Image Map

Thursday, February 20, 2014

Adventures in Reading: Secrets Over Sweet Tea

If you have read any of my previous book reviews, you will know that my favorite genre is historical fiction. Usually Christian historical fiction. Well, one day, I was feeling adventurous and decided to review...

by: Denise Hildreth Jones

Set in present day Franklin, Tennessee, this novel mainly follows the lives and marriages of 3 different couples. Couple #1 is the pastor of a non-denominational church and his wife (and 5 boys!). Couple #2 is a 'power couple' of a hockey star and a morning news anchor. And couple #3 is a divorce lawyer and his wife of 15 years (and their twin teenage daughters). For different reasons the marriages of couple #2 and couple #3 are in trouble, big trouble. The pastor and his wife are both involved in helping each couple make hard decisions in very difficult situations. 

Ok, my honest opinion...upon finishing this book, my heart was so, so sad. I think Jones has constructed a pretty accurate look into what many marriages look like in today's society. And reading about the trials and heart ache, just really made me so sad for all of the hurting people in the world today. There are 3 very different marriage relationships in this novel: a Christian marriage (in the case of the pastor and his wife), a marriage between a Christian and a non-Christian (what I think couple #2 was), and two non-Christians who just are going through the motions (couple #3). I always look for the "bad guy" in a story, and the bad guy in this story is definitely sin. Jones paints a very real picture of sin and how if effects not only the sinner but the people around him or her. If topics such as alcoholism and adultery are not your cup of sweet tea, then I would advise you to skip this book. While there is nothing graphic, these sins are a main theme that is dealt with throughout the novel by the main characters. 

I was given a free copy of this book by Tyndale in exchange for my review of it. All opinions are my true and honest opinion. 

No comments:

Post a Comment