A Promise Kept by Robin Lee Hatcher

God was going to save her marriage, Allison was sure of it. But neither her husband nor her marriage had been saved.

What had become of His promise?

Tony Kavanagh had been Allison’s dream-come-true. They were in love within days, engaged within weeks, married and pregnant within a year. Her cup bubbled over with joy . . . but years later, that joy had been extinguished by unexpected trials.

The day Allison issued her husband an ultimatum, she thought it might save him. She never expected he would actually leave. She was certain God had promised to heal; it was clear that she'd misunderstood.

Now, living in the quiet mountain cabin she inherited from her single, self-reliant Great Aunt Emma, Allison must come to terms with her grief and figure out how to adapt to small town life. But when she finds a wedding dress and a collection of journals in Emma’s attic, a portrait of her aunt emerges that takes Allison completely by surprise: a portrait of a heartbroken woman surprisingly like herself.

As Allison reads the incredible story of Emma’s life in the 1920s and 1930s, she is forced to ask a difficult question: Does she really surrender every piece of her life to the Lord?

Drawing from her own heart-wrenching story of redemption, A Promise Kept is Robin Lee Hatcher’s emotionally charged thanksgiving to a God who answers prayers—in His own time and His own ways.

My Review:
As a child of an alcoholic, I felt an immediate connection to Allison, who is recovering from her divorce from Tony, an alcoholic. I understand how a person can love an alcoholic but hate alcoholism. One of the lovely statements in the novel came from Allison's mother who said, "God hates divorce. He doesn't hate the divorced" (171). Robin Lee Hatcher did not delve into the ugliness of the situation, but elevated the story into one of hope and promise. Anyone who has dealt with problems of addiction or divorce would benefit by reading this novel.

Short chapters told in first person alternate between the stories of Allison and Emma, Allison's great aunt. Emma's log cabin is left to Allison. When Allison discovers Emma's journals, she also discovers how many things they have in common.

The question of why God would not keep His word is thoroughly answered in a most satisfying way. I definitely recommend this wonderful novel!

Thank you to BookSneeze® Thomas Nelson for my copy.