book review: A Promise Kept

Allison Kavanagh never expected it to happen to her.  He had been her dream, her life.  She never expected things to turn out this way.  She thought that God had promised to save her marriage.  Had she heard wrong?

Up in a solitude mountain cabin, inherited from her single, independent Aunt Emma, Allison tries to sort out her feelings to move on with her life.  In her converting her unmarried aunt's old cabin to feel like home, her curiosity gets the better of her.  When she climbs up into the once forbidden attic, she stumbles upon some old photographs, journals and even an old wedding dress.  As Allison pieces together her aunt's life in the 20s and 30s, she is surprised to discover the side of Emma's heart that she hadn't known, one that looked surprisingly like her own: broken.

Allison soon finds herself drawing comparisons and coming to terms with some difficult questions.  She soon learns what it really means to trust, and surrender everything to the Lord.

This book really kept me turning pages--in fact, I stayed up until almost 2AM last night finishing it!  In A Promise Kept, author Robin Lee Hatcher does a fabulous job of intertwining the histories of great-aunt and niece-- comparing their pasts, realizing the pain that they shared so many years apart, and finally using the older story to inspire the redemption of the younger.  I loved the characters of Emma and Allison--how they were so much alike, but yet still their own unique persons.  The mystery was masterfully done, the emotional burdens so vivid, heart rending.  The kind that cause the reader to stop and think, What would I have done?

I was unsure at first about where this story was going.  I wasn't thrilled with the idea that Allison was a divorced woman and her mom was trying so hard to get her married to someone else, to convince her that the guy at church "liked her", when her husband was still living and even appeared to be interested.  I was unsure of the worldview in that aspect.  There were also allusions to things that married people do, but totally subtle--nothing I would hesitate about except for when giving this book to someone under 13.

All in all I really enjoyed this book!  I really loved the combination of modern day and historical fiction.  Best of all, the redemption at the end of Emma's story was priceless.  I had been a little frustrated with her story, trying to figure out in my mind how the story could possibly end!  But then, it came.  So satisfying, so perfect.  Why hadn't I thought of that?

I give this book 4 out of 5 stars.

Learn more about the book HERE!

I received this book free from the publisher through the BookSneeze.com® book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own.