Customer Reviews

Sometimes a Light Surprises

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

Since I discovered this author years ago when I read her first novel, The Suncatchers, I have been captivated by this author's unique style, the quality of her writing, her unusual sense of humor, and the down-to-earth nature of her spiritual message. These attributes have been consistent in each of her subsequent novels, and this latest one, which I eagerly awaited and just finished reading, did not disappoint me. The characters are varied, complex, amusing and intriguing. The story line left me guessing to the very end how all the strands would come together, and they did, but on a level deeper than I had expected. Early in the book, one of her characters expressed her disappointment with a Christian novel that tied everything up sweetly in the end, and from then on I enjoyed wondering how the author would avoid doing that herself.

This not a romantic love story but it is truly a love story. Life's experiences make us so different, some of us turn out pretty good and some of us turn to stone. Ms. Turner brought to life these broken people and showed us their insides, and how a loving God works for our good and it is a "Light Surprise"! It is wonderfully written, not preachy but lovingly done. Thank you, Jamie Langston Turner for writing a book that touched me so deeply. I was looking for a "typically christian love story" but I could not put this book down, it was too interesting! And it was a "Light Surprise!

I have read all of Jamie Turners books. She has a way of writing that is clearly a style all her own. Her books make you feel like you have climbed into the mind and heart of the main character- with thoughts bouncing around like ping pong balls. I like the fact that she has characters that are real, not perfect but people like you know from your life. When she shows the character flaws of people in her books it always make me groan and think ,"tell me I don't come across like that!". I like the way her books make me look at myself and ponder my responses to situations. thanks Jamie for a thought provoking read.

Jamie Turner's books sit proudly on my keeper shelf. Her latest book, Sometimes a Light Surprises, takes me back to a place I've visited before, Derby, South Carolina. Actually, not a lot of the story takes place there, but there was a very special cameo appearance of characters I've grown to love, and so, in a very real sense...for me this was like visiting a new neighbor just moved in to a familiar neighborhood.

Ben Buckley is a grieving widower - twenty years after the fact. The sudden death of his wife has cost him far more than he has ever realized in the years since her passing. When a young, enthusiastic, albeit under-qualified young lady interviews for a position at his company Ben finds himself behaving in ways very uncharacteristic of his normal behavior - he hires her! Meanwhile, his secretary, Carolyn decides to delve into her boss' past in an attempt to solve some of his unresolved grief only to find that she herself has many unresolved issues of her own that must be faced.

And the young lady that Ben hires, Kelly, turns out to have far more wisdom and insight that she believes herself to possess, and the honest steadfastness of her faith becomes a greater life-changing influence upon those around her than she could ever imagine. As she enters the world of home design and retail sales, Kelly blossoms into a young woman who displays promising talent in areas unique to her and the long-held dreams of her heart. Her quiet, unassuming role in this story becomes a beautiful beacon of God's love and faithfulness.

Sometimes a Light Surprises is about family. It is about grieving and learning to cope with the sudden changes death brings into our life. It is a story about relationships and the surprising and often-time unrealized ways that our thoughts, words and deeds impact those with whom we come in contact with. God uses the quirky, irritating, challenging and difficult people in our lives to mold us in ways that only He can. So please, don't ever think God isn't aware of your circumstances. Don't ever be afraid to reach out to others, for you never, ever know what God is doing in their lives.

Jamie Langston Turner understands this truth and, in her own special way creates a story that explores those areas of the heart that often remain hidden from view. Please, take time to explore this treasure - Sometimes a Light Surprises.

This is a wonderful story. The plot is slow - but adds to the build and pleasure of the story. I was impressed with the authors amazing way of putting words together to describe a common everyday event. The characters are real life, common, everyday people you'd meet. A touching human story of God's love.

This is my first Jamie Langston Turner book so I did not know what to expect. The story moved a little slow in parts and skipped around a little. It was told from 4 characters viewpoints. The four main characters were Ben the widower, Caroline his secretary, Erin his daughter, and Kelly a conservative young christian Ben hired as a designer for his company. The story moves around from all of their first person narratives. There were other characters involved of course. The main plot line is Ben and his dysfunctional family. When his wife died more than 20 years ago he let his mother move in and do the raising so although he was there he really neglected them. It hurt them especially Erin. His daughter Shelly starts trying to get the family together more often and mend things. Ben reluctantly participates. Ben is a very solitary person and he often quotes or explains unusual sayings. It can be a little annoying but I also learned things I did not know. Caroline is a little obsessed with the old murder case of Ben's wife and really has a limited life. Ben hires Kelly to see what she is like because her mother is the one who helped convert his wife to Christianity a few months before she died and caused conflict in their marriage. She turns out to be a little like he expected but in other ways not. Overall this is an enjoyable story. I would be interested in another book featuring the same characters.

