This is the fourth book I’ve read by this author and all of her books have been so meaningful and filled with great stories. Her previous books are:
If We Make it Home
Swimming in the Deep End
More Than We Remember
If you haven’t read these, you should definitely pick them up. You can read in any order since they are all stand alone books.
The Way it Should Be is a February 2021 release from Bethany House Publishers
I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book, all opinions are my own. This post contains affiliate links, see disclosures for more detail.
About the Book:
After years of estrangement, the lives of Zara Mahoney and her twin sister, Eve, are suddenly and completely intertwined again. Eve’s troubled lifestyle causes the state to take custody of her two children and contact Zara and her husband, asking them to consider foster care. Newlywed Zara thought she’d finally been given a fresh start and feels wholly unprepared to care for a niece and nephew whose existence she wasn’t even aware of.
Meanwhile, Eve may have a real chance to start over this time with the help of Tiff Bradley, who’s dedicated to helping women everyone else has given up on after facing a heartbreaking tragedy in her own family.
Over the course of one summer, all three women’s hearts and lives hang in the balance as Eve desperately works toward a new life. Can they redefine their expectations of how life should be to find the hope they–and those they love–so desperately need?
My Thoughts:
I gave this book 4 stars.
This is a wonderful, gut-wrenching book, but it’s everything I’ve come to expect from this author. She has a way of getting to the heart of some complicated issues and dealing with them with utter grace.
Themes of addiction and foster parenting are woven throughout the story, and as life is much more complicated than we want to imagine, the ending is hopeful, yet not tied up with a nice bow. I ached for Zara as she learned to be an “instant” parent to her niece and nephew, and I was alternately angry with and compassionate for Eve as she attempted to get her life back on track. After reading this book I understand more clearly that recovery from addiction needs to come from within, a person cannot want to heal for someone else or it will never be enough. Even though Eve deeply desires to be reunited with her children, the motivation for her recovery had to be about her, not about them. That’s a difficult thing for someone (like me) who has never dealt with addiction to reconcile.
There is a subtle yet pervasive faith message throughout the book, as the characters learn to rely on God for strength instead of themselves. I wonder if there will be a spin-off book, because there’s a definite cliffhanger moment towards the end. Overall, another beautiful book by Christina Suzann Nelson.
