Hope Springs - eBook
4.1
5
15
15
A Visit to a Small Town -- Hope Springs
Kim Cash Tate has woven together a compelling story of the realities of life. As Janelle and Stephanie temporarily relocate to Hope Springs to care for their Grandmother Geri, they interact closely with their cousin Libby and many other friends and family. Challenges from their present and their past cause them to look deeply at where they are in life, what lessons God has for each of them to learn, and how they will grow through this season. With no conscious intentions of doing so, they find themselves involved in a process of working to ease racial differences and begin a process of healing in the small town . . . and in their own family.
Kim gives genuine depth to her characters, showing them with struggles and questions that are a part of real life. Most of the characters appear to be Godly people, but rather than being presented as some sort of "super-Christians," they are forced to deal with down-to-earth loss, hurt, and uncertainty.
The only criticism I would offer about Hope Springs is the number of characters and complexities of their relationships. I had some trouble keeping up with who was who and how they all fit together. Thankfully, there is a family tree in the beginning of the book to help sort that out. All in all, this was a very enjoyable story that kept me well engaged in the lives of the characters. And the end of the story definitely leaves unanswered questions that hopefully lead to another book.
This ebook was provided free from the BookSneeze blogger program for my honest review.
June 24, 2012
GREAT Book by Kim Cash Tate
This Book was supplied to me by Thomas Nelson Publishers through NetGalley for a review in return.
Book Description
Hope Springs, North Carolina, is the epitome of small town life-a place filled with quiet streets where families have been friends for generations, a place where there's not a lot of change. Until three women suddenly find themselves planted there for a season.
Janelle hasn't gone back to Hope Springs for family reunions since losing her husband. But when she arrives for Christmas and learns that her grandmother is gravely ill, she decides to extend the stay. It isn't long before she runs into her first love, and feelings that have been dormant for more than a decade are reawakened.
My Review
This book is the first book of Kim Cash TateâÂÂs that I have read and I guarantee you, it will not be the last one either. She has a way of intertwining everyone into her story, you feel like you are there.
I love how Kim just draws you into her stories and this one is GREAT. I felt very close to Grandma Geri because she reminded me of what my grandma would have been like if she had lived long enough. I was only 7 when she passed away.
This story intertwines Janelle, Stephanie and Libby and I love how Kim just brings them so close together and how Jesus changes their lives. At first, I felt sorry for Janelle since she lost her husband and has to raise her kids. But, as the story goes on, you can see Jesus working in her heart. I thoroughly love that.
I grew really close to all of them, but I think I loved Grandma Geri the best. She was struggling through some pretty deep issues and I wonâÂÂt tell you what they are because that would spoil it for you. She gets cancer and what she endures is amazing but she never left the Lord, if anything she grew closer.
Thank you Thomas Nelson Publishers for giving me a chance to read and review this WONDERFUL book. Thank you, Kim Cash Tate for giving us all a good book to read and learn how Jesus moves. I just have to say this one thing, âÂÂJesus does not move, we doâÂÂ. Just a thought.
I would suggest this book most definitely to my friends and family.
July 22, 2012
Hope Springs
Hope Springs by Kim Cash Tate tells the story of 3 cousins in the Saunders family who travel to their grandmotherâÂÂs home to spend Christmas together but end up staying longer and learning about themselves and solving some of their problems. Janelle Evansâ husband died a few years earlier, and she finds it hard to go back to the pace they spent so much time together. Stephanie London lives in St. Louis with her husband and is nominated by her father as the one to represent the family at this holiday. Libby seems to be searching for something in her life, and she is unable to commit to a relationship. When these cousins reunite and learn their Grandmother Geri is sick, they decide to move in with her to help take care of the home and take her to doctor appointments.
This book looked at more than just family secrets. It also looked at the racial divide that still may exist in some areas. I liked the overall idea of the book and the focus on the importance of family. I also liked how each of these characters were so different from one another. Even though they were cousins, and were raised in similar families, they ended up completely different from one another.
I liked this book, but I felt like I was very confused with all of the characters. There were cousins, aunts and uncles, neighbors, random family friends, and grandchildren. I was unable to remember all of the characters connections to one another until I was basically finished the book. I think some of the characters could have been removed and the book would still have relayed the same meaning.
Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookSneezeî.com [...] book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255 [...] : "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."
July 19, 2012
Not my fav in the series, but worth reading.
I enjoyed this third book in the series, though not as much as the first two books. My favorite novel of the author's is still the first story, Faithful, though I should say I did get a bit choked up a few times reading Hope Springs, so the author did a good job helping me to identify with several situations. There were some couples that I preferred reading about more than others. My only issue is that some of the story seemed to drag for me, while other parts were very interesting. I think the parts that dragged had to do with the fact that there were so many characters that I didn't care about some of them all that much. While there was conflict in this novel, some of it seemed almost too perfect in it's resolution. While on the one hand I do like the healing themes in this author's books, on the other hand, it doesn't feel as real to me when everything ends up tidy by the last page. Granted, some people had endings that were less than ideal (don't want to post a spoiler here) but they were inevitable conclusions, and in fact, that part of the book seemed to zip right on by...almost too fast for me.
Though I point out some things that didn't work for me, overall I liked this book. It was more spiritually focused in tone and dialog (and some readers might even see it as preachy) than her other two books. There were some good themes in this story such as the one questioning who you are doing ministry for...yourself, or others? What's your real motivation? I liked the conflict with Janelle and Kory. That part of the story worked for me. I loved it. I was not as fond of Becca. Her husband seemed like a good guy, though. I also loved the character Libby who had a history with Travis. I guess I like reading more about the broken-hearted women who see themselves as damaged in some way. Even Janelle felt guilty about having feelings for anyone after her husband died.
While grandma Geri was core to the story, I never grew that attached to her. I did like the underlying secret of Keisha's existance coming out toward the end, and also the theme about bringing the two churches together to blend them more and make them less segregated. So I did enjoy this book, but found myself skimming in some places because the conflict wasn't sufficient hold my attention. I don't like when I find myself skimming, and that's why I didn't rate it as high as her other novels. Overall she is a good author, though. Like I said earlier, I loved the first two books in this series.
July 12, 2012
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