Crowned Worthy - L G Jenkins

Dysoptian fiction isn’t at all a regular choice of mine, so it’s somewhat surprising that I found myself reading another book from this genre.  

 

Ajay Chambers is outwardly on the up, with a high profile job, a host of merit-making friends and high-born girlfriend Genni.  Despite his successful life, he is restless and unsatisfied.  Ambition in Tulo’s City is on another scale with those who are ‘Worthy’ working constantly to score merit points to elevate their status.  Ajay’s ambition began young, and he carries an explosive secret with him – a secret becoming harder and harder to keep.  And all is not well with Genni, either.

 

It took a while to get into this as I didn’t find Ajay very likeable for a long time. I did warm to Genni though and her longing for expression through her gift for painting. There’s a huge and dramatic shift in pace quite late on, where the feel of the story changes. This is book one and it ends on a cliffhanger.  I hope this means that some of the untied threads will be tied in the next book!

 

There are plenty of things to think about here – the pressures of achievement and expectation, work, relationships and the effect of the over domination of technology, as well as living a truthful life.  My only hesitation is that the other option in the book – living in the ‘Unglorified’ district known as the Side and following the Guiding Light, doesn’t, at this stage of the story at least, appear very appealing!  I wait with interest to see how the story develops.

9781912863709, Malcolm Down Publishing, Feb21

Paint and Nectar - Ashley Clark

Paint and Nectar isn’t the kind of book I’d usually pick up, which just goes to show it’s always worth reading outside your immediate comfort zone.

In 1929, William is hired to produce forged copies of the paintings of gifted artist Eliza.  Taking the job to help his desperate sister, he thinks it will be a ‘one off’.  Little does he know it will change his life.

In modern day Charleston, Lucy Legare unexpectedly inherits a tumbledown historic property and its overgrown garden, along with a beautiful old ring.  She meets the engaging Declan Pinckney, but Declan has been instructed by his formidable father to buy the house no matter the cost, and the likely cost is rising all the time.

I enjoyed this not just because the story (stories?) itself is so very well constructed, but because there are flashes of absolute joy in the phrasing of Ashley Clark’s writing.  And not just in the notes and letters between William and Eliza, which are enchanting.  (How much are we losing in these modern days with the loss of actual letter writing, I wonder?)

 

The elements of retaining history, and yet aligning it with progress, are well laid out and I loved the themes of inheritance, hope and beauty.  Inheritance is shown to be about more than just the most obviously valuable, and hope shown as not always easily found.  There are lots of layers, so you need to keep your focus while reading, but it is SO well worth it.

 

But I do wonder what happened about the bricks…

9780764237614, Bethany House, £10.99 pb, Jun21

Mosaic - Chris Aslan

“When a pot breaks, it’s useless; at best there might be a shard that you can use to scoop grain.  But what about a broken life? What about me? I feel so fragmented. Can I be repaired somehow? How do I live with the hate I fell towards those I'm supposed to be closest to? My life is in pieces and I don't know what to do..."

Tabita is growing up in a mountain village in the Middle East.  When a tragic accident results in the death of her closest friend Sholem and the paralysis of her brother Phanuel, Tabi’s life is shattered.  When word comes of a miracle-working teacher it’s not only Phan who needs healing. 

 

The author’s childhood in Turkey and Lebanon is reflected in his immersive descriptions of the people and landscape.  Although I found the early chapters a bit hard going, before long I was captivated.  When Tabi and the four friends who with Phan make up ‘The Hand’ take him to the Teacher, it’s far from being the end of the story.   Influence for The Hand comes from Luke 12:52 and the overall story arc includes events from Mark and Acts which are woven in very well.  I like ‘biblical novels’ which don’t follow key characters, they give their authors scope for wider turns in the storytelling.

 

Mosaic gives the reader an insight into what life may well have been like for many in Jesus’ time.  It clearly describes the rift between those who followed The Way and the Jewish leaders, while making people on both sides of that rift ‘real’.  When reading the Bible we often go quickly through its stories.  Here, we’re aware of how tensions would be building over time, and the struggle of knowing what was right not just in the bigger things, but in individual lives where many broken pieces can be restored and create a beautiful mosaic.

9781782643388, Lion Fiction, £9.99, pb, Apr21

If it Rains - Jennifer L Wright

A story of resilience and redemption set against one of America's defining moments - the Dust Bowl.

It’s 1935 and in Oklahoma drought is in its fourth year.  14 year old Kathryn, born with a club foot, loves the land her family lives on, despite the increasingly desperate and precarious situation they are in as the land turns to dust.  She doesn’t love her stepmother Helen, but Helen is struggling to adjust to a life very different from her childhood, and grieving the loss of her third baby, stillborn on the day Kathryn’s sister Melissa makes her fateful vows to Henry Mayfield.

 

Driven by desperation Kathryn’s father James takes Helen and Kathryn and heads for Indianapolis, but disaster strikes on the way and Kathryn’s journey will be longer and harder than she ever imagined.  Meanwhile, Melissa is finding Henry is far from the charming and loving man she thought she was marrying.  Soon, she must decide how big a risk she will take to help others and follow God’s call.

 

This is a superb novel by a debut author. She portrays the desperation of the Dust Bowl period perfectly. You can almost taste the dust and feel the longing for rain.  This is a book of hardship, yet it’s also one of hope, and there are little gems from The Wizard of Oz scattered through it.  The faith elements are well woven through, and the author has earned many stars from me by writing a book in which all the characters are believable in both their struggles and joys.

 

An excellent book, perfect for those who like a book which introduces them to historical details which they didn’t know about before, and also like a strong and engaging story.

9781496449306, Tyndale House Publishers