Season of Hope- A Christian Fiction Book Review

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“The only season in her life these past few years
had been a brown, dead winter. Life marched on. Days,
months, and years passed by, but her winter never
changed to spring.”

Hope is surviving the day to day life with her son, Mattie. After seeing the new preacher and finding that he is way to attractive she is determined to build up a protective wall around her and Mattie. She will never let anything bad happen to Mattie. God may have punished her for her wrong behavior and taken away the love of her life and her parents, but she will fiercely protect her son from all harm and danger.

“He came to minister, not to find a wife.”

Joshua is the new pastor to this country church for the summer. He is eager to to share how God transformed his life and be the shepherd the congregation needs, until he goes back to seminary school in the fall. Mattie has wriggled his way into “Doss'” heart and Mattie’s mother, although a huge chip on her shoulder, is not unattractive. But can each one forgive themselves for the past and find hope for the future?

Carol James wanted to give us a story of redemption and what it looks like to forgive ourselves. Her writing started off a bit rocky but I think as it moved along I saw her story building up and her writing strengthening, like she had gained confidence in her abilities. Mattie was adorable and I loved that guy and especially the way he couldn’t say any J-word correctly and pronounced it with a D. The story is easy flowing, characters are easy to follow. I appreciate that there is not a sprinkling of faith here and there but it is etched into the very story.

That being said, there were some really difficult things that bothered me. Some of them were small and petty and not typically the things that would bother anyone: for example the fact that in every scene that our main male protagonist comes into the picture we get a full detailed description of what he is wearing. No other character has this, only the preacher and all the time. There were some things that did not fit the timeline, like have a cherry vanilla Dr. Pepper. They worked it out so that they mixed the flavors by hand, but I couldn’t wrap my head around this being a thing just after the Vietnam war.  And there were a few other things like that. For a paranoid mother, maybe you can pull it off but I really felt like I was reading a more contemporary novel.

I think the thing that really dropped the star rating on this book was a scene in the book, where a character sees someone that has died and gone to heaven. Not only did they see this other character, they hold a conversation with this person. Our main character brushes it off as something that will fade away because it can’t be true. However, the fact that it is in the novel speaks volumes, if you will pardon the pun here. It is one of those things that really bother me as a Christian. Anyone speaking with the dead is considered a Medium, and they were condemned in the Old and New Testament. Therefore we should have nothing to do with it.

I’ll end on a positive note that I could see many friends enjoying this book as a refreshing read. I would recommend it to them, with the caveat I stated above. Again, I also know that not everyone agrees with me about how scripture approaches this.

Season of Hope is on tour with Celebrate Lit.

About the Book

Book:  Season of Hope

Author: Carol James

Genre:  20th Century Christian Historical Romance

Hope Stockton’s life is dead, frozen in a winter of guilt, deceit, and fear. When a handsome young pastor, Josh Lewis, comes to serve in her church, she wonders if she can trust him with her past. Will he be able to help her find the answers to the questions that have been buried in her heart for years? Or will his own secrets drive them apart and prevent him from helping Hope find her spring of forgiveness?

Set in small town Texas in the years during and following the Vietnam war, Seasons of Hope is a story of forgiveness and restoration.

 

Click here to get your copy!

 

 

About the Author

Carol James is an author of inspirational fiction. She lives in a small town outside of Atlanta, Georgia with her husband, Jim, and a perky Jack Russell “Terrorist,” Zoe.

Having always loved intriguing stories with happy endings, she was moved to begin writing to encourage others as she’d been encouraged by the works of other authors of inspirational fiction.

Her debut novel, Rescuing Faith, has been a number one best seller on Amazon.

Carol enjoys spending time with her husband, children, and grandchildren, traveling with friends, and serving in the production department at her church. And most days, in the late hours of the night or the wee hours of the morning, she can be found bringing her newest novel to life.

 

 

More from Carol

Overcoming the Darkness

The Light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it. John 1:5

I’ve read or heard this verse hundreds, maybe thousands, of times. But I remember exactly the moment I truly understood the picture it paints.

I sat in church one Sunday morning. For weeks, I’d been elbow-deep in crafting a manuscript set in the years following the Vietnam war. The title was Season of Hope.

In the squeaky voice our congregation loved, Pastor Buddy read this scripture and then asked a simple question. “Have you ever thought that light always overcomes darkness?”

Of course I’d thought that. I knew The Light was Jesus. I knew through His perfect sacrifice, He overcame the darkness of sin and death to give us life and light.

But then, in his folksy manner that would sneak up on you and drop the truth right in your lap, Buddy’s sermon began to paint a poignant illustration.

You can walk into a dark room with any amount of light, no matter how small—a candle flame, a flashlight beam, or even the illumination from the face of your phone—and the light will always…always…invade the darkness.

But the opposite is never true. No matter how great the darkness and how small the light, darkness never prevails. Never overcomes the light.

And what little you manage to see in the darkness is distorted, not an accurate representation of reality. Because darkness hides reality. It shows us only colorless, indistinct imitations. Light, however, shows us beauty and truth.

Simple, right? Maybe. But like so many truths in the Bible, the idea is rich and full of meaning when you meditate on it.

When I left church that day, I knew my heroine’s battle was to be a clash between light and darkness, truth and lies.

In Season of Hope, Hope Stockton’s heart is frozen in the dark winter of her past. She’s spent so many years hiding her failures and fears from the light of truth, she questions whether her heart will ever feel the warmth of spring again.

Then she meets Josh Lewis, and she wonders, can she entrust him with the dark secrets that have been buried in her heart all these years?

Blog Stops

Texas Book-aholic, August 6

Debbie’s Dusty Deliberations, August 7

Artistic Nobody, August 8 (Author Interview)

Inklings and notions, August 9

For Him and My Family, August 10

deb’s Book Review, August 11

Simple Harvest Reads, August 12 (Author Interview)

CarpeDiem, August 13

SusanK. Beatty, Author, August 14 (Author Interview)

Adventures of a Travelers Wife, August 15

Musings of Sassy Bookish Mama, August 16

Sodbuster Living, August 17

Batya’s Bits, August 18

Blossoms and Blessings, August 19 (Author Interview)

Giveaway

To celebrate her tour, Carol is giving away the grand prize package of a digital copy of Season of Hope and a $40 Amazon gift card!!

Be sure to comment on the blog stops for nine extra entries into the giveaway! Click the link below to enter.

https://promosimple.com/ps/fe97/season-of-hope-celebration-tour-giveaway

11 thoughts on “Season of Hope- A Christian Fiction Book Review

  1. James Robert

    Thanks for taking time to share your book with us and it’s always a pleasure in our family to learn about a new one.

    Reply

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