Isle of Books: Sunrise on the Battery by Beth Webb Hart (Review)

Wednesday, January 30, 2013

Sunrise on the Battery by Beth Webb Hart (Review)

She wanted her husband to attend the town's society-driven church. God answered her prayer in a radical way.

An emptiness dogs Mary Lynn Scoville. But it shouldn't.

After all, she's achieved what few believed possible. Born in the rural south, she has reached the pinnacle of worldly success in Charleston, South Carolina. Married to a handsome real estate developer and mother to three accomplished daughters, Mary Lynn is one Debutante Society invitation away from truly having it all.

And yet, it remains--an emptiness that no shopping trip, European vacation, or social calendar can fill.

When a surprise encounter leads her to newfound faith, Mary Lynn longs to share it with her husband. But Jackson wrote God off long ago.

Mary Lynn prays for him on Christmas Eve . . . and her husband undergoes a life-altering Damascus Road experience. As Jackson begins to take the implications of the Gospel literally, Mary Lynn feels increasingly isolated from her husband . . . and betrayed by God. She only wanted Jackson beside her at church on Sunday mornings, not some Jesus freak who evangelizes prostitutes and invites the homeless to tea.

While her husband commits social suicide and the life they worked so hard for crumbles around them, Mary Lynn wonders if their marriage can survive. Or if perhaps there really is a more abundant life that Jackson has discovered, richer than any she's ever dreamed of.

I GIVE THIS BOOK:

MY THOUGHTS:

Mary Lynn prays for her husband to believe, but when he does and starts to implement changes in their lives she wished she never had prayed for it.

Jackson, Mary Lynn's husband, at first rules the family with a firm hand with no give. He very much cares what everyone thinks about the family and tries to keep up with the Joneses. However, when he starts to believe he goes to the other extreme of not caring and being too lenient with his children. There didn't seem to be any balance.

Catherine is their teenage daughter. She's so stressed by her dad's pushing her to excel in school that she has started to abuse over-the-counter medicine. When Jackson is convicted he is radically different. Now instead of pushing his children with their work he only wants them to be happy. I personally didn't find it believable how he went from caring so much about their education, to not caring at all.

I like when a book is able to draw me in and I am completely engrossed in the story. However, that did not happen with this book. In fact, at times the story was downright dull and at those times it was a struggle to continue reading it.

I didn't connect with any of the characters and found a lot of them to be annoying, but I think Mary Lynn was the worst of the bunch. With most books my complaint seems to be that the story ended too soon, but with this one I felt as though I was reading forever - it just went on and on. I was very glad when I reached the end. I personally would not recommend this book.

***I received a complimentary copy of this book to review. I was asked to give my honest opinion of the book - which I have done.***

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