The Fragrance of Roses (Regalo Grande Series #3) [Paperback]

Nikki Arana (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 1, 2006

Against all odds, attorney Angelica Amante married migrant worker Antonio Perez and became a stay-at-home mom for Manuel and Anica. Manuel was born with Downs Syndrome and then stricken with childhood cancer, but the family came through the crisis intact and considered Manuel their miracle child. God had indeed blessed them. Or had He? When the deadly disease returns with a vengeance, threatening to rip away all that is precious to them, Antonio returns to Mexico in desperation to test his family members for a compatible donor for Manuel. Angelica must stay behind, watching her young son deteriorate as he suffers the ravages of chemotherapy and unexplained complications. Book 3 in the Regalo Grande series, The Fragrance of Roses is the continuing story of Angelica and Antonio, whose faith in God and love for each other must sustain them through the greatest battle of their lives.

Editorial Reviews

From the Back Cover

Their son is dying and only a miracle can save him. Against all odds, attorney Angelica Amante married migrant worker Antonio Perez and became a stay-at-home mom for Manuel and Anica. Manuel was stricken with childhood cancer, but the family came through the crisis intact and considered Manuel their miracle child. God had indeed blessed them. Or had He? When the deadly disease returns with a vengeance, threatening to rip away all that is precious to them, Antonio returns to Mexico in desperation to test his family members for a compatible donor for Manuel. Angelica must stay behind, watching her young son deteriorate as he suffers the ravages of chemotherapy and unexplained complications. With only their faith in God and their love for each other to sustain them, Antonio and Angelica face the greatest battle of their lives. "I was spellbound by Nikki Arana's new book, The Fragrance of Roses. She makes me cry, makes me laugh, and makes my own walk with God more inspirational."-Eva Shaw, bestselling author, For the Love of Children

About the Author

Award-winning writer and real-estate broker Nikki Arana found inspiration for her first novel, The Winds of Sonoma, in her own love story with her husband, Antonio. She has since written the sequel In the Shade of the Jacaranda. Nikki and Antonio have been married twenty-eight years, are the parents of two grown sons, and live in Coeur d'Alene, Idaho.

Product Details

• Paperback: 336 pages
• Publisher: Fleming H. Revell (August 1, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 080073050X
• ISBN-13: 978-0800730505
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.5 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,560,460 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Nikki Arana is an award-winning author of women's fiction, essays, poetry, and magazine articles whose work has been published in the United States and Canada. She has won several national awards, including the American Christian Fiction Book of the Year for Women's Fiction for two consecutive years, the Beacon Award, the Excellence in Media Silver Angel Award, the Write Touch Readers Award, and others. Her book, The Winds of Sonoma was named One of the Top 20 Books of the Year by Christianbook.com. Nikki is also the recipient of the Jessie Cameron Alison Writer of the Year Award. Her 5th, and first non-fiction book, Through the Eyes of Christ: How to Lead Muslims into the Kingdom of God, has just been released. Her 6th book, Fear No Evil, is now under consideration with a major publisher. All of her books deal with social, political, and spiritual issues that confront society today.

Nikki lives with her husband of thirty-three years in Idaho. They have two grown sons. She would love to hear from you. Visit her website at www.NikkiArana.com

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Heart-wrenching drama in a hard-hitting novel, October 4, 2006

By 

Judy Fedele "Blogger, Lost and Found" (Syracuse, New York) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Fragrance of Roses (Regalo Grande Series #3) (Paperback)

The Fragrance of Roses is a hard-hitting novel that reaches out and slaps us right in our complacency. When the unimaginable happens in our lives, and our very worst fears explode in our faces, how do we respond? We can choose to let fear cripple us, or we can trust that God has a plan for our lives - whether or not we can always see the good in it ourselves. The challenges of life can frighten us as individuals, but when one becomes a parent, a whole new level of potential threats surface. Yet if God is truly in our corner, it is not the outcome of the thing that matters, but rather our outlook on the situation itself. With faith, parents can rise to the challenge of parenting in these troubling times without fear. Faith isn't dependant on circumstance; though faith may be strengthened because of it. In Fragrance, Angelica and Antonio take a worst-case scenario, but find the good in it. This novel is worth the emotional effort it takes to read - an investment that pays off in the end. With this novel, Nikki Arana has truly established herself as a serious writer.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Some books just can't be titled...this is one of those books, October 2, 2006

By 

Bonnie McKinzie (Garden Grove, CA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Fragrance of Roses (Regalo Grande Series #3) (Paperback)

I found myself totally immersed and yet completely heartbroken part of the time.....hilariously happy some of the time...but emotionally drained the whole book through. Having experienced a very, very similar situation, I could FEEL with Angel and Antonio, I can still remember the sights, sounds, smells and anguish that goes along with having a child with leukemia. I could also relate to having a mentally retarded child. Antonio's search for a bone marrow match in Mexico gave the reader a completely thorough and unbiased picture of trying to beat death and time in a country completely unaware of modern medicine, while living a life in the ghettos of Mexico, and yet, family is number one. If their love can survive, then divorce courts should be out of business....awesome emotional finish, although you will need a box of Kleenex nearby and it WILL NOT END anything like you expected or hoped...believe me.....

5.0 out of 5 stars Nikki Arana Weaves Yet Another Heartwarming Tale, February 4, 2007

By 

Linda Rondeau "Author" (Malone, New York) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Fragrance of Roses (Regalo Grande Series #3) (Paperback)

The Fragrance of Roses
Nikki Arana
© 2006 Revell
ISBN 10:0-8007-3050-X
ISBN 978-0-8007-3050-5

First, a romance disapproved by her parents, but leading to the greatest love Angelica Amante has known. Then the reader wept with Angelica and Antonio as they struggled through their early marriage and the certainty that their first born child will have birth defects. In all this their faith has grown.

Now, in this third book of the Regalo Grande series Nikki Arana takes us once again into the lives of this couple, the beautiful attorney and daughter of wealthy California doctor and a Mexican immigrant who has worked to establish a successful landscaping business, understand a complicated language like English, and maintain the care and nurture of his family whom God has given him.

When Angela and Antonio learn the twelve-year old son's leukemia has returned, Antonio goes to Mexico in search of a compatible donor. Angelica remains behind to hold the family together. When her father announces he must sell the ranch to stave off bankruptcy, Angelica feels another part of her heart being ripped away.

Can this family survive yet another threat against the love and faith that binds them?

Nikki Arana has done a superlative job in presenting the heartache facing parents of a dying child, their desperation, and of the God who loves all affected. A must read.