Defies Categorization, But In A Good Way..., February 5, 2007

Reviewer:

Doug Raymond "Doug Raymond" (Belton, MO USA) - See all my reviews

  

Is it a romance? Contemporary women's fiction? Chick-lit? Unless I'm mistaken, the answer is yes.

I've read several Lori Copeland books, but this one is my favorite. The author happened to land on several story lines that interest me, including "aging parents with caregiving daughter" as well as "aging daughter who's yet to meet the larger world head-on."

Johanna Holland, librarian extraordinaire, seems--at first--perfectly content with her hum-drum routine. She's 40, single, gainfully employed by day, and fulfilling her "calling" to care for her elderly parents by night and weekend. Conveniently, she has no time or energy leftover to contemplate what her life might be like should Dr. Handsome Widowed Missionary ever walk through the library door.

But then, of course, he does. Soon, Johanna finds herself scanning the bottom shelves with him, scouting out books on Papau, New Guinea. The very idea of foreign missions scares her to death, but it's not just that--her heart's traveling to foreign places, too, so quickly her head can't possibly keep up.

You'll have to read the book to discover how Johanna deals with the apparently irreconcilable differences between the good doctor's calling and her own. Of the hundreds of inspirational novels I've read, this one stands out with its unique take on the often confusing subject of finding God's purpose for our lives.