Angela Benson

Well! Naturally, it isn't like this with me and all novels, but I can honestly say that Delilah's Daughters by author Angela Benson kept me engrossed from beginning to end, without any lag time in the middle. This three-sister singing group and their mother, Delilah Monroe, have some tough decisions to make and lessons to learn about the cost of fame, the power of purpose, and the value of family.

Granted, the novel's opening had kind of a Jacob Marley/Clarence Odbody vibe for me, A Christmas show more Carol and It's a Wonderful Life pretty much being the only stories where I go in for stuff like ghosts and human-beings-turned-angels. And an early occurrence of one sister "shaking it" at a press conference made me suspect the read might be a bit much for my quasi-conservative sensibilities, but that turned out not to be the case.

What I may appreciate most about this novel is the author's clear understanding of human nature and how there are valid right and wrong points on all sides of the Monroe family's dilemma. Everything isn't just cut and dried or neatly packaged for an easy, cheesy fix. Also, even though the story addresses unsavory sides to the music business and relationships going amiss, the story doesn't sink down to become an unsavory mess itself. You don't find that balance everywhere!

Now, besides being repetitive at points, the writing falls a tad flat in a few places where it could have "popped" more, and a new romance here has hardly any lead-up or a middle--very little time or development between 0 and 60. So, the sudden declarations and display of feelings there left me some paces behind.

Still, I absolutely ate up this story of a family at a crossroads, and I'm looking forward to checking out this ChristFic author again. show less

Forty plus unpaid traffic tickets and a sentence of one hundred fifty hours of community service set Cecelia "CeCe" Williams life on an unexpected path. CeCe's community service would be served out at, Genesis House, a Christian-based organization serving the poor and underserved areas of Atlanta. Upon CeCe's initial meeting with the organization's director, Nate Richardson, she felt an instant connection but made sure to hide her feelings and guard her heart.

CeCe Williams is haunted by the show more heartache of a past relationship that produced her four year old son, David. Eric, David's father, had been CeCe's secret crush throughout grade school and high school. Eric never showed much interest in CeCe until he was heart broken by his current girlfriend. During their brief courtship CeCe found out she was pregnant. Eric abandoned her and married the woman who had previously broke his heart. Shame overwhelmed CeCe when she returned to college at Spelman. She was nurtured by her dorm director, Miss Gertrude "B.B." Brinson. Miss Brinson later purchased a home with CeCe helping her start her new life with David. The untold secrets and shame of CeCe's past put fetters on her heart and distance between her and her family.

As CeCe worked toward her community service hours at Genesis House, she formed new friendships and a closer relationship with Nate. Nate was also haunted by a past relationship. Nate's wife walked out on him after only 18months of marriage. Through prayer, communication, and much understanding Nate and CeCe progressed into the next phase of their relationship. When issues from CeCe's past suddenly arose, her heart was revealed to Nate. They both knew their relationship could not progress until CeCe confronted her past.

The personal and family issues addressed in Awakening Mercy were very complex but the author did not rush the solutions. One of the things I liked the most about Awakening Mercy was the fact that Benson did not give us the cliche "church mess" type Christian fiction. The spiritual component to this novel came across as very genuine and sincere. show less

This was OK for what it is - no pretensions to being great literature or anything. I thought the dialogue was artificial and the change of heart (obligatory, of course, at the end of these kinds of books) didn't have enough purpose behind it to be believable. But then, I also thought the animosity exhibited at the beginning - which is what the change of heart is supposed to address - was quite a stretch, too. So, overall, it passes the time but there's probably better ways to do so.

The Summer of Me has well developed characters and the story line is interesting. This novel was a good summer read. I would like to read more of the characters in sequential novels. The words flowed well with no grammatical errors. I will definitely read more from Angela Benson.