Karen Kingsbury books

A couple of years ago, in the spring of '05, some moms in my MOPS group coerced me into reading a book.  ha ha!  I know, that sounds crazy, but at the time, I was of the opinion that I didn't have TIME to sit around & read fiction novels.  I was a mom of 3 young children, and by golly...if I was going to read anything, it was going to be non-fiction stuff that I actually learned something from.  I would get the information I needed & move on.  No time for this sitting around & reading & escaping to a world of fantasy for me!  This group of ladies were always discussing the latest book they'd read and they kept mentioning the same authors.  They finally talked about one book in particular & each just raved about it.  Less than a week later, another friend recommended the same book.  I figured if that many people loved it, I ought to give a shot.  My friend loaned me the book and I looked at it in shock.  This was one BIG book.  No way would I ever make it through something that size!  The book was Redeeming Love by Francine Rivers.  Two weeks later, after many nights of staying up til 2-3am, I was done with the book and shocked by how much I enjoyed it.  This was one of those page turner, awesome books that blows you away while you read it.  It is *THE* book that got me back into reading fiction.  It is the story of Hosea (the book of the Bible) written in a modern day language with new characters in place of the Bible characters.  It's sort of hard to describe, but the passion for God's redemptive power in that book made me wonder what else this lady wrote that I'd enjoy.

Within a couple of months, I had devoured a handful of Francine Rivers's books.  The Last Sin Eater (which has since been made into a movie), And the Shofar Blew, The Scarlet Thread, and The Atonement Child to mention a few.  All of these books were phenomenal.  After reading all of these, I took a break.  I couldn't find another of Mrs. Rivers's books at the time & didn't know who else was good, so I didn't read anything for a while (no novels anyway).

In the early Spring of 2007, I stumbled upon a book at the local library that re-opened my love for books.  It was Karen Kingsbury's book, Redemption.  I had no idea that this was the first book in a series or that I would get so hooked on the characters.  I zipped through the book in a couple of days and was itching for the next one.  Over the course of the next couple of months, I read all 5 books in the Redemption series, all 5 in the Firstborn series (which follows the Redemption series) and the first 2 of the Sunrise series.  As of now, I'm anxiously awaiting the release of book #3 in the Sunrise series.  The characters in these books are so real, dealing with such real life problems that it's almost impossible to read the books without feeling like you're a part of their family, going through all the ups & downs with them.  If you've ever read Karen Kingsbury's books, you know what I mean.

While I patiently (or not so patiently?) wait for the next book in the Sunrise series to come out, I've been reading some other of Mrs. Kingsbury's work.  I received her latest book, Between Sundays, for my birthday & quickly read it.  Since late November, though, I've been between books.  I've "read at" a few things but never could dive into anything until this past week when we made a trip to the library.  I went straight to the section where Mrs. Kingsbury's books are & found a book from her "Forever Faithful" series.  It's called A Moment of Weakness.  Here's what her website gives as a summary, just to whet your appetite:

A Moment of Weakness is a captivating story of human weakness and divine faithfulness. Jade and Tanner were childhood friends until scandal drove them apart. Then one golden summer they found each other again and shared dreams of forever. But in a moment of weakness they made a decision that would tear them apart for nearly a decade. Now, Jade's unfaithful husband wants to destroy her in a custody battle that is about to shock the nation. Only one man can help her in her darkest hour. And only one old woman knows the secret about that summer-and the truth that can set them all free.

Boy it was good......I finished it this morning!  And guess what?  I've already got the next book of hers to read!  It's called Like Dandelion Dust.  And the description of this one says:

It's the emotional story of an adoptive couple that tragically learns that the birth mother who gave up her son four years earlier has changed her mind. A forged signature on the paperwork makes it seem possible that they will lose their son, Joey, maybe forever. Like Dandelion Dust is the story of a mother's passion, and the lengths a couple is willing to go to, all for the love of a child.

Sounds good doesn't it?  I can't wait to dig in!!!!!