Sometimes A Light Surprises by Jamie Langston Turner

Sometimes a Light Surprises by Jamie Langston Turner and published by Bethany House Publishers was another first me in regards to authors. I was very glad that I had the chance to review this book through Bethany House because it gave me a lot to think about and also clearly had God trying to shine through all the characters at some point.

The following is taken from the Bethany House Publishers website: "Ben Buckley has never gotten over the loss of his wife. More bewildering than the mystery surrounding her death is the radical change that occurred in her shortly beforehand--a "conversion," she had called it. Baffled, angry, and still feeling guilty for the way he'd withdrawn from her during those final weeks, Ben now lives behind the protective walls of severed relationships and rigid routines.
An unlikely young woman knocks on the door of his narrow world. Her simple honesty and childlike faith are incomprehensible to him, but in spite of his misgivings Ben finds himself on a journey he never would have begun on his own."

The one female lead character, we find out was home schooled - which for me, instantly made the book more in touch with my life. I could easily relate to the characters because they were well established and not some flat, one dimensional character. All the characters were well developed which lent even more credibility to the book and the author's work. When reading a book I like to 'know' the characters, even if I don't always agree with them. Ben Buckley's character, while the other characters were sometimes annoyed at his useless information, I liked it as I am also one who likes to gather what some consider 'useless' information. I felt pulled into the character's lives, such as one of Ben's daughters and wanting to yell at her to forgive her father, wanting to tell another one to give up her amateur crime detective work, and cheering on the young home school graduate.

When I first started reading the book it was a little hard to get into because the story takes awhile to pick up but I am glad that I stayed with it because the rest of the book well made up for the slow start. I enjoyed how the author weaved in people of God at just the right time as well as seeing some of the characters hearts soften - even if they don't yet recognize it's God working in them. It was a great way to incorporate a great book and then a reader can see and recognize how God is present in their lives right now - it could be something as small as providing a nice park ranger and tire guy when you have a flat with three of your children with you - but He is there with you and is always working some of His great Works. Regardless of the circumstances though, good or bad, this book definitely makes me want to keep my eyes open for even more of Him and praise Him for it when I recognize it. So grab this book and get reading, I can almost guarantee you'll like it.