Even Now (#01 in Lost Love Series)

This is such an emotional book, yet has such a powerful message. Decisions determine destiny and this is shown clearly in this book as the decisions that were made in teenage years, shaped the life of the main character Lauren. Karen Kingsbury powerfully tackles so many issues that young people face, but highlighting through it all the loves of Jesus, the power of forgiveness and the fact that God can still restore

It starts off with Emily desperate to know why her parents had abandoned her to be brought up by her grandparents. The story is then taken back to the beginning of the romance with Lauren and Shane. There are a lot of judgmental, rigid and manipulative parental attitudes exposed when Lauren becomes pregnant which is what probably gives this story an old-fashioned feel although it is a contemporary novel, I liked the way the reunion scenes didn't mean a happy ending straight away. The characters had to work for it! A typical Karen Kingsbury novel, which is not a criticism.

This series is wonderful as it reminds us time and again that God is a God of second, third, fourth, etc chances. He is not in the business of scolding us, but He is in the business of waiting until we have finally figured out that He has the best plans for us and that we only need to stop and listen to what He is telling us. He created families and will use us with our strength and weaknesses as we are, in our family. I love how Karen Kingsbury is able to make God's voice shine through in all of her books. Makes me seek and listen harder to hear the same voice in my life.