What’s From This Moment all about?
Growing up in the foster care system, Jase Edgar always dreamed of one day starting his own family. But his fiancée’s untimely death shattered his plans. Moving to Kansas and serving as a youth minister should be a fresh start, but he can’t seem to set aside his doubts about God’s goodness long enough to embrace his new life.
Newly-appointed church custodian, Lori Fowler is battling her own challenges. Her strained relationship with her father and her struggles with overeating convince her she’s not worthy enough for love. When an Amish weaver enlists their help locating the owner of a ring found among the donated clothing she uses as fabric, Jase and Lori find themselves drawn to each other. But will they be able to release the past and move forward from this moment into a joyful future?
Kim Vogel Sawyer excels at writing touching stories! There’s so much to love about this book: the sweet-but-hurting characters; the gut-wrenching pain that so accurately mirrors real life; the way that Sawyer draws you into the story from the very first page; and the perfect blend of inner turmoil and exterior broken-world issues that both helps you ponder deep spiritual issues while also mourning the reality of the world in which we live. These elements all work together to craft a setting and cast of characters that live on beyond the turn of the last page.
Which is one thing I loved about this book: the characters. I really loved Kenzie’s sincerity, Lori’s desire to learn and improve, and Jase’s search for truth. The general kindness among the entire cast added to the community element of the story.
As much as I enjoyed this story, though, and basically read it in a single sitting because I didn’t want to put it down, I have found myself pondering the structure of the story ever since – I think because I liked Jase, Kenzie, and Lori too much not to think through it all again. What I’ve realized is that there are a few plot holes that make the story feel a bit off-balanced – not necessarily in the this-is-real-life way but in the I-hope-there’s-a-sequel-coming–because-too-much-was-left-undone–and-feels-wonky kind of way.
Sawyer wraps up the biggest named problems that the characters have, but with three main characters, the action toward the end is a bit uneven – and there is a plot hole that is still bugging me. I think a sequel that brings people back to this small Kansas church – or even home to Indiana with Kenzie but stays in touch with her friends – would do much towards resolving all of the conflict in this story. I feel like Kenzie got shorted, and I wanted to see more resolution for her – for her own problems, for her past, for an accurate description of the ring’s story.
Type A me has to point out that the Amazon description of this story isn’t exactly accurate. While it should be a vague summary, of course, it assigns information to the wrong characters and keeps the balance off.
All in all, I enjoyed the story that I read and the characters as they were written, no matter how incorrectly Amazon describes them.
From This Moment is the perfect story for those who love sweet characters and simple plots. If you’re wrestling with where God is in the midst of pain or how to handle complex interpersonal relationships, give this one a try.
I received a free copy of this book from the publisher. All opinions are my own.
Do you like when authors leave things a bit unresolved, or do you want everything wrapped up in neat packages? Let me know in the comments!
