Customer Reviews

Never Say Never

5 star:		(41)
4 star:		(25)
3 star:		(12)
2 star:		(7)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

"Never Say Never" by Lisa Wingate is an exciting and stimulating book! It sweeps the reader through the evacuation and dangers of a category 4 hurricane to Radar's (one of the dogs) trying to get sticky rat trap boxes off his face and feet! One of the rescuers, Kemp riding up top of the post drill with a chain saw in his hand will be long remembered. The reader once again gets to enjoy the goings on in Daily, Texas with Donetta, Imagene, and Lucy whom we met in another of Lisa Wingate's books "Talk of the Town".

Donetta, Imagene and Lucy are on their way to join the cruise ship when the hurricane changes course causing them and others to get caught in evacuation traffic along the coast. Kai Miller works on the cruise ship but the hurricane causes her to get caught in the evacuation traffic also and she ends up in Daily, Texas where she meets and enjoys the friendship of Kemp Eldridge.

Two beautiful love stories holds the reader's interest long into the night.

I really enjoyed the book and am reading it again.

I highly recommend this book!


Ed

Kai Miller floats through life like driftwood tossed by waves. She's never put down roots -- and she doesn't plan to. But when a chaotic hurricane evacuation lands her in Daily Texas, she begins to think twice about her wayfaring existence. And when she meets hometown boy Kemp Eldridge, she can almost picture settling down in Daily -- until she discovers he may be promised to someone else.

Daley has always been a welcoming place of refuge for those the wind blows in, but for Kai is looks like it will be just another place to leave behind. Then again, Daily always has a few surprises in store -- especially when Aunt Donetta Bradford has cooked up a scheme.

About Lisa: Lisa Wingate is a popular inspirational speaker, magazine columnist, and national best-selling author of several books including Tending Roses, A Month of Summer, and The Summer Kitchen.

My Take: This is a story about two women from different generations who meet during an evacuation of a hurricane. They are thrown together in a difficult situation but before long they strike up a bond. Aunt Donetta is a character that has appeared in the other books of Lisa's. She is from the small town of Daily, Texas. I really like Donetta's character, she is a strong woman with a wonderful sense of humor. She will keep you laughing throughout the book even during times of trouble.

The other main character is a young woman who has had a troubled background. Her name is Kai Miller and she works for a cruise line that has left port early because of the hurricane. She casts to evacuate and along the way she spots three women on the side of the road who are in trouble. She stops to pick them up and they both continue on a journey of ups and downs before they reached safety and are able to go back to Donetta's hometown of Daily, Texas where Kai meets Donetta's nephew Kemp and a bond is formed between them. Of course, like any good romance story the relationship has a few bumps along the way before it is smooth sailing.

One thing I have noticed about Christian fiction, especially suspense, is that it is told from the viewpoint of two different characters. It usually goes back and forth between a female and male character. However, in this book each chapter goes back and forth between the two main characters Donetta and Kai. This kind of writing takes a little bit of getting used to, but it is worth it because story is shown from two different views. If you are in the mood for a little bit of laughter that this is the book you want to pick up and read.

This book was a pleasant surprise. This is my first time to read something by Lisa Wingate and it won't be my last. This book was funny and lively and at the same time serious and thoughtful. The story centers around a hurricane evacuation and two very different women. The chapters switch back and forth between the viewpoints of the older lady who is having somewhat of a marital crisis and also trying to solve a mystery from her past and a young lady who is also trying to deal with the past and work out her future. I don't usually like books that are written in first person but being inside these two ladies thoughts was a lot of fun. I had a great time reading this book and it made the hurricane situation more real for me (someone who has never lived on the coast). It was just a really fun story and I look forward to reading the two books preceding this one in this series and any future installments in this series. I received a free copy of this book from Bethany House for review.

Right off the bat, I must admit that I have a hard time enjoying Christian fiction. In fact, I tend to shy away from it 99% of the time because most of the current plots leave me feeling deflated instead of pumped and energized. However, as I made my way through, "Never Say Never", I found myself mildly reconsidering that opinion.

This was my first experience with author, Lisa Wingate and I admit--I'm impressed. Her writing style is very easy, breezy and light; her characters well crafted and articulate. I enjoyed the fact that Wingate's attention to detail was just enough to give a good, overall picture without overpowering the storyline. (Something many authors tend to do, which drives me nuts...)

The story switches back and forth between Donetta's and Kai's perspective, which I thought would make things difficult to follow. However as the book progressed, I found myself enjoying that little facet more and more. It kept the story from growing stale and my mind thoroughly engaged, something I haven't experienced with this genre in quite some time.

Although I found the ending to be slightly predictable, I enjoyed myself along the way. "Never Say Never" would make a great summer read--fun, exciting, adventurous and of course, redemption and restoration--all rolled into one.

Never Say Never started out good...I really wanted to enjoy it. The author did a good job of building some of the characters, even though I couldn't really relate to Donetta because of the way she talked. She didn't open up for a while, and I didn't really connect with her friends.

