It’s a truth universally unacknowledged that sin will hunt you down and advertise its presence the moment you try to hide it.Emily Byrne sits in her daughter’s classroom listening to the deepest wishes of twenty kindergarteners as she sketches them. But when little Joey Cordell breaks down, weeping and insisting the only thing he wants to find is his father, she isn’t sure where her Christmas … her Christmas project will take her.
Davia Cordell came to Rockland for one purpose–find her son’s father before she dies. An ex-prostitute, she’s well aware that the news will cause waves, but what’s a mother to do?
As these women join forces to search for Joey’s father–a Rockland area pastor, no less– Emily learns compassion for a woman who just wants the best for her son and can’t quite imagine that Jesus wants anything to do with her.
Each day, Davia weakens until Emily isn’t confident she’ll find the boy’s father in time–if at all. Doubts form. Should she look? Is it right to risk destroying a family like this–an entire church? The weight of that responsibility crushes her as Davia wastes away before her eyes.
A mother’s love. A boy’s confidence. A family’s faith. A preacher’s failure. Is redemption even possible anymore?
Christmas Embers: a story of love, failure, and redemption.
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A beautiful story of mistakes, guilt, shame, God’s love and redemption.
This book was my introduction to Chautona Havig’s writing. And, wow, what an introduction it has been. I’ve heard such wonderful things about the author’s books but was completely blown away when I picked up this book. The book is well-written in a contemporary writing style. It is written almost like a journal entry but in third person point of view. And multiple points of view in the story make for a complete storyline without feeling fragmented. Not only do the main characters have a voice, but the secondary characters have voices as well, which add rich layers to the plot and character development. The plot is intricately woven with some twists and turns (which could have been anticipated).
The book is deeply moving with raw and very real emotions and addresses some heavy issues. There is the hint of poverty and financial difficulties in the area the main characters live in. There is the difficulty and temptation that faces a minister and his family while attempting to do good work for the Lord. There is fear of rejection, fear of losing the perceived status in the community and the church. There is the human response to hold onto bitterness and hatred and the awful desire to pull others down into that pit of darkness. There is the hypocrisy so rampant in our churches. And at the center of all these difficult issues is adultery and what it means to truly forgive.
My heart stumbled and stuttered throughout the whole book. It was difficult for me to read this book because of the issues being addressed, yet I could not put it down. I actually didn’t connect completely with any of the characters. Emily has a very emotional spirit and perhaps I could not understand her completely because I am not very emotional. But her response to a man who is not her husband confused me and many of her actions and reactions, though most likely justifiable, confused me for most of the book. Sean, though more level-headed, confused me as well. His jumbled and inexplicable thoughts regarding his past didn’t strike true with who he is built up to be from the beginning of the book. And perhaps that was the author’s point – that Sean really couldn’t explain what happened and needed to just handle the repercussions of that past. Despite my less than 100% connection and enthusiasm for the main characters, the book still drew me in and held me fast till the last page. I honestly wasn’t sure what Emily would do until the very end of the book.
The book gave me a fresh lens to assess myself and to ask the question “What kind of a Christian am I?”. Do I run away at the first sign of discord and difficulty? Do I hide my sin and pretend it doesn’t exist? Can I truly forgive when I’m hurt to the very core of who I am? Am I like Emily’s bitter and hateful friend Kate who desires to drag everyone down around her in my sinfulness? Am I like Emily’s self-righteous parents who are only concerned about outward appearances? How can I be more like Sean’s parents and Sean’s mentor who speak the truth in love? Even hours after closing the book, I’m still pondering these questions.
I was given a copy of this book by the author through Celebrate Lit Tours. I was not required to write a favorable review. All comments and opinions are solely my own.