I recently downloaded the first book in the He Calls Me By Name series by Michael Winstell. Serenity Hope is a young adult who loves her life living on a fifty acre property with her two parents. She adores the horses that she owns and cares for and is blessed to be able to use them to bring in some money. This is through teaching young children how to ride the horses.
In spite of this dream life, Serenity has worked through many battles. Having lost her older brother a couple of years earlier and had her heart broken a few times, she doesn’t see how her life will improve beyond where it is currently sitting. This would be fine if the farm was flourishing, but the young red head soon finds that not to be the case. In fact, her parents are struggling with repayments and may have to give up the property.
This would also mean Serenity would have nowhere to keep her horses and would need to consider relocating from the country town that she loves. Keen to trust in God, Serenity finds herself struggling as it seems her world is falling apart.
Taking her mother’s advice and friendly push Serenity goes out to the local dance with her girlfriends. She is dismayed to find their choice of dates for the evening. Serenity feels that she is moving away from these two women that were once so close to her. It seems their desire to be in a relationship is overriding their Christian values and boundaries. Consequently, Serenity wants to distance herself from them.
A reappearance of an old flame at the dance has the young woman bailing as soon as she can. She suddenly wishes she hadn’t gone in the first place. The man she’d first fallen for as a teenager – the same man who she blamed for her brother’s death – drags up many unwanted memories.
More than disappointed at how her evening turned out, Serenity heads home. She doesn’t know how to break the news to her parents that Rick is back in town. She keeps the information from them but finds that this comes to a head in a very unexpected way. Serenity Hope has a great mixture of horses, romance and Christian values. It also explores the themes of forgiveness and hope. An enjoyable read.
Author: Michael Winstell
Fiction – young adult Christian
In My Library? As an eBook!
Want it? Get it now on Amazon.
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