Customer Reviews

Mike (The Circle of Friends, Book 4)

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The latest installment of The Circle of Friends series, Mike, is an emotionally charged story about the destructive effect that guilt can play upon a person's life. The main character, a Christian, maintains a morally grounded persona on the outside. Inside, he battles a secret love / lust for Sarah ( Sarah: The Circle of Friends, Book II ), his best friend's wife, while also harboring a shameful secret from his past. Painfully aware of his sins, his guilt threatens to tear his faith apart and prevents him from letting people into his life. When he graduates from college and moves to a new state, he is forced to make new friends. Soon after his arrival he falls for Danielle, a young woman who befriends him, and he has to find a way to make peace with himself and with God. In the meantime, Mike worries that the close friendships he formed with his best friends and roommates from college, Sarah and Matt, will dissolve due to the differences in their new lives.

This book deals with the topic of Christian sin and guilt without being preachy - something that can be very difficult to do. Mike is a regular person, as full of faults as anyone else, that puts himself to such high moral standards that any transgressions make him feel like a failure. It demonstrates the importance of forgiveness - both from God, and from oneself - as well as the impact a supportive community (especially friends) can have on one's life.

Mike Taylor has the most amazing friends in the world.

Mike, one of the starters for the Georgia Tech Football

team, had a hard time getting through is young life. With

an unexpected pregnancy during his high school years, he

has felt a lot of guilt and pain prior to entering

college. He has decided, life is just hard. Finally,

after graduation, he is able to get away from his love of

his best friend's wife by moving to Albuquerque, New

Mexico to start a new life. While there, within no time,

he meets Danielle. She is an angel. God helps him discover

that in Danielle he has found his own wife. Then after

finding his little sister is going through the same

problem he went through in high school, he finds that he

is able to help get her through it. He provides her with

encouraging words that come from experience. Then when

finances are low, something unexpected happens again. Why

now? He experiences so much guilt and confusion. While

taking a trip to visit his best friends, the guilt finally

goes away. God found Mike and Danielle a way to make

everything turn out right.

This is an amazing story that shows how friends should

really be. It leaves you curious and makes you predict. I loved it

because I had an idea on what I wanted to happen and all of the predictions

were right. You feel like you're really a part of his life

and just want to give Mike all the answers.

Reviewed by a young adult student reviewer

Flamingnet Book Reviews

Teen books reviewed by teen reviewers

Mike's just finished college and has managed to stick to his moral values. As a result, he believes that is the reason he has been given a great job at Sandia Labs in New Mexico.

When he gets there, he meets Danielle and starts falling head-over-heels for her. His past, however, still haunts him, and he worries that a mistake he made in high school that led to his ex-girlfriend getting an abortion will affect his new relationship. He also worries that his feelings for his former roommate's wife might affect his ability to form a lasting relationship.

Will Mike find the power within to forgive himself for his past mistakes? Will Danielle be understanding when she finds out the truth?

A moving, heartwarming story about forgiveness, friendship, and love. Although the plot has a fairly slow pace, the author does a great job of keeping the reader's attention. Her portrayal of the characters and their inner struggles is also well done.

Readers who need an uplifting story or who like Christian fiction, clean romances, and books about people finding their inner strengths will all enjoy reading this book.

Reviewed by: Kira M

Mike's just finished college and has managed to stick to his moral values. As a result, he believes that is the reason he has been given a great job at Sandia Labs in New Mexico.

When he gets there, he meets Danielle and starts falling head-over-heels for her. His past, however, still haunts him, and he worries that a mistake he made in high school that led to his ex-girlfriend getting an abortion will affect his new relationship. He also worries that his feelings for his former roommate's wife might affect his ability to form a lasting relationship.

Will Mike find the power within to forgive himself for his past mistakes? Will Danielle be understanding when she finds out the truth?

A moving, heartwarming story about forgiveness, friendship, and love. Although the plot has a fairly slow pace, the author does a great job of keeping the reader's attention. Her portrayal of the characters and their inner struggles is also well done.

Readers who need an uplifting story or who like Christian fiction, clean romances, and books about people finding their inner strengths will all enjoy reading this book.

Reviewed by: Kira M

Inspirational author, Diane Wolfe, who has created an intriguing series called Circle of Friends; a five-book Southern-based series portrays love and friendship overcoming all obstacles.

What intrigues me is her ability to get into the heads of her young characters in such a way that both old and young can enjoy the story. Connect emotionally with the characters and find inspiration as well.

Her stories, like Diane herself, are positive and uplifting. The series focuses on friendships--love between friends, fulfilling your dreams, and how to overcome problems, as well as the challenges all face, but especially teens and young adults.

Having a teen and seeing his close connection with some his friends made me appreciate how Diane presents the problems these young men and women face. I have several nieces and nephews I'm close to who are in their early twenties. I've watched and listened as my son as well as his cousins' talk of problems they've had and how they've tried to resolve them. Sometimes asking for guidance, sometimes not. Many times they only want a listening ear. They, like us, rely on a circle of friends to give support and advice. Some things aren't easy to solve, or forgive, regardless of your age and have lasting impact on our lives.

Such is the case with Mike Taylor, the young protagonist in Book IV of Diane's Circle Of Friends series.

What if a decision compromised your spiritual values?

What if a past mistake went against your very moral foundation?

Could you live with the guilt?

Mike Taylor is the epitome of stability. His family is proud of his academic and athletic achievements at Georgia Tech, and despite the temptations of college life, he has maintained his moral standards. Yet beneath the peaceful surface, Mike is consumed with guilt, fearing condemnation and rejection. A former girlfriend's abortion and the intense love he feels for his roommate's wife constantly remind Mike of his failures. Unable to forget and full of shame, he refuses to forgive himself.

