What a great book! I do enjoy Francine River’s writing style especially in her books that focus on real life issues. This one doesn’t disappoint. I like the feelings of hope that her books leave me with. This novel focuses on a pastor, Paul Hudson, who is called to pastor a struggling church in a small town. He turns the church around and soon it is no longer struggling at all. What happens in the following years chronicles a man’s struggle with power and overcoming past hurts and future temptations. It shows a man’s slide from living his life for God to living his life for himself only. Paul hurts his wife and son deeply. He makes a mess of his life. He forgets that God and preaching his word is what is important, not the material things. This book really took me on an emotional journey with all these characters and I became attached to them and felt their joys and sorrows. I was sad to see the book end. I would have liked to know what happened still in the next few years. I would highly recommend this novel especially to fans of Christian fiction.
