Dana Corbit

I received this book from a friend--I think after she read it, but I'm not sure. I did debate a bit on how to rate it. Most of the time I reserve ratings of 1-2 for books that I DNF or ones that I feel have serious flaws that prevent me from recommending it. 3 is my average rating for books I finish. 4-5 are reserved for books I really like, really feel are worthwhile, or would consider rereading. Since I did finish this book, it should rate a 3 but there are some issues I have with it show more (detailed below) that made me wonder if I should rate it lower. (It's rare that I rate a Love Inspired Book more than a 3, but it has happened.)

WARNING: REMAINDER OF ENTRY MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS: READ AT YOUR OWN DISCRETION

Likes:
*Charity--after she mellowed out from her first meeting with Rick.
*Rick--seems like a Godly man even though he chooses not to attend a church.
*Charity's realization that her works aren't what saves her (in the Christian sense).
*That both Charity and Rick go through rough patches in their lives, showing that Christians don't get a free pass on the world's problems. They just know who to turn to for help and assurance. They know the One who won't let them down.
*Andrew and Bob, both pastors, both of whom also seem to have had rough patches in their family lives but who still walk the walk that they talk.

Dislikes:
*Charity's behavior early in the book. It came off as holier-than-thou. Also, her treatment of Andrew and Serena (hinted at in this book) wasn't entirely Christ-like either (though I do understand her disappointment when Andrew chose another woman over her).
*Charity's viewing Rick as a "project"--trying to get him to attend church or thinking God wants her to bring him into church attendance.
*The whirlwind romance--this is one of my common complaints for most romantic fiction (Christian or otherwise). The couple hasn't known each other for very long before they end up engaged and married. I do worry that readers may start thinking that real life will play out like the fictional stories the genre espouses and marry someone they don't know well because they think they're in love, only to find out later that there are warts to the person and then not want to work through the rough patches to keep the marriage intact.
*Laura--very deceitful, manipulative, and controlling.
*There is one scene in the book where it might have been easier to understand Charity's assumption if I'd been listening to the book rather than reading it and been able to hear the inflection the character gave to the statement. It's when Laura tells Charity about someday wishing a man she loved might die. I just took it as more of Laura's manipulation and controlling nature and that she was spouting off because Charity wasn't falling under the control as she had prior to this. UNTIL suddenly Charity is at the construction site claiming she thinks Laura killed him. Charity's reaction just didn't fit how I envisioned the scene had played out. show less

This book contains two inspirational Christmas novellas.

THE GIFT OF FAMILY by Irene Brand (1 star)
CHILD IN A MANGER by Dana Corbit (5 stars)

THE GIFT OF FAMILY by Irene Brand (1 star) – Not long after twentysomething college students, Wendy and Evan, get engaged, Evan gets a call from home that his father has had a stroke. Evan leaves Florida for Ohio, not only to visit his father, but to take over the running of the family farm in his father’s absence. Evan’s family, the Kessler’s, show more invite Wendy to come and spend the Christmas holiday with them so she can be with Evan. This story didn’t work for me at all and the storyline never grabbed me. I didn’t like Wendy much. She seemed immature, selfish, not very in love with Evan, and she constantly focused on the negative. I also couldn’t understand why Evan never shared his future plans with Wendy that he would one day be running the family farm. She was surprised to find it out and couldn’t deal with the thought of being a farmer’s wife. This story was too overly religious for me. It seemed that every move or thought that the Kessler family had was steeped in religion. This novella hit all the wrong buttons for me.

CHILD IN A MANGER by Dana Corbit (5 stars) - When a baby is discovered in a live church nativity scene, social worker Allison and police detective Brock work together to try to find who abandoned the infant. Not only do Allison and Brock find that the baby is tugging at their heartstrings, they also find themselves falling in love. This was such a cute, sweet, and heartwarming novella. I really liked both Allison and Brock. Allison thought she would never find love. Brock was abandoned by his mother as a child and never knew his father, so he found himself emotionally involved in the case. I found the premise of the story interesting in this very enjoyable Christmas romance. show less

At age 15, Shannon placed her baby boy for adoption at the insistence of her parents. Now she works as a social worker at a home for unwed mothers--a home that stresses the importance of choosing what's right for you and your baby.

We all assume that parents who want to adopt a child want the child.

One day a state trooper shows up at Shannon's workplace with a boy in custody--a boy who claims to be Shannon's biological son. Shannon learns that the family who adopted him cared more about drugs show more than they did about being parents and that his life has been a series of foster homes since.

Shannon would like nothing more than to take her son back, but since she voluntarily gave up her parental rights, she faces an uphill battle. The trooper impulsively offers to be a temporary foster parent for the boy--and the story takes off from there. show less

If you haven't read Corbit's first book, A Blessed Life, you should before reading this book. Charity's story starts there, and you will see how much she has changed at the end of this book...I LOVE the way the author changed her over time. I didn't like her at the end of A Blessed Life, and didn't care for her too much at the beginning of this one. But somewhere along the way, I figured out she was a good person.

I think her meeting Rick McKinley was the best thing that ever happened to her. show more It always amazes me that people can go to church their whole life and never realize they are not actually saved. The scriptures they heard their whole life held no meaning, but then it slaps you in the face and wakes you up to reality that faith by works is dead...your heart must be in it!!!

The story that comes out near the end is so heart-breaking. I felt for Charity, and loved the way Rick stayed at her side and helped her through the whole ordeal. Very, very sweet! If ever a couple deserved each other, it was them. And I also like how the relationship remained strained between mother and daughter - in real life, a few words doesn't fix everything right up... show less