The story was building up to a great ending, then Kai just up and left, several months go by and lo and behold, on the last 2 pages, all Kai and Kemp's issues are magically resolved when he shows up at the wedding. All her disbelief in God and her upbringing just melts away when Kemp brings her a letter from her grandmother. I was so miffed that I spent all that time reading and getting to know the characters, then suddenly, it just ends. Good thing I checked it out from the library.

And I wasn't too encouraged spiritually. Many of the Christians didn't act very spirit-filled, or weren't convicted of their sin. Donetta and her friends consistently make fun of the town bully. They seemed to have more of a religion than a relationship.

I hope there is going to be a second book because there were a lot of loose ends that need to be tied up.

I really did enjoy the evacuation part, having evacuated from Miami in 2004.

I am a fiction junkie, I think. I sometimes read up to six books a week, thanks to the services of our local public library. So I LOVE the book blogging program.

A few months ago I received Never Say Never by Lisa Wingate from Bethany House Publishers. It fell into one of my favorite categories, Contemporary Christian Fiction. I had never heard of Lisa Wingate, but am always looking for new authors to love.

In Never Say Never we join Kai Miller and Donetta Bradford in Texas as they deal with a hurricane and its aftermath. Kai worked on the coast and Donetta was supposed to be leaving on a cruise that fateful day, and both ended up together back in Donetta's hometown of Daily, Texas. Kai has lived a nomadic life and doesn't really understand family connections, and she loves her life the way it is. Until she meets Kemp Eldridge, Donetta's nephew. Donetta is entering into the winter of her life and is struggling to understand how her relationship with her husband has changed over the years. After taking Kai under her wing and seeing the spark between her and Kemp, she decides to distract herself with a new challenge.

I really enjoyed this book. So much, that I make it a habit to swing through the W section of the library to see if any of Lisa Wingate's books are on the shelves. They have been, and I've read several since. Her characters are extremely relatable and easy to invest in. Her setting of Daily, Texas makes me, a suburban girl, wish I lived in the close community of a tiny town. Her descriptions of Texas even make it sound appealing to a Colorado girl like me!

Never Say Never was fantastic. Lisa Wingate is fantastic. Make it point to check them both out.

Bethany House Publishers provided me with a complimentary copy of this book as a part of their book reviewers program.

Never Say Never was my first exposure to Lisa Wingate. Living in the heart of Texas, Lisa writes Texas romance fiction from a first-hand knowledge of the culture and people. Reading the book was like walking into a small town in Texas and watching life go on around me.

In Never Say Never, Kai is transplanted from the coast to a small town inland during a hurricane. Everything she has in life, save what she has in her microbus, had to be left behind. With no family to her name and a road life, she has no idea what she is in store for when she meets up with Doretta and her friends on the road to evacuate the coast. Meeting Doretta means being introduced to Kemp. Readers learn the true meaning of "home" and are reminded to tell their loved ones, "I love you," in this touching story.

I enjoyed reading this book, and I look forward to reading more books by Lisa Wingate.

Looking at the cover of this book I was not too excited to read it. It looks like a book that I would very quickly pass by on the shelf at the store. I am glad that Bethany House Publishers sent me a free copy of this book to review because it was a great read!! Kai Miller is a girl who it seems has had everything go wrong in her life, loosing her little brother and parents at different times to different life situations has caused her to close her heart of and not believe that there is a God in control. Through the tragedy of a hurricane she begins to open her heart and discover there is a whole world out there she has never known.



The first few chapters of this book were quite confusing to me because they jumped back and forth between two main characters. I did not realize until about chapter 7 or so that the title of each chapter was the name of the person who's point of view the story was being told from. I don't normally look at chapter names so this was not something I looked to as a clue. Once I got my characters straight and the story with that character in line, I thoroughly enjoyed this book. I am glad I read it and have passed it on to a friend who is leaving on a trip in a few days who needed a good read! I am one who likes realistic endings to stories and this one fit the bill to the T.



I received a free copy of this book to review from Bethany House Publishers. I was not paid for my review of this book

I've enjoyed another novel by Ms. Wingate (Talk of the Town) and picked this up because I thought I was in for another fun read. It was a mistake. Too preachy and long-winded by far. I kept hoping it would get better but ended up skipping long passages of boring ruminations on a rather convoluted past. I made it to the end - just - and was relieved it was over.

First of all, I would like to extend a heartfelt "Thank you" to Lisa Wingate and her publisher for sending me a copy of "Never Say Never" to review for them. I have always been grateful for this generosity, and I am trying to improve at being consistent in taking the time to thank these wonderfully giving individuals in a public forum. I really appreciate your time, effort and expense in making a reviewer copy available to me.

Lisa Wingate's latest novel, "Never Say Never", is a captivating work of fiction that transports the reader to the laid back western setting of Daily, Texas with its authentically twangy narrative. If the town sounds familiar, that's because Wingate has two other novels set in this locale: "Talk of the Town" and "Word Gets Around".

In this latest offering, Kai Miller is a confirmed and habitual drifter with no plans to settle down anytime soon. Who would have dreamed that it would take a tropical storm to lure her away from her nomadic lifestyle? Of course, such a story wouldn't be complete without a complicated bit of romance to spice up the plot.

I've just started this book, yet I'm invested in the storytelling and the characters to such an extent that I may have to go back to Wingate's other novels in this setting.