Long Time Coming [Kindle Edition]

Vanessa Miller (Author)

Book Description

Faithful Christian Deidre Clark-Morris is a professional career-minded woman with a loving husband, but no children. Kenisha Smalls has lived in poverty all her life. She has three children by three different men and has just been diagnosed with inoperable cervical cancer. While the meeting between these two women appears accidental, it becomes their catalyst of hope. Neither woman expects the blessing that God has in store for her.  While Deidre will guide Kenisha on the path to eternal life with Jesus Christ, Kenisha will teach Deidre how to stand strong against the hard-knocks of life.

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

Deidre and Kenisha may lead completely different lives, but one thing is for sure: both of these strong women are well acquainted with pain. When a doctor tells Deidre that she will most likely never bear children, she feels worthless and unworthy of love.Then, through a dramatic course of divine events, Deidre’s life is suddenly interrupted when she learns from Kenisha’s son, Jamal, that Kenisha has cancer and only months to live. Despite numerous hardships, Kenisha does all that she can to make sure that her children have a better life than the one she lived. Resistant to help, Kenisha finds herself dependent on the kindness of Deidre and Deidre’s husband in more ways than she can count. In a novel that reads like the inspiring moments of a Tyler Perry movie, Miller brings hope to the hopeless as the fate of three children is suddenly in question. By mixing a heavy dose of veracity with feisty characters and a hard-hitting plot, Miller has created a novel that will resonate with fans of realistic contemporary Christian fiction. --Elizabeth Ponder

About the Author

Vanessa Miller is a bestselling author, playwright, and motivational speaker, who understands that all gifts come from God, and has written redemption stories in her Rain Series and Storm Series. Her novels have received rave reviews and won several awards. Vanessa is a dedicated Christian and devoted mother who lives in the Dayton, Ohio, area. Visit her on the Web at www.vanessamiller.com.

Product Details

• File Size: 454 KB
• Print Length: 303 pages
• Page Numbers Source ISBN: 1426707681
• Publisher: Abingdon Press (March 1, 2010)
• Sold by: Amazon Digital Services, Inc.
• Language: English
• ASIN: B0047ZHBJM
• Text-to-Speech: Enabled
• X-Ray: Enabled
• Lending: Enabled
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #67,263 Paid in Kindle Store (See Top 100 Paid in Kindle Store)
  • #61 in Kindle Store > Kindle eBooks > Literature & Fiction > Religious Fiction > Christian > African American

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

49 of 52 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Fantastic November 1, 2010

By Barbie D

Format:Paperback

I thoroughly enjoyed a Long Time Coming,It had me laughing,praying,crying and guessing what the outcome would be for Dee and Kaneisha,I was correct on only one guess. I have bought an extra book for my sister to read,this was heartfelt and heart waming.
I recommend this book for any naysayer or unbeliever,it was simply FANTASTIC!

34 of 36 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Long Time Coming November 2, 2010

By CHBreviewer

Format:Kindle Edition

Vanessa Miller does an excellent job of bringing out the hope and inspiring motivation of a difficult situation. Long Time Coming is wonderfully written and leaves you wanting to make a major impact on someone's life!

34 of 38 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Real Tearjerker October 29, 2010

By Love Reading

Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase

Excellent book! Real tear-jerker. This book is very well written and it captured my attention from chapter one. It's a awesome story of forgiveness...forgiveness of self & others. If you read this book, be sure to have the Kleenex ready.

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Contemporary Women's Fiction November 2, 2010

By Nora A. Stlaurent

Format:Paperback

'm thankful to have received a review copy of this bitter-sweet novel which reminded me of the Good Samaritan bible story. It's also a book filled with the message of forgiveness, sacrifice and God's love for us and others. The author quickly captures the readers' attention and heart, while setting the tone of the novel from the beginning. "Twenty-three and played out. Like the words of a tired, old, blues song, Kenisha Smalls had been strung and rung out....and too young to give up."

Deidre had a run in with Kenisha at the school she worked at when she was late to pick up her son. Deidre threatened to call social services. Deidre hated to see parents mistreat their children. They took them for granted and didn't realize the precious gift they had. Kenisha clams up, Deidre has judged her and soon realizes that this woman wouldn't believe the truth if she told it to her.

