Tate Webber has loved Mallory for years. He understands that Mallory will never be happy with him until her deepest heart's desire is satisfied. When Mallory decides to travel across the world to fulfill her dreams, Tate begs her not to go but tries to give her the space she needs. Mallory embarks on her dangerous journey only to discover how swiftly and easily promises can be broken. And Mallory can only pray that she will make it out alive.
Inspired by actual events, The Promise is a riveting love story that asks the question: how far will we go for love?
My Thoughts:
Wow. Just Wow.
I have to admit, my feelings about this book changed a couple times as I was reading it. I went from wanting to put it down without finishing it, to mildly interested in the plot, to completed riveted and unable to turn the pages quickly enough.
The beginning of this story has four main characters: two devout Muslims, a devout Catholic, and a girl who calls herself a Christian simply because she grew up with parents who said they were Christian. As this story kicked off and we started getting into the characters, I honestly though I had someone gotten myself into a Muslim fiction book rather than a Christian fiction one. There was so much background and information about the Muslim faith. I almost felt like the author was trying to convert me.
But things started to happen and I realized that a lot of that information about different faiths was to prepare us for the culture of the story once Mallory took her journey. It is hard to talk a lot about Mallory's journey without completely giving away the entire story line. But once Mallory arrived at her destination - with good faith and good intentions to help a child - it was obvious that she had gotten herself into a heap of trouble, and I wondered if this story would even have a good ending.
I'm not going to tell you if the ending was good or bad. I am going to tell you that Mallory was the one who just casually called herself a Christian. But once she was placed in circumstances that had her fighting to survive, she realized that God comes through for those who simply put their faith in him and ask.
Mallory learned to pray very quickly, and she quickly realized that God was answering prayers in some of the most unusual ways. While her initial reason for her journey was completely lost, God put another life in front of Mallory for her to save. Several events in the last chapters of this story proved to Mallory that God is real, and he really loves us and wants us to lean on him.
This book is worth the read. Yes it starts slow, but I insist that you pick it up, make yourself stick with it through the slow stuff, and then you will love it!
Beth Wiseman is the best-selling author of the Daughters of the Promise
series and the Land of Canaan series. Her books have held
spots on the ECPA (Evangelical Christian Publishers Association) Bestseller
List and the CBA (Christian Book Association) Bestseller List. She was a
recipient of the prestigious Carol Award in 2011 and 2013, three-time winner of
the Inspirational Readers Choice Award, INSPY Award winner, and recipient of
the coveted HOLT Medallion. Her first book in the Land of Canaan series—Seek Me With All Your Heart—was
selected as the 2011 Women of Faith Book of the Year. Beth is contracted with
HarperCollins Christian Publishing into the year 2015, and she has completed
twelve novels and seven novellas to date.
Beth and her husband are empty nesters enjoying the country
life in Texas with two dogs, two cats, four goats, two potbellied pigs, and a
dozen chickens. When she’s not writing, she loves to travel, paint, and enjoy
time with friends and family. You can find Beth at Fans of Beth Wiseman on
Facebook where she interacts with
readers.