Friday, February 13, 2009

Giveaway! This Side of Heaven by Karen Kingsbury

Annie Warren always wanted the best for her son, Josh. But years of failure and bad choices created a heartbreaking distance that has grown far worse since the day Josh was hit by a drunk driver. Now on medical disability, Josh has put his life on hold for years, waiting for the insurance company to send a settlement that never seems to come. Worse, he believes the story of a scheming woman who claims they have a seven-year-old daughter named Savannah.

Despite the unlikelihood and complete lack of evidence, Josh dreams of being a father and is determined to one day claim the child. His family doesn't know the full story. They don't know what happened the night of the accident that was worth the chronic pain Josh suffers every waking minute, or that he is turning his life around. They haven't seen that Savannah's eyes are his, and they don't know how desperately the little girl needs her family.

When the settlement that rightly belongs to Josh is threatened, Annie sets out to defend her son. But she might find a treasure more valuable than money, one she never expected, one that is the greatest gift her son could ever give her.


My Review:
Characters are important in a novel. They must be credible. I was pleased to see Carl Joseph and Daisy Gunner, a Down Syndrome couple, living next door to the protagonist, Josh Warren. I remember them from earlier books in the Cody Gunner Series. Karen Kingsbury is at her best when writing characters--particularly children. The children in her books think and speak in an authentic manner. For instance, a cotton ball at the doctor's office is thought of as "a wet little ball of white fur." In this novel a little girl, Savannah is introduced. She seems believable, and I can't help but wonder if I'll meet her again in a future work.

The description of chronic pain is well written.

I found the plot credible; the author's notes at the end surprised me. I can't tell you more than this without ruining the story. Running through this Christian Fiction book is the theme of loving in an unconditional style, rather than in a judgmental manner. Too often, we let a moment to love pass, and it's gone forever. I connected to the deep desire of one character's wish for ten minutes more of life in order to be able to hug a departed loved one.

There are discussion questions at the end of the novel, which makes for a good talk at any book club meeting. Her sentence fragments drive me nuts, but Karen Kingsbury fans will ❤ this one!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The generous folks at Hachette Book Group are allowing me to host this book giveaway for five (5) copies!
  • Winners are restricted to the US and Canada. No PO Box mailing addresses, please.
  • I must have a way of contacting you, so be sure to leave your email address in code in your comment
  • I'll close the comments at 6 PM EST February 21st and pick the five winners. I will contact the winners via email to get their mailing information. The winners will have three days to respond. If I do not hear from them within three days, I will select another winner(s). If you're interested, just say so in a comment with that all-important email address in code.
    Example of email in code: you[at]yourmail[dot]com



    If you'd like to buy a copy, click here.



24 comments:

Simply Stacie said...

Please count me in.

stacie_vaughan (at) hotmail (dot) com

Merry said...

I'd love to win a copy of this! Thanks for a chance.
worthy2bpraised{at}gmail{dot}com

Robin said...

I love Karen Kingsbury. I'd love to win this book.
robinmbnm (at) gmail (dot) com

Thanks!

Anonymous said...

This sounds like a good one!
diane.soroko@gmail.com

Anonymous said...

I would love to read this book. Count me in.
Charlotte
charlotte71[at]cox[dot]net

Vanessa said...

Please enter me!
bockoverve(at)gmail(dot)com

Libby's Library said...

I've been really lucky with book giveaways, so count me in! Thanks Sal!

libneas[at]aol[dot]com

Baba said...

Hi Sally, I have never read any of Karen's books, so count me into the drawing..thanks... Baba

babasga[at]bellsouth[dot]net

Bargain Decorating with Laurie said...

I would love to be entered in this drawing. Thank you. laurie
ritcheylaurie@yahoo.com

Andi said...

Please count me in Sally! I love Karen Kingsbury, and I missed out on this book with FIRST. Thanks a bunch! AndiNewberry@cox.net

Anonymous said...

DEAR SALLY,
I HAVE NOT READ A BOOK BY THIS AUTHOR. I WOULD LOVE TO BE INCLUDED IN THIS GIVE AWAY.
THANK YOU SO MUCH. YOU HAVE AN AWESOME JOB.
BLESSINGS
debbie

sharon54220 said...

I would love to be entered into this contest. Thank you so much.

sharon54220{at}gmail{dot}com

bj said...

Please enter my name for your drawing...this sounds like such a good one. I appreciate all your work on giving us the chance to win.
xo bj

Neabear said...

This also sounds like another wonderful book to win. Count me in this one too.

Neabear2279(at)aol(dot)com

Dawn said...

This sounds like a good book to me. Please enter me into the drawing.

Thanks,
Dawn

dawnk(at)comcast(dot)net

Anonymous said...

Sounds like a good book! Please enter my name in the drawing.

patvz[at]aol[dot]com

Annette said...

I am definitely interested and have my fingers crossed. cransaka[at]hotmail[dot]com

Shimmy Mom said...

Your review just talked me into it. Please enter me.
*hugs*

shimmywith4 at yahoo dot com

bp said...

Karen Kingsbury is one of my favorites! I enjoyed visiting your blog.

preciousmoments2004 (at) gmail (dot) com

Unknown said...

I've read just about everything by KK, so I need to keep that up and read this one, too! Please enter me in the contest. Thanks! :o)

Christy
orca0024 at yahoo dot com

imjacobsmom said...

Count me in! This sounds like a great read! ~ Robyn
oxeyedaisies@gmail.com

Elizabeth-Plain and Simple said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Elizabeth-Plain and Simple said...

I love Karen Kingsbury. Please enter me for a chance to win.
E1ije@aol.com

Blessings,
Elizabeth

SmilingSally said...

The winners are: Robin, Char 72, Vanessa, Baba's Blog, and Dawn.