Faith Departed
(Remnants Book One)
by Elizabeth Maddrey
Starting a family was supposed to be easy.
Twin sisters June and July have never encountered an obstacle they couldn’t overcome. Married just after graduating college, the girls and their husbands remained a close-knit group.
Now settled and successful, the next logical step is children. But as the couples struggle to conceive, each must reconcile the goodness of God with their present suffering.
Will their faith be strong enough to triumph in the midst of trial?
- Publisher: HopeSprings Books
- Date: March 4, 2014
- ISBN: 978-1938708398
Purchase Options
Buy Paperback Buy for Kindle Buy for Nook
Author’s Note
I introduced June and July briefly in Joint Venture when Laura nearly roomed with them. That chance encounter sparked a new idea for this series. While technically women’s fiction, I think there’s enough love in these books to appeal to the readers of romance who enjoyed the Grant Us Grace novels. In fact, several of the characters from the Grant Us Grace series reappear here, as well.
The series itself is called “Remnants” – borrowing from 1 Corinthians 13:13, “And these three remain, faith, hope, and love. But the greatest of these is love.”
Faith Departed by Elizabeth Maddrey
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
If you are looking for a quick, Christian read that has humor and an emotional storyline, this may be the book for you. There is nothing objectionable in the book, and the story concludes with a promise. The writing is simple but meaningful. And for anyone who has struggled with infertility, this is a book written from the author’s experience. It is a fantastic reminder that we cannot always understand why God allows bad things to happen to good people.
For me, the story was a little better than mediocre, but I would have preferred a little more meat in the tale. In addition to this, the Christian message was there, but not as robust as I like. Notwithstanding, this book is well-written and touching. You will probably fall in love with the twins–I know I did!
I was sent a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. I was not financially compensated, and all opinions are 100 percent mine.
Excerpt:
“Stop stop stop stop.” June breathed the words as the digital readout on the bathroom scale flickered up. She cringed when the hateful thing finally followed her directions. One forty. One hundred and forty pounds. She stumbled backwards off the scale and dropped onto the cold edge of the bathtub. At five foot two, she was used to numbers much more in the range of one ten. But the last six months had added thirty pounds…that was five pounds a month. She buried her head in her hands. What was going on?
“Morning, baby.” Toby shuffled into the bathroom, rubbing his eyes. He stopped to give her an appreciative look and waggle his eyebrows. “Careful, you’re going to make me late for work.”
She chuckled in spite of herself. “You’re insane.” And blind. There was no point in drawing his attention to her ever expanding girth. She was on her way to being twice the woman he married four years ago. He hadn’t signed on for a two-in-one special.
He grabbed her arm and pulled her close, burying his nose in her neck. “I can’t help it if I have the world’s most enticing wife.”
He couldn’t possibly mean it. Her fat rolls squashed against his still-firm abs as he tightened his embrace. She fought the urge to push away and put on a robe. She forced her tone to be light. “Now, now. Didn’t you say you had a big meeting this morning?”
He pressed a kiss to her head and eased back, eyes still hinting at his interest. “I did…sadly, I did.”
She crossed her arms over her belly as he turned on the shower and tossed his towel over the door.
“Any news, June?”
She swallowed the lump in her throat and shook her head.
“We’ll just have to practice more.” He shot her a wicked grin and stepped into the steaming shower.
About the Author:
Elizabeth Maddrey began writing stories as soon as she could form the letters properly and has never looked back. Though her practical nature and love of math and organization steered her into computer science for college and graduate school, she has always had one or more stories in progress to occupy her free time. When she isn’t writing, Elizabeth is a voracious consumer of books and has mastered the art of reading while undertaking just about any other activity. She loves to write about Christians who struggle through their lives, dealing with sin and receiving God’s grace.
Elizabeth lives in the suburbs of Washington D.C. with her husband and their two incredibly active little boys. She invites you to interact with her at her website www.ElizabethMaddrey.com or on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/ElizabethMaddrey