When Danielle enters his life, he realizes he can no longer hide the past. Will she be able to reach him or is Mike past the point of redemption?

Book Trailer on YouTube

MY THOUGHTS:

Mike is a good friend, just not good friends with himself. He has his moments of laughter and fun, he cares deeply about his friends (if you've read the other stories you see another side of Mike), and has a code of honor. Faith if you will.

At times I wanted to smack him, which is nothing new when dealing with males and young ones in particular (I grew up with seven, very Celtic and southern brothers full of attitude, lol!). There were points in the story I wanted to tell him, get over it for goodness sakes and come out of your miasma of negativity.

Then I reminded myself that the young are harder on themselves than anyone else can be. Life is more black and white with little gray area. I think the gray tends to develop as experience does. Guilt is tough regardless of the age, but young ones Mike's age, don't have the life experience yet to put things into perspective and this is what the story is about. Dealing with the blows life hands out, putting them into perspective and making sense of them so you can live life to the full. About moving past mistakes and growth as a person.

Mike is very realistic as a character. Diane did a good job getting into the mind of someone consumed with guilt. She understands males are just as deeply affected by problems of life and emotional issues, as females, but being males they are supposed to be all stoic and tough. They still have to process things emotionally to grow. Some, like Mike, feel things very deeply, especially when they feel they've compromised their moral code.

When he meets Danielle he learns about acceptance and forgiveness. Danielle is the perfect foil for him. She's full of spunk and has a positive attitude. I like how the two of them are together. Danielle is my kind of girl.

This story is by no means negative. It's a good story about finding inner peace and forgiveness. It touches the heart.

Those that have followed this series will no doubt love this one told in Mike's point of view and how resolves his guilt and how he faces his future with hope.

"Book IV...Mike is such a powerful, engrossing, incredible, beautiful novel. But it still manages to be light hearted, funny and heart felt. There is real emotion and real people in these pages..." -The Book Pedler -

Sia McKye Danzo

Over Coffee

[...]

This is probably my favorite of the 3 Circle of Friends books I've read. Mike was my favorite character since I read Sarah's book and I was so excited to find out he was getting his own book. The story did live up to my expectations except for the end. The beginning was a lot of the same as in Sarah's book just from Mike's point of view. We finally get to see how he met his girlfriend Danielle and see their relationship progress. The story moved along at a great pace, not too slow and not too rushed. The main thing I did not care for was the ending. I actually found myself seriously disliking Mike and even though he changed his attitude at the very end I still found it hard to forgive him. I'm sure Mike's reactions to the situation are realistic for some but it just rubbed me the wrong way. Overall, still a great book though.

Diane Wolfe is a gifted writer who leaves her appreciative readers looking eagerly toward her next novel. The fourth title in Diane's 'Circle of Friends' series, "Mike" is the story of a young man who is an academic and athletic achiever at Georgia tech. Facing the seductive temptations and peer pressure of college life, Mike is conflicted about maintaining his pretense of abiding by his family's high moral standards. Mike harbors feelings of guilt because of the intense affection he feels for his roommate's wife and the aftermath of a former girlfriend's abortion. But when Danielle enters his life, Mike feels he can no longer suppress his past. "Mike" is a superbly crafted story of young adult angst, as well as a thoroughly entertaining read. Also very highly recommended are the three early volumes in this outstanding series: "Lori"; "Sarah"; and "James".

Mary Cowper

Reviewer

Guilt is a hard master, and no one is more aware of that harsh truth than Mike Taylor, the protagonist of Book IV in L. Diane Wolfe's "The Circle of Friends" series. Tormented by lingering remorse over a past decision, haunted by his long-suppressed desire for his friend and former roommate Sarah, Mike's life is, in large part, a lonely and unhappy one.

After graduating from Georgia Tech, Mike finds himself transplanted from the familiar surroundings of Greensboro to a new life in Albuquerque, having secured a position there at Sandia Labs. Alone in a strange city, separated from his family and lifelong friends, he feels enclosed and overwhelmed by circumstances past and present. It is in this environment that Mike meets Danielle, a beautiful and effervescent coworker who befriends him one day in the break room. The two form an immediate bond, and are soon married. The union is a happy one at the onset, as Danielle's loving support helps Mike to overcome his guilt and insecurities, freeing him from the dark cloud that has shadowed him for the latter part of his young life. There eventually comes a point, however, where unexpected difficulties begin to arise.

Over the course of the first three books in "The Circle Of Friends," author Wolfe has emphasized the accomplishment of goals through perseverance, mature decision making, and emotional reinforcement from family and friends. "Mike" presents her with her biggest challenge to date. After all, the central character is separated from the circle by distance and culture, and even his deep-seated Christian faith threatens to slip away after a sequence of disastrous events shakes his marriage to its foundation. Danielle brings with her an unconditional love and a built-in support group, but will they be enough to overcome seemingly insurmountable obstacles?

I'll leave the answer to that question for you to discover. I'll tell you this, though: new readers and series veterans alike will find this book to be challenging, uplifting, and engaging in a very personal way. You'll be overjoyed at times, you'll experience frustration (I wanted to reach into the pages and shake my namesake by his shoulders more than once), you'll be encouraged ... you will become an integral part of the lives of these youthful friends, and they of yours as they enfold you into their ever-widening circle. This is the thread L. Diane Wolfe weaves through the fabric of her work; "Mike" continues the tradition well, and I guarantee you that "The Circle of Friends Book IV" will grab you where you live, and will not leave you disappointed.