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They say that what you don't know can't hurt you. They're wrong.Writing
David Dryden, pastor of a high-profile church in London, is admired for his emphasis on the Christian family.
But all is not well in his own family. He and his wife, Fiona, have been glossing over his son Colom's erratic behavior. Then, when a commitment to die is discovered in Colom's room after the suicide of a school friend, David finds himself out of his depth--and Fiona, in panic, takes Colom and flees.
A wonderful, intelligent, and searching novel about the toxic nature of secrets, and the possibility of starting again.
Kelly isn't just a fiction writer, he also writes poetry and non-fiction. He's hugely prolific and his interest in poetry is evident throughout the book. However, I'm not sure this is for the best. I kept getting the feeling as I read that this was a first draft. There was so much information provided and so much description that just didn't add to the story or to the quality of writing. I think it's full of great potential, but I didn't feel like it was as polished as it could have been.
Entertainment Value
Positives first: I loved reading a story where a family is Christian but the story isn't about their faith. It plays a large role in the lives of the characters and certainly has an impact on the story, but it wasn't the central theme of the story and there wasn't a religious message to be gathered. The characters were also nuanced and, for the most part, believable.
I did feel like a ton of description could have been taken out without hurting the novel and would have made it more fun to read. I wanted to be engrossed because I feel like the plot has a huge amount of potential, but I just never got to a point where I overcame my apathy towards the characters.
Overall
There's definitely an audience for this book. It will appeal to fans of women's literature and "ripped from the headlines" stories. I also think it would be a great choice for readers of Christian fiction who want more than a story with a moral. That said, it just wasn't for me. I never really started to care for the characters and found myself bored at times.
Thanks to TLC for providing me with copy to review.
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