Most Helpful Customer Reviews
10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
KARMA???????, July 1, 2010
Victoria Christopher Murray is the best selling author of several contemporary Christian novels that touch on hot topics that church people aren't too eager to disclose. Her infamous character, Jasmine Larson has been featured in three of those novels and she is certainly the character I have loved to hate. What else can Jasmine be up to this time? You would never guess.
A former stripper who has spent many years lying, stealing and sleeping with married men; she has finally settled down. She is now married to Rev. Hosea Bush, pastor of one of the largest churches in New York City. She is also the mother of two wonderful children; four-year-old Jacqueline and baby Zaya.
Jasmine seems to have finally found some peace in her life and she has grown spiritually as a person. She loves her husband and her children and life for Jasmine has come full circle.
Then comes that fateful day just when she has given her life to God. Jasmine's young daughter Jacqueline is kidnapped in broad daylight from a crowded mall in New York City at the beginning of the Christmas shopping season. Jasmine is horrified. When the days turn into weeks and the child is not found Jasmine is beside herself. Why would God let this happen to her? Her faith wanes under the pressure. As usual, Jasmine thinks it is all about her.
She completely falls apart especially when the police look into her background after someone sends an anonymous e-mail accusing her of having something to do with he child's abduction. She and her husband submit to a lie-detector test. He is cleared but Jasmine's results come up questionable.
By the second chapter; I began to wonder too, if maybe someone finally had sought revenge for some of Jasmine's dirty deeds. Would her child become the victim of her mother's past. Of course having read several of the author's novels; I was sure it was just not that easy but where was this child? Who had taken her and why?
Murray gives us a story full of complex questions. She gives us characters that are just as complex. Kidnapping and child abuse make for a difficult read. How does the mother of a missing child hold on and what if the child is never found? How do the parents move on with their lives? The author took a risk to assign these emotions to a character like Jasmine. But Murray's work is known to be risky.
As a Christian author; she knows how to stretch a Christian's faith. And this storyline bent poor Jasmine out of shape. She turned into herself in grief. I was beginning to feel sorry for her myself. But as usual, Jasmine showed she was still Jasmine. Her husband; Rev. Hosea Bush was doing all he could to comfort Jasmine and to search for Jacqui but she turns away from him. She blames him for not caring enough. She becomes as mean and as hateful as the Jasmine of her past.
The back story concerning Jasmine and Jacqueline's biological father, Brian Lewis added the fire to fuel the storyline even further. His affair with Jasmine had ended his marriage. After years of having no contact with Jasmine or the child; Brian learns of his daughter's kidnapping. Loaded down with his own emotional baggage, he takes a leave from his medical practice in California and comes to New York to help in the search. His presence added even more conflict to the story.
SINS OF THE MOTHER is a compelling read. I kept reading from chapter to chapter anxious to know how the story would end. I really think that this book is the author's best Jasmine story. The plot thickens even as the story comes to an end. The ending is climatic. I never would have guessed the spectacular finale. This novel is a very well written drama full of intense scenes and snappy dialog. Readers of Christian fiction will not be disappointed.
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews
Was this review helpful to you? Yes
No
11 of 13 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Six Stars out of Five for Ms. Murray's Most Ambitious Work Yet, May 27, 2010
This review is from: Sins of the Mother: A Novel (Paperback)
Disclaimer: If you're just being introduced to Ms. Murray's work, I want to emphasize that this is truly a stand alone novel.
Victoria Christopher Murray is back with another, long awaited (yes a year is a long time) novel about the infamous Jasmine Larson Bush.
Has Jasmine's past finally caught up with her? Readers of the prior books in the series almost can't help but hope so. Jasmine has been so horrible and so conniving for so many years that even the most forgiving reader would certainly expect the seeds Jasmine has planted to produce a bitter harvest. But just when you think it's time for her to pay, Victoria Christopher Murray delivers a story that leaves no room for anything but compassion; even for an anti-hero like Jasmine Larson Bush. Why are we going to have to relent? Because we meet Jasmine the mother when we lose Jacqueline, the helpless four-year-old; the combination of which make for a gripping, gut wrenching story that will literally have readers praying as they turn the pages. There's no room for anything else.
This novel is without question Victoria Christopher Murray's best work. A departure from what we've seen in the last few years, Sins of the Mother, is what I would almost call a psychological drama. Murray weaves conflict upon conflict into a mind bending story that emotionally draws the reader in beyond what you expect from a woman's fiction tale. The difference in delivery makes it an absolute stand alone read for those who haven't met this cast of characters before.
I have to admit, I have a four-year-old child myself and I had a hard time with this novel. Child abductions are tough stuff. But please don't let the subject matter scare you. There are scenes that are so spiritually uplifting that they will literally raise chill bumps; this too was a deeper layer for Ms. Murray. While true to her brand of edgy, inspirational fiction, Sins of the Mother is a character study and journey of faith. As a lover of Christian fiction, I was pleased. Fans be not deceived, Murray's ability to satisfy all is not mocked. This book is sexy with a capital "S". Brian Lewis is back and when Brian is on the scene, we can expect nothing less than heat between the sheets. Murray fans will have to read the story to find out whose fire he's putting out. My reviewer lips are sealed.
I'll close by saying I highly recommend this novel. What I appreciated most about Sins of the Mother was Ms. Murray's ability to deliver realism without abandoning hope. The characters covered the full spectrum of believable reaction. Some kept their feet planted firmly in the reality of faith, others struggled with their faith amidst the reality of humanness, but in the end, Murray reconciles all; most brilliantly.
Reviewed by Rhonda McKnight
An Advance Copy of this book was provided by the publisher.
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews
Was this review helpful to you? Yes
No
7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Excellent writing....., June 10, 2010
This review is from: Sins of the Mother: A Novel (Paperback)
I had missed out on reading this book before now and actually after reading a negative review or two of it, I was even more determined to read it. Maybe that is backwards a bit.....= )
Jasmine Bush has lived a sin filled life, she has turned her life around and has a beautiful daughter and baby son and serves alongside her loving husband, Hosea Bush. When her daughter suddenly vanishes, while in a friends care, at the mall, Jasmine sort of snaps, mentally. She blames her friend, refuses to let her son out of her sight and freaks out. When her daughter's biological father enters the picture to help and looks just like her daughter, she falls even deeper and farther away from where she should be. Can she come back? Can her marriage survive this? Will she get her daughter back?
This book was different. I will admit that. I was not sure what to expect. Ms. Christopher causes you to feel the passion and the temptation in this woman's life as well as her deep, deep pain in the loss of her daughter. I was troubled by the detail that was put into this book of the encounter between the estranged husband and wife. Whether or not they should have been together or not, is another discussion, but it made me uncomfortable with that much description for a christian fiction book. This was an excellent story or human beings failures, triumphs over their sin and dealing with horrible things that happen. But I would have liked to see a little more repentance. I wish Jasmine had asked some people to forgive her a little more clearly, it was implied, but not straight out. I wish that there was a little less detail of the bedroom stuff and a little less acting out what we may wish in our hearts to do, but as Christians, we should know better than to shame God in acting that way.
So, in conclusion, this book was some great writing, it is a excellent story, but if you are looking for a Christian fiction book without detailed talk of sin, keep looking.
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews
Was this review helpful to you? Yes
No
|
