love, written by John Trent.   I found it to be an incredible life-changing story!  It is written in the first person, as if by Josh, and though this is not my preference, i did think it was the best way to tell this story, and told mostly as Josh relating his story after the fact. Then at the end he brings us into the present.

The story starts off with Josh giving a bit of background to his dysfunctional family, and i was drawn to these little boys left to figure out life while their parents partied.  The story really starts when Josh and his two brothers lost their parents in a drunk driving accident, and they are placed in a foster home.  The events that happen to separate the boys is heartbreaking, but understandable. Even after i was finished reading, my heart was heavy for those poor little ones, and inspired by the unconditional love showed to Josh when he was a young man dealing with anger, mad at the world. 

John uses this novel as a way to introduce the idea of Blessing, or Unconditional Love to those hurting from all kinds of dysfunctional relationships that may have happened in life.

 i recieved this book free from ThomasNelson Publishers through their Booksneeze program. i was not required to give a positive review.