Deidre and her husband had tried for years to have children, but after seven years God had not blessed her womb. Was God punishing her? Deidre had a secret not even her husband, Johnson a military man who worked hard and loved the Lord, knew about. Could she tell her husband what she hid in her heart? Is that what God wanted?

Miller does a great job of setting the mood and placing readers into the skin of her characters:

Jumping in the shower, she allowed the hot water to assault her weary bones. As the steam filled the small bathroom, she wallowed in the horror story her life had become. What next? How much can happen to a person before the almighty decides it's time to pick on someone else?

That's how Kenisha sees God. He hadn't been there for her when all the bad things happened, and He isn't there now....

Deidre feels drawn to this woman and her family,"She had certainly learned that some of life's journeys were simply too great for her, and she needed to lean on the Lord to get through them. Just as God had sent an angel to strengthen Elijah, Deirdre knew that her husband Johnson had been her angel, sent from heaven above. He had helped her move past the pain, and now she wanted to do the same for Kenisha."

Deidre and Kenisha are the most unlikely people to become friends. It's made possible after Deidre apologizes for judging her and wants to be there for her. Deidre says, "We all suffer from something, Kenisha. That's a part of life-since evil has come into the world, God has no choice but to let things play out, so we can choose good over evil!...So, accepting good over evil is more like accepting God into your heart." That was the first step.

I enjoyed the journey this novel took me on even though it had a predictable ending. There were many gold nuggets and fun moments along the way. I look forward to reading more of Vanessa Millers' books.

Nora St.Laurent
The Book Club Network [...]
Finding Hope Through Fiction [...] Read more ›

12 of 13 people found the following review helpful

3.0 out of 5 stars Engaging theme and characters, but too preachy January 9, 2011

By Rachel

Format:Kindle Edition

Long Time Coming is a story of two women from different walks of life: Deidre, an upper-middle class middle-school principal; and Kenisha, a girl who was forced to become a woman too early due to an environment of poverty, drugs, and alcohol. Despite immediately misjudging one another, these two women bond over a universal force--the love of children. I was immediately drawn into this book after reading only the first paragraph. I was touched by the sad story of Kenisha and how she dedicated her life to providing for her children. I enjoyed the first two thirds of the book quite a bit. After that, it got much too preachy. I am a fan of inspirational fiction and expressions of faith in fiction; however, I don't want to read a sermon on being saved. Let's face it: pretty much anyone reading this book is already a Christian. There's no need to convert the readers! This is why Long Time Coming got only 3 stars, rather than 4. I loved the story, but the end dragged. The story was also very predictable: you can guess how it will end from the blub on the back of the book. However, the interesting characters make up for lack of suspense.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Don't Give Up On God March 10, 2011

By The RAWSISTAZ Reviewers

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

On the outside looking in, Diedre and Johnson Morris seem like an ordinary middle class couple, who are trying to live a truly God-centered life. Unfortunately, after seven years of marriage, God has not blessed their union with children, though they both seek Him diligently and prayerfully for this deepest desire. With each passing year, Diedre's fears increase at the thought of never becoming pregnant and wanting to keep a secret deeply buried within her heart.

Kenisha Smalls is the mother of three young children, living in poverty. But this does not stop her from taking care of or teaching her children. After all, their condition is not their fault. She feels God abandoned her and her children by default a long time ago. Her list of ills against God is long, and she feels He has, yet again, kicked her while she's down.

When Kenisha forgot to pick up her oldest son from school one day, the nonbeliever and the believer cross paths. The encounter leaves Diedre shaken to her core and a much more defiant Kenisha. Is this a chance meeting? Or, is God at work in the background?

LONG TIME COMING is a suspenseful journey from being down and out to redemption and restoration. Vanessa Miller has developed some rather intriguing characters that attach themselves to your soul. She covers a myriad of topics in this well-written, inspirational novel. She delivers on how secrets undermine a marriage, how a weakened faith is eroded by worldly acts, how forgiveness is the cleansing agent that heals, and how God works through the believer and nonbeliever to accomplish His will. He may take a long time to answer or act, but He is always on time. I read this book until the wee hours of the morning with a box of Kleenex nearby.... Miller captures the essence of not giving up on God, but waiting until He moves. If your faith needs a shot in the arm, pick up LONG TIME COMING for an instant fix.

Reviewed by Brenda Lisbon
of The RAWSISTAZ(tm) Reviewers Read more ›