Customer Reviews

Allure

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This book is about a woman who is struggling through her marriage and ends up meeting another man, who she has an emotional affair with. In this book, Valerie struggles to find her way back to her husband.

I thought this book gave a strong message on how important marriage is, and how we need to keep our eyes focused on God. Through this fictional account, I thought this book gave some really good ideas as to how a woman should work towards her marriage. This book also talks about how it is a bad idea for a woman to confide in another man. The book was straightforward and easy to read. The book had a happy ending in that Valerie and her husband reunited.

Jackie King Scott's short novel, The Allure is packed with much wisdom and spiritual insight that is helpful whether you happen to be married or single. This novel teaches us how quickly things can spiral out of control when two people lean on their own understanding and stop letting God direct their paths.

Valerie Townsend is experiencing what is commonly referred to as the seven year itch. After going through the ups and downs of marriage and trying to conceive a child, Patricia feels as if God is leading her to end her marriage to John. To make matters worse, Patricia thinks that God is offering her a second chance at marriage by bring Curtis, an attractive divorced Christian man into her life. What Patricia fails to realize until she attends a women's retreat and attends a session entitled "Wait on the Lord" is that waiting does not mean that you sit back, expecting God to provide an automatic solution to your problems. Waiting is preparing yourself by remaining in God's will so you will be ready to act when He intervenes. Patricia also comes to realize that while she has been blaming much of the marital problems on John, she too must shoulders some of the blame. Her way of thinking led her to believe that it was John who needed to make changes when in actuality she needed to make some changes in herself in order to improve her marriage.

The Allure is full of messages that offer hope, fidelity, real love, commitment and restoration. By the conclusion of this short but powerful novel, Valerie learns what we all eventually learn. We cannot direct our own paths. We must pray and allow God's will to be done.

Happy Reading!

Reviewed by Sabrina Hall for The GOOD GIRL Book
[...]

Valerie and John's marriage is in trouble. For the past year they have been married in name only and go about their daily routines as housemates as opposed to husband and wife. Because of their inability to conceive and ultimately carrying out this feat, Valerie and John separate emotionally from each other. Due to a lack of communication and negative assumptions, another man enters Valerie's life and she contemplates leaving her marriage for what looks like happiness. Valerie declares that God put this man in her life for a reason.

Through a series of Christian conferences, retreats, counseling and the meddling of friends, Valerie attempts to find her way back to her marriage and back to God. Laced with an abundance of scriptures and designed to teach one how to pray, THE ALLURE captures the essence of finding your way with conviction and commitment to Him.

Written primarily through the voice of the wife, as I was reading I wanted to hear John's voice and his take on the matter. King-Scott does not disappoint and allows us to finally hear John's musings and his pleading to help save his marriage. At times drawn out, the author savors this tale as in real life by taking her time and examining all aspects to finding our way through His will. THE ALLURE pits man against woman and ultimately God because they have lost their way from each other and especially from Him.

Reviewed by Dawn R. Reeves
of The RAWSISTAZ™ Reviewers

"The Allure" opens with a disgruntled Valerie retreating to a local park to escape the tension of being home with her husband John. Valerie and John's marriage is in serious trouble. They've grown apart due to a number of stresses including infertility. Despite the fact that they are strong Christians, their relationship is dying a fast death as the emotional and physical distance between them continues to grow.

As she's in the park, Valerie meets a man who is a great listener, thoughtful and a Christian. Valerie soon becomes convinced that God has sent this man into her life as a second chance at true love. The story follows Valerie as she decides if she should leave John and start anew with the new man in her life who she begins to meet in the park weekly.

Valerie soon begins to feel uncomfortable and struggles to know God's true will for her life. As this is a short volume, I didn't expect to be so completely fulfilled from reading this story. Jackie King-Scott seamlessly infused the story with bible verses, sermons/presentations from Christian conferences and discussions from a small Bible study group. Yet, not once did I feel that she was using this as a platform simply for presenting the biblical messages. Each instance flowed perfectly with the story, yet was uplifting and inspiring to me as a reader.

I simply loved that the author tackled tough issues, realistically and yet held true to a Christian message. I'm eagerly awaiting Ms. King-Scott's next novel. This is Christian fiction done right!

I picked this book up @ the library this past Saturday randomly. It was on the shelf with new books & the caption on the back sounded interesting. I was done with this book Saturday nite! (No, I have no life - ha!) I knew what it was going to be about, but it caught me quite off guard. I'm not married, but my Sig.Other & I have been "together" for 14 years so I felt some of things the characters were going through applied - all the way down to the "beautiful stranger" who's trying to wedge his way into the scene because he knows there is trouble in paradise. But mostly, I loved the way the couples were committed to God & each other, & worked things out with with and through God's guidance. I admire that. I felt inspired & refreshed for days after reading this, like I had been slapped in the face. I hope Ms. King-Scott continues to write more inspiring stories!

Initially 2 other women and I were supposed to read this book together, but they were taking so long to get started, that I went ahead and jumped right into it. I'm so glad that I did....I really enjoyed reading this book! I like how Ms. King-Scott uses this book as a tool to counsel women (and men) in their marriages through a story about a married couple (mostly told from Valerie's point of view). The story itself is fiction, but has non-fiction truth in it based on the biblical principles that are intertwined into the story line.
Valerie, the main character, is in a troubled marriage with her husband, John. Valerie's marriage is on the edge of falling apart when she is tempted to sway outside the marriage with a suave gentleman that she meets at the park. Just when you think all hope is lost and her marriage is headed for separation or divorce, she and John take advantage of an opportunity for healing and begin attending a Christian marriage conference about the Fruits of the Spirit (Love, Joy, Peace, Patience, Kindness, Goodness, Faithfulness, Gentleness, and Self-Control) to help restore the love they once had. Even as a fiction book, it is a great reference tool to have about marriage-restoration!