I was provided a complimentary copy of this book by CelebrateLit. I was not compensated for this review and all thoughts and opinions expressed are my own. I was not required to write a positive review.
If He Only Knew by Brandi Gabriel, Michelynn Christy Published by Blessed Publishing on June 16th 2017
Genres: Christian, History, Religious, Romance
Pages: 216
Source: CelebrateLit
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It's 1968 and love is in the air in the small coastal town of Cambridge, California.
Donna Peterson, the preacher's daughter, has her entire life ahead of her and the future looks promising. But things aren’t as they seem in Cambridge. A tangled web of secrets threaten to destroy the lives of each person involved – Donna, her boyfriend Bobby, and Rick, Bobby’s best friend. Will the truth make them free, or will they lose their friendship forever?
Christian Fiction
Prologue
It happened many years ago, in 1968, to be exact. I’d just turned eighteen and Bobby and I were so in love. Or, so I’d thought.I was the good girl. The one who always followed the rules and obeyed Momma and Daddy. My sister, on the other hand, was a different story. While she certainly wasn’t the worst sinner on the block, she did manage to find her share of trouble – many times dragging me into it. But, of course, Daddy always knew I was the innocent one...
Before I struggle through this review I want to put a disclaimer out there. This book, while very much strongly Christian fiction, does deal with some heavy topics. Premarital sex, abortion, still-birth, miscarriage, and the Vietnam war. None of this is heavily detailed but these are the major themes of this book. If any of this is potentially triggering or upsetting for you this may not be the best option for you to pick up and read. That being said, lets struggle through this review together.
The truth is that I struggled to get into the book. The setup and conversational dialogue was simplistic and abrupt. It felt superficial and did nothing to help develop the characters or draw me into their stories. This theme carried throughout the book for me and I never really felt like the characters were truly dimensional and the story struggled to flow. Don’t get me wrong, when the story started drawing depth and emotions came into play they were there. They just felt flat. And when the emotions came into play and the full spectrum of God’s forgiveness and healing was laid on the table…it felt too easy.
The struggles these characters were dealing with are heavy and hard. Deep hurts are not overcome easily. Forgiveness, while desired and expected as God commands, does not come easily. From personal experience there’s almost that sense of take-backs. Forgiveness is not the same as forgetting. And forgetting never really happens. Deep hurts take deep healing time. Forgiveness is a journey because sometimes forgiveness is multilayered. I also felt, as the story took shape, that it was very preachy. I feel like I say lack of depth a lot but it plays in here as well too. Everyone was quoting scripture and referencing God, which is admirable but it diminishes the human component. Forgiveness is only the first step to overcoming and I felt like this book missed out on the opportunity to show deeper healing and compassion by forgetting that focus and making everything sorta rosy.
About Brandi Gabriel
Once upon a time, there was a little girl who loved to read. She read anything from horse mysteries to Christian romance. And she read a lot! As in, every spare second she had, when she wasn’t playing with her siblings, was spent reading.
So, naturally, as the little girl grew up and began to ponder stories of her own, she did what any determined person would do and tried to write a story for herself. First she started out co-authoring (ten books!) with her mother and sister. But eventually, she branched out on her own.
That girl is me and that step led to the creation of my first novel, The Orphan Bride. My goal in writing is to touch your heart in some special way and to glorify Jesus Christ, my Lord and Saviour
About Michelynn Christy
Author Michelynn Christy resides in the Midwest and enjoys creating romantic stories that point to Jesus. Her faith in God shines through the pages of her writing. Michelynn’s debut novelette A Christmas to Remember launched in late 2015. While this pen name and genre are somewhat new to her, she has penned over twenty titles under another pseudonym, has won awards for her works, and has earned best-selling title status. With that said, all glory goes to God!
wow thanks for your review. heavy and difficult topics today almost seem taboo
Thanks for reading and reviewing. The beauty of humanity is that each of us is unique. No two people see the same thing through the same eyes, and we each bring our own opinions and life experiences to the table. What one person may despise or reject, others might esteem highly.
I only pray that God will put this book into the hands of those who need it and will ultimately use this novel for His glory!
Congrats on the tour and thanks so much for your review and the giveaway as well.
This looks great–I’d love to read it.
Sounds like a great book,an excellent review in fact! Thank you so much for doing a fantastic job.
Though it’s disappointing to hear that it isn’t quite realistic, it sounds like there are some tough issues mentioned — which will hopefully help others going through similar situations feel less alone.
Thank you for the review!! Im hopping along this book tour and I love reading the different reviews! I cant wait to read this book!!?
Congrats on the tour & New Release!!?
?xoxo?
?Kris M.?