Sometimes everything you ever learned about yourself is wrong Fashion is a fickle industry, a frightening fact for twenty-four year old model Ivy Clark. Ten years in and she’s learned a sacred truth—appearance is everything. Nobody cares about her broken past as long as she looks beautiful for the camera. This is the only life Ivy knows—so when it starts to unravel, she’ll do anything to hold on. … she’ll do anything to hold on. Even if that means moving to the quaint island town of Greenbrier, South Carolina, to be the new face of her stepmother’s bridal wear line—an irony too rich for words, since Ivy is far from the pure bride in white.
If only her tenuous future didn’t rest in the hands of Davis Knight, her mysterious new photographer. Not only did he walk away from the kind of success Ivy longs for to work maintenance at a local church, he treats her differently than any man ever has. Somehow, Davis sees through the façade she works so hard to maintain. He, along with a cast of other characters, challenges everything Ivy has come to believe about beauty and worth. Is it possible that God sees her—a woman stained and broken by the world—yet wants her still?
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Please do not miss this one. If you love stories of redemption and honest representations of how God often works in his people, through his people, and to draw the lost to Himself, this is not a book to miss. You will ache with Ivy, and you will ultimately love the story of Davis and Ivy, and Sara and Marilyn. Beyond Beautiful!
The audible narration is also perfectly done!
I still love this book. Not my first time reading it and I can definitely read it again and again. Every book by this author has made me cry and even though I’ve read this book before I was crying again.
This is a story that touches deeply and says a lot without shoving it down your throat. I look forward to reading it yet again.
A Broken Kind of Beautiful is a compelling, heart-breaking story of God’s loving redemption, even towards those who believe they are beyond repair.
Ivy Clark lives and breathes fashion. Having been in the model industry since she was fourteen, the twenty-four year old knows her time is drawing to a close. After ruining her chance for a contract extension, Ivy’s agent exiles her to Greenbrier, South Carolina and the only job offer she has, modeling wedding dresses for her stepmother’s bridal boutique Something New. Sadly, Ivy is anything but a pure bride, dealing in the seduction of men and coping with the truth that she is the illegitimate daughter of a man that never loved her. A beautiful face admired by the world. But, one that nobody takes the time to look past and see the real Ivy Clark. The Ivy hurting and broken, desperate for unconditional love that looks past her beautiful shell to the wounded child beneath.
While in Greenbrier, Ivy meets her enigmatic photographer Davis Knight. A man who captures the truth with his camera and sees past her beauty to the brokenness she tries to hide. Although possessing the talent to make it in New York, Davis relinquished those dreams and his camera two years ago. Since then, he has worked maintenance repair at a local church and taken care of his recently blinded sister Sara. Davis only reignites his passion and picks up his camera to photograph his Aunt Marilyn’s model for Something New, after learning the proceeds will bring the new art program for blind students Sara has been dreaming about to the community college. But, will he be able to lock his camera and desire back up after the campaign? And what about Ivy? While Davis would love to be her knight in shining armor, can he, Sara, and Marilyn, the barren widow who has loved her husband’s daughter as if she were own, show Ivy that God loves her? That God cares about Ivy Clark. That God wants her- broken and all. Because He redeems the desperate and broken leaving a broken kind of beautiful.
A Broken Kind of Beautiful touched me in so many ways. The plot immediately drew me in and didn’t let go until the end. And even then, I didn’t want it to end. Being from the South, I enjoyed the Southern setting complete with old plantations, oak trees, crabbing, and sweet tea. The language appeared poetic at times with its rhythm and beauty and Katie’s characters were lovable and realistic, so much so that my heart broke repeatedly for Ivy and the pain that consumed her. Although Ivy was the main character, my favorite character was her stepmother Marilyn due to her unwavering faith in God and her unexplainable love for Ivy, even when both caused her pain. I cried several times near the end of the book, tears of sorrow and joy. The book abounds with broken people in need of healing. The photographer with a hidden past, the woman with no children of her own, and the beautiful model who believes no one truly loves her. Through all of this, the healing power of God’s love shines as a reminder that He is strong enough to heal the hurt and gentle enough to relentlessly pursue and redeem the broken. In the end, the book is not about Ivy, Davis, or Marilyn. The story is about God’s loving redemption- which can only be described as beautiful.