Widow of Saunders Creek by Tracey Bateman
When the novel first arrived I was so excited, until I read the back cover and the first chapter a bedtime. I decided to lay the book down because I was not ready to handle demons and spirits. Depending on your spiritual upbringing, this could be a scary book.
It took me several weeks to try to tackle this book
again; and I'm so glad that I did. Not only is it a fast-paced mystery,
but also a touching love story. Throughout the book Tracey Bateman depicts two
opposing areas of spiritual beliefs present in the Missouri Ozarks. Through the
character of Eli and his mother, Bateman interjects Christian beliefs and
biblical proof that all spirits are not from God. The key character, Corrine,
is grieving the death of her husband, Jarrod. She moves into the old family
place that Jarrod had inherited. In a sad state of disrepair and need of much
work, Corrie is soon met with slamming doors, creaking swings, missed placed items,
and a strange feeling that there is someone else in the house. Jarrod's family
has mixed feelings about a non-family member moving into Granny's house. There
is much drama and a lot of personal interaction in the book. I finished reading
it in two days and when it ended I said aloud, "That really was a good
book!"
As a Christian, I know that Satan
does not have power over me. Demons may aggravate us and try to weaken our
trust in Jesus, but they cannot touch us without permission from God. (See Job
and Peter.) The Sovereign Almighty God uses all the circumstances in our lives
to help us grow and mature and to fully put our trust in Him. This is a good
book to instruct teenagers of the dangers when dabbling in the spirit world and
the occult. Read Ephesians 6 for your battle armor. 12 For we wrestle not
against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against
the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high
places.
This book was supplied by WaterBrook press for my review.
