The Promises She Keeps

Having read the books that Erin Healy co-authored with Ted Dekker, I was really looking forward to seeing how she writes on her own. I had not read her first book, so this was my first taste of the author apart from the work of Dekker. I did not go into this book expecting the same type of thriller by any means and as I read it my thoughts were confirmed. The story centers around Promise who has a terminal disease and wants to leave a legacy and be remembered long after her death. Enter Porta and her son Zack who, one way or another find ways to make the dream nearly impossible. Promise ends up befriending an autistic boy who's story is woven into her life in countless ways. The story itself is compelling and the premise is good....but the way the author chose to seemingly hint at redemption and leave it dangling was disappointing. I felt that there was a good build up to what would have been a great allegory for life and then the bottom fell out at the end. The authors research on Cystic Fibrosis and Autism was well done and accurate and the characters in the book drew you into their thoughts quite well. I only wish she had spent more time considering the ending and how it could relate to our everyday struggles.

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