Book Review: Saving Grace by Annie Jones

Saving Grace was an ok book, not great (but with some good features) and not terrible.  I liked the lessons portrayed in the book.  Saving Grace is both about Grace (unmerited favor) and about one of the secondary characters named Grace.

Four women living in East Tennessee (Naomi, Rose, Gayle, and Lucy) are friends who have drifted apart after becoming close when they were in the same prayer group.  Naomi, an adventurous schemer at heart, concocts a plan to help them join back together in a common cause: helping the elderly and eccentric Grace Grayson-Wiley who is a recluse rumored to be crazy as a bat.

During the course of the story, Naomi faces exciting yet somewhat worrisome circumstances, Rose puts off the man who is courting her, Gayle's marriage reaches a crisis point, and Lucy finally finds love but can't seem to accept it.

In general, I liked the story.  I liked the ending the best and not only because I was glad to get through it.  The characters were somewhat funny -- stereotypical and almost satirical.  I felt like the book was a mixture of Steel Magnolias and The Waltons.  One of the negative points of the book is that the writing was just not my style to enjoy.  The metaphors and similes missed the mark.  In some places there was too much description. It felt like I was stuck in the mud spinning my tires to get out.

It wasn't until I finished the book that I found out this is actually the sequel to another book by the same author.  I had felt this might be the case while reading, but I couldn't confirm it until I reached the end.  I read an e-book version on my computer and couldn't "flip to the back of the book" to find out.  Although the book was moderately good, it wasn't good enough to make me want to read the previous book.

Reviews on Blogging for Books can be reviewed and ranked by others.  I would love it if you would visit my review on the Blogging for Books site and rank my review.  Upon ranking my review, you will be entered in a drawing to win your own copy of this book!  Don't worry, you won't hurt my feelings if you give me a bad review.  I'd rather have an honest bad review than a dishonest good review.  "Faithful are the wounds of a friend: but the kisses of an enemy deceitful." (Proverbs 27:6)



FTC Disclaimer:  I received this book for free from WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group for this review.”  I was not required to provide a positive review.  All opinions expressed are my own.