Eva and Angela must learn to live again. One step at a time.

It has been fifteen months since Eva and Angela lost their thrill-seeking husbands in a scuba diving accident. Both women are trying to navigate their way through the grief, but neither one is making much progress. Angela is barely making ends meet, angry at her husband for leaving her to raise three children on her own. Meanwhile, Eva is stuck, unable to move forward after losing the love of her life and her source of inspiration.

But then Eva gets a life-changing phone call. Before Brent and Wes died, they had signed up for a race of a lifetime—an ultra-marathon in beautiful New Zealand. Eva begs Angela to run the race with her in their husbands’ place, and Angela finally agrees, hoping to finally understand her husband’s choices.

Training is exhausting, and the race is even more demanding. Their journey grows more complicated by the presence of two men—Marc is Brent’s best friend who is running the race with Eva and Angela, and Simon King is a writer who is covering their inspiring story. With every step, Eva and Angela must ask themselves questions that they haven’t had the courage to ask before. As the women literally put one foot in front of the other, they wonder: Is it possible to find their way forward in hope?

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The Joy of Falling by Lindsay Harrel
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

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.

First of all, this is a Christian book with no inappropriate content. Readers can rest easy and know that this is an inspirational book with a strong Christian message at its core, and the romances are totally chaste as well.

I am not one who is overly interested in marathons and racing, but this book tackles so much more than that. In addition to this story examining the death of a spouse and a possible response or two to falling in love again, this book follows the journey or preparations for a massive marathon in New Zealand. It also has elements of single motherhood, job boredom, and even distance relationships. While there is nothing shocking in the book, the story is sweet and full of hope ina time period when we could genuinely use more than a shot in the arm of genuine hope. Because of the Christian basis of the book, we know that we can find true last hope, and we are always reminded that God is in charge of everything and only wants what is best for us. I highly recommend it to anyone who would like to read a book that is more than just a contemporary Christian romance.

View all my reviews

About the Author

Lindsay Harrel is a lifelong book nerd who lives in Arizona with her young family and two golden retrievers in serious need of training. She’s held a variety of writing and editing jobs over the years and now juggles stay-at-home mommyhood with writing novels. When she’s not writing or chasing after her children, Lindsay enjoys making a fool of herself at Zumba, curling up with anything by Jane Austen, and savoring sour candy one piece at a time. Connect with her at LindsayHarrel.com.

Read an Excerpt

Click here to read the first four chapters.

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