Emotional Story

"Waiting for Morning" by Karen Kingsbury had me in tears by the 3rd chapter. It's easy to relate to the main characters in this book. We've all suffered loss, but when it comes so quickly and tragically we experience so much more than just sadness. There's anger, there's sorrow, and there's that feeling of how to seek revenge on the one who caused it. We ask God, why? How could He let this happen? If we aren't relying on God fully, we can very well find ourselves moving further and further away from the arms of Christ. We find ourselves blaming Him instead. That is not a good place to be.
 When Tom and his 2 teenage daughters are returning home from their weekend camping trip they are hit by a drunk driver who ran a red light. Brian, the drunk driver, had been sober for 3 weeks. He was trying to be a better father for his new baby and a better husband to Carla. His father was an alcoholic and it killed him. Brian didn't want to be like his father.
Brian was not injured very much in the accident, and he crossed the street to see about the victims in the other vehicle. A young girl was laying on the ground surrounded by people helping her. She doesn't make it. Paramedics and fire crew were using the Jaws of Life to get her father out. An officer was close by talking to him to keep him alert. Tom gives the officer a message for his wife and daughters. He dies on the way to the hospital. Jenny was taken to the hospital and did not suffer any life threatening injuries.
Hannah was waiting for her family to return. She was very anxious and wondering what was taking so long. When she sees the squad car pull up she freezes. They give her the message and she immediately goes in to denial about everything that is happening. When she arrives at the hospital it all starts to sink in.  From that day forward Hannah's goal is to get the drunk driver convicted of murder so she can move on.
Hannah and her family were Christians. They attended church, they were a praying family. That was before Hannah thought God turned His back on her. She started missing church and started denying there was even a God. She didn't want to pray anymore. How could God not be there for her and her family when in need? He's not real. That was her only explanation for things. In the midst of all the craziness God placed all these people in her life that were also believers. The MADD coordinator, the officer on the case, and the prosecutor. They all offered prayer and biblical passages to help her.
While Hannah is busy with all the court appointments and MADD meetings, her only surviving daughter Jenny is feeling neglected. She still believes in God, but doesn't think her mother loves her. Alicia was her mom's favorite. She has been searching online about easy ways to commit suicide and things like that. There is a division in their home, and they aren't making it easy to be around each other.
If you've read my other reviews you know I don't like to tell the whole story. It's more enjoyable to read it yourself. I picked this book up Friday and finished it by Sunday. This is so real! This can happen to anyone you know. I just pray that if anything tragic like this were to happen to me or someone I know that they would not grow bitter towards God. There are people in this world who do bad things and we need to rely on the awesome power of God to get us through tough times. THERE IS POWER IN FORGIVENESS! I've never read the book of Lamentations until I read this novel. Thank you Mrs. Kingsbury for this emotional and powerful novel!



I received this book from Multnomah Publishers for my honest review.