Hope Senior—all-American girl and student at Rockland University. Her family came over on the Fortune, less than a year after the Mayflower arrived at Plymouth.
Jay Brown—a charming blend of Indian heritage and American dreams. He arrived in the United States as a boy, something he hardly remembers.
A chance meeting introduces them, and in time, Hope introduces Jay to Jesus.
Her faith both intrigues & repels him. He respects & admires her Jesus. The stories in the Bible tug at his heart, but he can't accept that without the blood of Jesus, he deserves only hell.
Where Hope fails, can faith move the mountains protecting his heart?
My Thoughts:
This is a cute story with likable characters. Hope is fun and spontaneous--the kind of person everyone likes--and is very easy to become attached to. Jay is genuinely nice, and (much to Hope's surprise!) is quite American acting for someone who was born in India.
It was fun to watch their meeting and the subsequent growth of their friendship. Eventually their relationship changes to something more, and I found it particularly sweet when they started acting different and letting their feelings show, but at the same time they're not quite sure what to make of the subtle change in direction of their relationship.
At times I felt the "preachy" level got up just a tad too high, although considering that Jay's search for truth and understanding is a fairly large part of the plot, I'm not sure it could be helped. Honestly, "preachy" isn't really even the right word....It's not heavy-handed, there's just a fair amount of conversations between Jay and Hope where they discuss Bible verses or various points of her faith.
Overall, this was an enjoyable story, and though it's the first book I've read by Chautona Havig, I'm sure it won't be the last! I'm looking forward to checking out some of her other books in the future.
My Rating: 4 stars
This cover art is adorable - that is what first caught my eye on my dashboard timeline. :)
ReplyDeleteWill have to check into - thanks for bringing it your readers attention, Val. :)