Where Do You Run When Your World Implodes?

“Mom?” Ashley’s shakes can be heard in that single, whispery word. “Mom, what happened?”

I take a breath, unable to turn my head. Unable to move at all. “I don’t know, Ash.” But somehow I do know, beneath skin chilled by the breath of demons, that whatever just happened will change everything.

It was Josie’s hands on the wheel, her foot on the pedal. Her fault. Now, sweet, beautiful Carmelita will never see her fifth birthday. Where do you run when the world implodes and you can’t even function as a mom? Josie leaves her Chicago suburban home to stay with a cousin in Key West, unaware her journey is guided by an unseen hand. Unaware that a trailer park pastor, a battered horse, a pregnant teen, and a mysterious beachcomber might just set her on the path toward an inconceivable hope and redemption.

**CONTAINS SPOILERS**

This book took a few chapters for me to get into — there’s a LOT of emotion in the beginning that can be a bit overwhelming. Personally, it felt like jumping into a pool of emotion without quite understanding the characters yet. Once Josie hit the road, though, things picked up for me.

From there, you see the characters doing more and you get a feel for their personalities and struggles. Josie becomes more relatable and understandable. Preacher and Rosa shine as incredible examples of grace and forgiveness. Connor, Melissa, and even Benny create such a unique cast of characters.

I was debating whether or not to give this five stars until I got to the end. The ending disappointed me a bit. Ana was mad at Josie for not comforting her in her grief, which is understandable, but she never seemed to consider the grief (and guilt) her friend was suffering. Then, she said she forgave Josie, but she also didn’t think they could be friends anymore. That made me sad. Imagine if God forgave us that way — I forgive you, but we can’t be friends anymore. I do understand that that is probably realistic, but in a Christian book I would have loved to see the story end with God’s example of forgiveness, not man’s. I know not everyone will feel that way. For me, though, it was the difference between four and five stars. (It’s still a 4-star book though!)

Rated PG for thematic elements (mentions drinking and drugs). Get your copy here!