Monday, July 16, 2012

Book Review ~ Waiting for Morning

 Hannah Ryan has the perfect life.  Having married her childhood sweetheart, they now share a deep love and 2 beautiful girls, 15 and 13.  Tom Ryan is a doctor and very involved husband and father.  Their Christian faith has been intentionally passed onto their daughters all their lives.  Each year Tom takes the girls camping as a last hurrah of summer right before school is about to start.  This year Hannah didn't go with them.  As she waits at home, their arrival time has come and gone, and she tries to take control over her thoughts over why they might be so late without a phone call.   When the news comes that her oldest daughter and husband have been killed by a drunk driver, Hannah must try to pick up the pieces of her and surviving daughter's life.  But she finds herself consumed with hate for the man who destroyed her family and she throws herself  into work with MADD and with helping a lawyer bring a conviction of first degree murder against the man.   Hoping for the peace that she has convinced herself will come with the conviction, her daughter's and her own grieving and suffering are pushed to the side to be dealt with later and her faith is thrown out in her anger.  But it isn't until her husband's dying words find their way to her that she finally finds the peace she is searching for.

Karen Kingsbury has definitely dragged my emotions all over the board with this story.  It is a story of love, loss and pain, grieving, anger and revenge,  and forgiveness.  In casting the main character as a Christian and putting her into the midst of horrible tragedy, a tragedy that could have been prevented, she is faced with what she really believes.  Any one of us could face any number of tragedies that may be caused by another's carelessness or neglect  here on earth and none of us knows how we would deal with such a thing unless we really go through.  Do we choose to believe God even when it makes no sense to our minds?  Or do we choose to hang on with everything we've got and believe He is good and in control?   It's nice to think & say that we would react the way the Word tells us to with instant forgiveness and love.  But Kingsbury gives us a character who is very real and relateable in her journey through a devastating time.  At times I totally related to her and other times I wanted to shake her.   Hannah's story is one that shows how choices we make and warning signals we ignore can have long term consequences on ourselves and those we love.  It also shows how God's mercy and grace can reach even through the deepest of pain and help us to do what He calls us to do.  I could not put this book down once I started it. 


5 comments:

Sandra said...

I LOVE Karen Kingsbury and this one sounds like another winner to me :)

Robyn said...

What a sad and yet inspiring story of love, loss and overcoming our trials. I have found much comfort in the book "I'm a Widow, What Now? Embracing Life after Loss" by author Patricia N. Muscari. This a non-fiction self help book to encourage grieving widows written from the author's personal experience. This book can move you through your grief and into contentment much faster. http:///www.yourfuturewithin.com/

Barbara H. said...

I know I read the second and maybe the third in this series but somehow never made it back to this one. I'll have to keep an eye out for it.

Faith said...

I don't typically choose Karen Kingsbury novels because most of them (in my opinion) are all the same...and i often can never find one of the ones in the series!! Which gets frustrating (i don't buy many fiction books so I get them from the towne library). THIS novel though sounds excellent....maybe it's because of the theme of loss and forgiveness.....so..it is a series?? I'll look for this one. I saw another series at the library but once again they only had #3....!! something about loving, learning and leaving?? not sure what order they are in! lol...maybe you know? it looked like a pretty good series.

Schotzy said...

I love Kingsbury... just actually got into her books this spring with her 911 series. I want to rad the Leaving, longing, Learning books soon but they are checked out of the library at church. This one looks wonderful!
Thanks for sharing!