BOOK REVIEW: Need You Now by Beth Wiseman

This is the story of Brad and Darlene Henderson and their three teenaged children, Chad, Grace, and Ansley. After Chad, their oldest, experiences alcohol and possibly drug problems in high school, the family moves from Houston to the small rural town of Round Top, Texas. Brad, a CPA bucking for partner, continues his job in Houston and the long commute keeps him away from the family more than before. Brad and Darlene are both strong Christians and are raising their children to be also. Darlene ministers to a neighbor who has been bitter with God for years because of the death of her child. The neighbor, Layla, turns out to be a former movie star. Darlene had not recognized her, but Brad did from watching old movies. As time goes on, Darlene and Layla become friends and, eventually, Darlene learns that she helped Layla restore her faith in God.

As I was reading the book I thought of the saying, "wherever you go, there you are", because moving to the small town didn't solve the problems. If anything, they were made worse. Brad is away more because of the long drive and having to work extra hours to become partner. Darlene takes a job partly because the children are more independent and they are in a safer environment.

The reader gets to hear the story from the viewpoints of Darlene, Brad, Chad, and Grace, as well as a few people outside the family. This gives the reader insights about the children sometimes before the parents. This increased the suspense and made me want to read on to find out what happens next.

As in real life, events in the story affected different people in different ways. Sometimes a problem causes one person to turn closer to God for love and support. The same problem might cause another person to reject and blame God. Our strong faithful Christians in this story didn't always react the way we expected. But that's the way it is in the real world. How strong is your faith?

I loved the book and the characters. I laughed with them and cried for them. I even wanted to fuss at them at times. This is the first book I've read by Beth Wiseman, but I'll be looking for more. She has a great talent for making the story interesting from the first page to the last. There's no filler. All meat.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received an advance review copy of this book free from the publisher. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”