Mallory Hammond is determined that no one will stand in the way of her goal—to save a life. She had that chance years ago, and she failed to take it, leaving her adrift and in search of the real meaning of her life. Finally, she meets a man online from a volatile corner of the world who offers her the chance to find that purpose. But she will have to leave everyone she loves behind in order to take it.That Beth Wiseman could write a story that I could adamantly dislike and yet not get out of my head is a mark of her talent.
In any genre, I want to read about one basic type of lead character: someone likeable with a fatal flaw who must learn to overcome this big issue in whatever way possible.
Mallory doesn’t fit either of those qualifications. Firstly, I did not like her, and that for a few simple reasons. Mallory isn’t completely honest. She isn’t honest with herself or with her boyfriend about her faith – or lack thereof. She doesn’t understand it, and she really tries to sweep it under the rug and not deal with it. This is a believable issue, and would make a great story in itself, except this was only a subplot to the real one. It’s never fully developed. Mallory has some sort of history with her family and a tenuous relationship with them, and while part of it is explained, much of it is not. Fleshing this out more would have made many of her actions more realistic, because finally, Mallory is described as smart, only she isn’t. She’s naïve, innocent, crazy, an easy mark. She may be intelligent book-wise, but she isn’t wise – she doesn’t listen to sage advice, do research, or try to determine possible consequences when faced with a major decision. She has the kind of false security that most of us Americans have, only we’re never called on it. Being called to the carpet on this issue is what moves the story along – but it only made me angry with her for her continued blindness, and if not for this review, I would have put the book down.
While the pull between Islam and Christianity is a driving force in this story, I didn’t find Mallory’s faith journey credible. She based a major life decision on a desire and a Bible verse shared by her Islamic friend – and Mallory didn’t understand the scripture. Neither did she try to find out (and it didn’t exactly fit). She researched Islam, she befriended Islam, she read the Qur’an, and she took her ties to her Islamic friends more seriously than those of her Christian ones; yet in a crisis, suddenly she had a Christian revelation. Could God work this way? Totally. Did it feel real? Not to me. Having a searching Mallory explore both faiths would have felt more realistic to me, as well as possibly answering questions for believing and non-believing readers on their own faith journeys.
Both Mallory and her boyfriend and her Islamic boss and his girlfriend had serious physical relationships. While the details were not spelled out in the book, this undermined the Christian’s credibility and was not redeemed in the story. It put the devout Islam, the devout Christian, and the two lukewarm people all on the same playing field, and there was no redemption for this issue within the story. I have no problem reading about physical relationships, if handled well; it’s rampant within our culture and needs to be addressed, however, in was not dealt with in The Promise. It left me with the feeling that there was nothing wrong, and that’s certainly not a message I agree with.
Sexual relationships before marriage were not my only cultural issue in The Promise. A marital arrangement, legal only, with a quick divorce following is an action that a character intends to take. Since this character is not a person of faith – and does have humanistic, helpful intentions – it is oddly logical; however, the few faithful people in the story raise no objections to the morality of the divorce or discuss the sanctity of marriage. Both are taken lightly in American culture, but I see no reason for Christians to do the same. Again, had a character raised concerns, not only to the location of the marriage, but to the morality of the divorce, it would have added another layer and important depth to the story.
The Promise sheds light on an American-Islamic problem: immigration by devious methods. Wiseman shares that Islamic (Pakistani) men are trying to trick American women into marrying them to pave the path for their visas to be issued to gain passage onto American soil. This is something I know nothing about, and so if it is the big issue that Wiseman implies, then it most certainly must become known. Books can be great vehicles for social change, or at least social awareness. I don’t know what Wiseman’s motivation was in writing this story: if it was to wake up Americans to an international problem, then it succeeds. The immigration issue was well developed, and marriage laws in Pakistan were described, but I think that going deeper into Sharia law would have made the danger more explosive and the plight of Pakistani women more clear.
I have read many of Wiseman’s books. I loved the first few Amish ones that I read, and the most recent contemporary fiction story did a fabulous job of making me connect to the main character (something I missed in this book). Like all of Wiseman’s work, The Promise is well written with smooth transitions, a great vocabulary, and clear descriptions. This is the first that I have adamantly disliked, and yet I can see purpose in it. The Promise is quite provocative about all of these issues: marriage laws, the sanctity of marriage, abuse within marriage, how to handle money, interfaith friendships, and organ donation, just to name a few. There is much food for thought within these pages, and so I can see a book club having much to discuss after reading this story.
So – will you read it?
is the best-selling author of the Daughters of the Promise series and the Land of Canaan series. Having sold over 1.3 million books, her novels have held spots on multiple Bestseller lists. She was the recipient of the prestigious Carol Award in 2011 and 2013. In 2013 she took home 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 lives in Texas with her family.
In one life-changing moment, the lives of the Jewish exiles in Babylon are thrown into confusion and despair when a decree arrives from the king’s palace in Susa. It calls for the annihilation of every Jewish man, woman, and child throughout the empire on the thirteenth day of Adar, in less than one year. Ezra, a quiet Jewish scholar and teacher, is suddenly called upon to lead the community as they seek God for a reason for this catastrophe. When a second decree arrives, authorizing them to fight back, Ezra is thrust into the role of military leader as they defend themselves against their enemies.
About the Author: 
Yearning for a fresh start, Ewan McKay travels with his aunt and uncle from northern Scotland to West Virginia, promising to trade his skills in the clay business for financial assistance from his uncle Hugh. Hugh purchases a brickmaking operation from a Civil War widow and her daughter, but it’s Ewan who gets the business up and running again. Ewan seeks help from Laura, the former owner’s daughter, and he feels a connection with her, but she’s being courted by another man—a lawyer with far more social clout and money than Ewan. Besides, Ewan has resolved he’ll focus on making the brickmaking operation enough of a success that he can become a partner in the business and be able to afford to bring his sisters over from Scotland.
Kylie Wilde is the youngest sister—and the most civilized. Her older sisters might be happy dressing in trousers and posing as men, but Kylie has grown her hair long and wears skirts every chance she gets. It’s a risk—they are homesteading using the special exemptions they earned serving in the Civil War as “boys”—but Kylie plans to make the most of the years before she can sell her property and return to the luxuries of life back East.
Mary Connealy writes fun and lively “romantic comedy with cowboys” for the inspirational market. She is the author of the successful Kincaid Brides, Lassoed in Texas, Montana Marriages, and Sophie’s Daughters series, and she has been a finalist for a Rita and Christy Award and a two time winner of the Carol Award. She lives on a ranch in eastern Nebraska with her husband, Ivan, and has four grown daughters.
Bess Riehl is preparing Rose Hill Farm for her Christmas wedding, but her groom isn’t who she thought it would be. Billy Lapp is far away from his Amish roots working as a rose rustler for Penn State and wants nothing to do with Stoney Ridge, his family, or Bess. And that suits Bess just fine. Why should she think twice about a man who left without a word, without any explanation? It’s time she moved on with her life, and that meant saying yes to Amos Lapp, Billy’s cousin and best friend. But as Bess and Amos’s wedding day draws near, her emotions tangle into a tight knot. She loves Amos. Yet she can’t forget Billy.
Suzanne Woods Fisher 
Bold, sophisticated, and coy, Army Air Force flight nurse Lt. Kay Jobson collects hearts wherever she flies, leaving men pining in airfields all across Europe. So how can ruggedly handsome C-47 pilot Lt. Roger Cooper be all but immune to her considerable charms? In fact, he seems to do everything he can to avoid her.
