A Review of "A Time to Embrace" by Karen Kingsbury

A Time to Embrace is an older Karen Kingsbury novel, published originally in 2002.  It continues the story of John and Abby Reynolds that began in A Time to Dance.  It tackles issues of love, commitment, intimacy, and forgiveness and does so with a deft hand, effortlessly weaving truth into the story line without feeling overly preachy.

I am a self professed lover of story, and, as Christian novelists go, Karen Kingsbury is a master storyteller.  I am most happy when profound truth is communicated in the form of a story, and Kingsbury has mastered this art.  Her novels, and this one was no exception, are encouraging and uplifting, though I would warn that they almost always fall into the "tear jerker" category!

In this case, I read A Time to Embrace in about three sittings, but only because I couldn't carve out a large enough chunk of free time in a busy weekend to read it in one.

What made me particularly happy was the fact that, since this book ended a series, it didn't leave the reader with questions.  Loose ends were tied up, and one was able to mentally picture the desired "happily ever after" ending, without wondering about the "what if's" and "but what about...'s"

I would wholeheartedly reccomend this one to anyone who's in the mood for a bit of happier reading for a change.

Note: This book was given to me at no charge by Thomas Nelson Publishers via their booksneeze.com program.  I was not required to provide a positive review, and am not being compensated for the review.

Daily 5 - Year 2, Day 127

Today's Daily 5:

1. Thankful that I've had a collection of cross-cultural experiences in the past.  When a crazy situation in the Toy Shoppe developed today, I'm confident that it was those experiences and the shared experiences of friends that kept me from exploding.  Instead, I was able to calmly but firmly handle the situation.
2. Finishing work on time after what was an admittedly CRAZY day.  It may be the only day this week that that happens, so it's definitely worth celebrating!
3. Leftover Chinese food for dinner
4. time with my brother T, chatting quietly while we split a pannini for lunch at work
5. snarky moments of laughter
6. getting to meet some really interesting and fabulous people who show up to volunteer for us at work
7. a hot shower
8. making a list of "must be dones" for the week to tackle
9. actually accomplishing a chunk of the list despite other time demands tonight
10. freshly painted toenails

Reverb 10: Day 20 - Beyond Avoidance

Today's Reverb 10 prompt:

December 20 – Beyond Avoidance.

What should you have done this year but didn’t because you were too scared, worried, unsure, busy or otherwise deterred from doing? (Bonus: Will you do it?)

(Author: Jake Nickell)

I have in the past been the self-dubbed queen of avoidance.  It's a particular skill of mine, avoidance.

But this year was not a year that it actually saw a lot of practice.

Circumstances made the things I would have rather avoided pretty much impossible to ignore.

I mean, when you lose a job you'd thought totally secure, the day after your baby brother's wedding, well, it has a way of forcing your hand.  That one forced the "stop and pray and listen to hear what direction to go next" thing that I'd been putting off for far too long.

My moving into grandma's house brought some, um, interesting family stuff to light.  No avoiding there either.  I was living in the middle of it.

And, this year I made a decision I'd been consciously avoiding for at least five years on one level or another.  I'm glad I made that decision, too.  (And yes, I am avoiding saying what that decision was!  A girl has to have some secrets to share in long skype conversations, or chats over coffee!)

All in all, I'd say it's actually been a year for the opposite of avoidance.

Weird for the self-declared queen.

But a good weird.

Maybe avoidance is a skill that is actually better off collecting dust.