Book Review: John Ward and Rene Gutteridge’s Heart of the Country
I love a good redemption story and I’m always game when I see a book with Rene Gutteridge’s name on it. She’s a skilled novelist in that she can write amazing drama and yet pen a delicious comedy with heart, too.
Heart of the Country leans to the dramatic and reading the interview John Ward gave Rene, Heart of the Country is a screenplay adapted to a novel. I don’t believe that’s common and it was fun reading how this came to be.
Faith and Luke Carraway have it all. Faith is a beautiful singer turned socialite while Luke is an up-and-coming successful businessman. After taking his inheritance from his father’s stable, lucrative business to invest in a successful hedge fund with the Michov Brothers, he’s on the fast track as a rising young executive, and Faith is settling comfortably into her role as his wife.
When rumors of the Michovs’ involvement in a Ponzi scheme reach Faith, she turns to Luke for confirmation, and he assures her that all is well. But when Luke is arrested, Faith can’t understand why he would lie to her, and she runs home to the farm and the family she turned her back on years ago. Meanwhile, Luke is forced to turn to his own family for help as he desperately tries to untangle himself from his mistakes. Can two prodigals return to families they abandoned, and will those families find the grace to forgive and forget? Will a marriage survive betrayal when there is nowhere else to run but home?
This is a good family story, exploring the complicated dynamics families have. Faith’s family is still reeling from her mother’s death, and each character has a rich story because of that. Even secondary characters not related to Faith had a good backstory thanks to Catherine, Faith’s mother.
Luke’s family at first glance might seem like the typical Kennedy wealth kind of family, but they have a story with meaning, too. I would have liked to have seen even more depth with the Carraway family, the reasons why they did what they did, I wanted more both in Luke’s choices in the beginning, and the entire family at the end. I definitely was left wanting more.
Rene took a courageous step in writing this by have multiple points of view in the first person. At first I struggled keeping track of who was who as the story kicks off in the middle of action. I hope readers stick with it, it isn’t done often, but I think it was done well. I give her credit for doing it this way. Again, it gives more dimension to the family members.
This was a pretty fast read for me and a great way to spend a chilly evening, a rainy day, or like me, time in the waiting room while my car was in the shop. I think there was potential for some characters and situations, especially on the Carraway side to be drawn out, but still, worth reading.
There is a contest for Heart of the Country readers. If you buy the ebook for $2.99, you will get a code that will allow you to enter the ‘Star for a Day’ contest. Go for it!
To purchase Heart of the Country, click here.
I received a NetGalley read from Tyndale in exchange for an honest review.