This is the second book I've read by Jamie Langston Turner. I go in spurts with fiction books and read 3 last week. This was by far the best of the 3. I've found that often with Christian fiction everything goes by a formula and the writing is okay, if not good. Jamie Langston Turner, on the other hand, is a very good writer. Her writing is different by far than most Christian authors of inspirational fiction that I've read. I would describe her as more similar to Angela Hunt rather than Karen Kingsbury.

I will note that this book does jump around a lot and there are a lot of characters introduced, but I felt it was a book that tells a story that is very true to life. The ending, which could seem anticlimactic, is not really--but it is an ending of closure. It just may not be the closure some readers expect. There were a few characters that irked me--but isn't that the way with life, too?

This book is not a Christian romance novel. And I wouldn't even call it Christian fiction. I would say it is a novel written by a Christian who is a very good writer and whose faith shines through the story she tells.

I have read all of her books and love them all. I enjoy her writing style and that she richly uses the English language (meanings of words, unique word pictures)to create interest. Turner's stories have substance, depth, and the theme of redemption. The have unforgettable characters and real life situations. She is one of the few authors that I will actually buy. You won't be disappointed.

This is a book about family. It's a story that you can't read fast, you have to let it sink in slowly. For readers familiar with Turner's previous works, the setting returns to Derby, South Carolina where folks in the town like to take things slow and easy. This time we're introduced to Ben, a widower who's never gotten over the unsolved murder of his wife. Due to his unresolved feelings, his relationships with his children have severely declined over the years. It's sad to see how a simple act can change the course of a person's personality and communication for the rest of their lives. I thought it was extremely interesting to read about Ben's relationship to the Kovatch family. I felt that Ben's reaction to the strict conservativeness of the Kovatch family to be quite spot on. It may be playing on stereotypes or pre-judgments but I think many people feel this way about people who act like the family and that would probably have been what they were thinking as well. Throughout the book we learn about Ben's family and the Kovatch family as well as Ben's assistant Caroline and her family. Each of these families is going through situations that that test how they act as a unit and the circumstances that cause them to be this way.

Even though I liked the book, there was something about it that was a bit off. Normally I'm a huge fan of Turner's books. Even though they are a slow read, usually the story just unravels gently and wraps you in. This time however, I never really felt like I could get into the story. It just never grabbed me like the other books had done. I couldn't connect to any of the characters, in fact they all seemed like they were keeping an arm's length away from me. A slight disappointment was the lack of characters from the other books, that usually tie them all together. I think there was a brief cameo of a past character, but it didn't feel like it was enough. I also felt that the mystery was never tied up, it was just left hanging. I understand why this would be the case, but it just very unsatisfying to have so much effort going into it and not have a final outcome. Overall I would have to say this probably was not one of my favorite books by Turner. It's a good read but it just didn't really warm up to me. I'm hoping that there will be another book featuring these characters because I feel that there is more to the story that needs to be told.

After the death of his wife twenty-one years ago, Ben distanced himself from everyone in his life. Weeks before Chloe's death, she became a Christian, a decision Ben didn't understand and derided. Ridden with guilt for his treatment of her those weeks before her death, Ben won't allow himself the peace of moving on. Add to that the guilt of neglecting his children and the following estrangement.

But sometimes a small glimmer of a light surprises. The daughter of the woman who led Chloe to Christ now works for Ben. And Ben's oldest daughter, Shelly, has determined to reunite this family.

Turner's story looks at the small ways God works to draw people closer to him. In this sense, I appreciate her subtlety throughout and her understated ending.

Turner has an eye for detail, a quality that impressed me in Winter Birds. She turns this eye toward the human being. But the richness of character in Winter Birds becomes closer to caricature in Sometimes a Light Surprises. Because of this, I didn't identify with or like any of the characters in this book. So while I relished her details in Winter Birds, clinging to her characters, it became tedious in her latest book. Also, she reveals her observations about her characters through men and women who are too self aware. Here, she is not so subtle.

Because of my high expectations for this book, I was disappointed. Turner demonstrates sophisticated writing, which may draw others to this book, but because I didn't connect with the characters, I didn't enjoy it.