Peculiar Treasures (The Katie Weldon Series #1) (Paperback)

by Robin Jones Gunn (Author)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly
Katie Weldon is just finishing her junior year at Bible College. As she juggles finals, maid-of-honor duties at her best friend's wedding, work and an almost-romance with her boss, she finds herself contemplating other big questions, such as whether to take a resident advisor position her senior year, and what to do about her undeclared major. Gunn has been writing about Katie and her friends for years, most notably in the popular Christy Miller series, and this is first in Gunn's Katie Weldon series. f Katie's dilemmas may seem like the stuff of unabashedly light fiction, but they aren't without gravity and intrigue. Gunn is adept at denuding light fiction of its usual tics-mediocre prose, clichéd characters and predictable plots-and imbuing it with the hallmarks of literary fiction. The characters are multidimensional and ring true at nearly every turn. The dialogue that ensues is at once heartbreaking and utterly familiar to anyone who has ever been in Katie's shoes. Moreover, Katie's religious faith never feels sentimentalized or tacked on, but is integrated beautifully into the charming plot. (Apr.)
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Review
"Katie Weldon is just finishing her junior year at Bible College. As she juggles finals, maid-of-honor duties at her best friend's wedding, work, and an almost-romance with her boss, she finds herself contemplating other big questions, such as whether to take a resident advisor position her senior year, and what to do about her undeclared major. Gunn has been writing about Katie and her friends for years, most notably in the popular Christy Miller series, and this is first in Gunn's Katie Weldon series. Katie's dilemmas may seem like the stuff of unabashedly light fiction, but they aren't without gravity and intrigue. Gunn is adept at denuding light fiction of its usual tics -- mediocre prose, clichéd characters, and predictable plots -- and imbuing it with the hallmarks of literary fiction. The characters are multidimensional and ring true at nearly every turn. The dialogue that ensues is at once heartbreaking and utterly familiar to anyone who has ever been in Katie's shoes. Moreover, Katie's religious faith never feels sentimentalized or tacked on, but is integrated beautifully into the charming plot." — Publishers Weekly

(Publishers Weekly )

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Product Details

• Paperback: 304 pages
• Publisher: Zondervan (April 1, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 031027656X
• ISBN-13: 978-0310276562
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.4 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #10,993 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Old Friends are Back Again, March 14, 2008

By	Deborah "Books, movies, and Chinese Food" (Reston, VA) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)

Katie Weldon, Christy Miller's best friend, caught the bouquet at Christy's wedding. But wedding bells aren't on their way for her just yet. First she's got to choose a major she wants at college. Then she has to think about accepting an RA position in the dorms. AND then Katie has to wonder about her relationship with Rick Doyle, her not exactly boyfriend because they haven't discussed labels yet. Throughout all these decisions and circumstances, Katie must remember that God is with her at all times, even when she can't figure out what's going on herself.

When I heard that there was going to be a new edition to the Christy Miller saga, I was in 7th heaven. I adored the original Christy Miller books growing up, loved the Sierra saga, and was thrilled to see old friends pop up in Robin Gunn's other two series Glenbrooke and Sisterchicks. I was excited to hear we would finally get to read Katie's story. I had high expectations going into this book and I was not let down at all! All the familiar characters are back and the story picks up right where the last book in the Christy and Todd series left off. Even if this is your first time meeting the gang you won't get lost as all the characters are reintroduced again. Katie is someone most young women can identify with. Personally I thought that Katie is a more dimensional character that Christy was in the previous series. She's more outgoing, outspoken and a risk taker. I really do love her unique way of seeing life such as her accepting Christ was like taking up a dare from God. I also shared her frustration about defining her relationship with Rick yet at the same time I was glad to see how they everything worked out before using labels. This book totally made me miss being in college again and living in the dorms. I miss all the goings ons of dorm life, with staying up late, friends around the corner, and late night fast food runs. If it only didn't have to be ruined by studying! I wish I could have studied at Rancho Corona with Katie as my RA. She sound like she would have been the perfect RA to have, someone you could easily talk to with your problems. There's lots of humor in this book too with Katie's penchant for off beat jokes and wisecracks. It was a refreshing read and I learned quite a bit. I myself have never noticed the peculiar treasures reference in the Bible but after reading this I like seeing myself in that viewpoint. It took me no time at all to finish this book and I was sad to see it end. I cannot wait to see what happens next in Katie and Rick's relationship. Book 2 cannot come out fast enough! HIGHLY recommended!!!

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Daughter Loved it!, October 9, 2008

By	J. Piesik (Oceanside, CA, USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Bought this book for my 19 yr old daughter. She gobbled it up in a night. Now it's making its way around the college dorm. My wife wants to read it, too! I'm buying the entire series as it comes out. Sorry I couldn't give actual details about the author/story, but, I think this series is a winner based upon my daughter's response.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Loveable characters of Christian fiction, July 24, 2008

By	Teenreads.com (New York, NY) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)

As Katie Weldon attends her best friend Christy Miller's wedding, she can't help but think about her own love life. In PECULIAR TREASURES, the first book in Robin Jones Gunn's new Katie Weldon series, Katie works hard to catch the wedding bouquet in hopes that her slow-moving, undefined relationship with Rick Doyle might begin to speed up. However, Katie quickly notices that Rick seems less than enthusiastic about the bouquet attempt.

Romance isn't the only thing on Katie's mind. At the ceremony, she is approached about the possibility of a job as a resident assistant at her university. While everyone thinks she'd be perfect for the job, Katie begins to wonder if she's really ready to give up her social life for the year. Not to mention that it would mean having to quit her job at the Dove's Nest, where she conveniently gets to spend her days with gorgeous Rick.

After Katie decides to take the position as an RA, her life becomes more complicated than she ever imagined. She's had a big crush on Rick since high school, and now that he's finally her "almost-boyfriend," she thought she was ready to solidify their complicated relationship. But now they appear to be drifting farther apart than ever. With the RA job taking up her days and nights, it looks like a relationship is the last thing she has time for. And when they do manage to spend any time with each other, it seems to always end in disaster.

Luckily, Christy soon returns home from her honeymoon and is able to give Katie some wise advice from a married woman. And it looks like Katie will need it, too. Rick is faced with a promising business opportunity, which might be taking him far away from her. And he seems to have been getting quite a bit of attention from an unrelenting female. Between trying to figure out her relationship with Rick, fulfilling her duties as an RA and hoping to graduate on time, Katie's senior year will be anything but relaxing!

PECULIAR TREASURES is the first book in the latest (and third) spinoff series of Robin Jones Gunn's original Christy Miller series. Fans of the earlier series will no doubt be excited to catch up with the familiar characters. The book picks up right where the last series, Christy and Todd: The College Years, left off, and gives the reader glimpses into unresolved storylines, such as Christy and Todd's marriage, and Doug and Tracy's baby. Newcomers might find themselves confused or uninterested in the sometimes complicated and, by this point, very developed characters. However, that is certainly not to say that the book can't stand on its own.

All in all, PECULIAR TREASURES is a very enjoyable read and continues a story that fans will be glad has returned.

--- Reviewed by Jennifer Crosby