Fiction Addict

Genre: Women’s Fiction

Publisher:  Simon & Schuster

Publication Date:  June 2010

Reviewed by Jen Roman

Jasmine Bush is devastated when her four-year-old daughter, Jackie, is missing at the mall while Christmas shopping.  Jasmine immediately contacts the authorities and waits, and waits…  She is concerned that her less than desirable past has caught up to her and someone from that past has stolen her child.  She contacts her ex-lover, Brian, who is Jackie’s father, for support instead of leaning on her husband, Hosea, to draw strength.  In the midst of all this, Brian is trying to repair his broken marriage to Alexis, and while he feels the need to comfort his daughter’s mother, he is stuck between a rock and a hard place.  Hosea, the pastor at one of New York’s largest churches, gathers friends and family and anyone who will help for assistance in finding their little girl.  Everyone uses the power of prayer.

Sins of the Mother shows just how difficult life can be sometimes.  It shows just how deeply grief can affect us and make us do things we wouldn’t normally do.  We turn to the wrong people and don’t turn to the right ones.  We act irrationally and with a great deal of emotion.  We question every move we make.

While not as intriguing as it could be, Sins of the Mother shows that when the going gets tough, it’s best to make an effort and rely on God’s strength.  It gives the message that there is hope no matter what, and that people must have faith.  For all the conflicts in this story, there are some quick resolutions that don’t quite follow real life.  Yes, this is fiction, but the book seems to rely too much on creating a lot of obstacles and then, at the last minute, wrap everything up neatly.  There isn’t always a happy ending.

Sins of the Mother uses a religious theme quite a bit throughout the story, and it shows characters trying to follow the Word.  For the most part, therefore, there is little swearing; however, there are several sexual scenes that describe the act in great detail.  Readers not interested in that aspect of the storyline should be aware of those scenes.

The book jacket is meant to entice someone into reading this book, and in this case it did, but the book fell flat and just did not promise the fascinating reading it promised.  It was hard to tell if it really was a Christian book, or a romance novel disguised as a Christian book.  For anyone wanting a quick and easy read, however, it would be adequate.

Review copy provided by Simon and Schuster.