Book Review: {Coming Home} by Karen Kingsbury

About the book:
Coming Home is a novel about tremendous victory and unprecedented loss, a story of faith and a forever kind of love, love that will stay with you long after the last page. This stand-alone novel will serve as either a grand introduction or a beautiful conclusion in the saga of the Baxter Family. The Baxters make plans to come together for a summer lakeside reunion, a celebration like they haven't had in years. But before the big day, the unthinkable happens. As the Baxter Family rallies together, memories come to light in the grief-stricken hours of waiting and praying, memories that bring healing and hope during a time when otherwise darkness might have the final word. In a season that changes all of them, the brilliance of family love overshadows even the valley of heartache as the Baxters draw closer to God and each other. Along the way, secrets are revealed and the truth about the Baxter Family history is finally made known. Ultimately, in this portrait of family love, the Baxters cling to each other and to God's promise of forever.

My Star Rating: 3 Stars

My Review:
Since the Redemption series by Karen Kingsbury is one of my favorites, I thought it would be only fitting to read the conclusion of the Baxter family saga. I originally hadn't planned on reading it, but thought I'd go ahead and give it a go.

The first nine chapters catch everyone up to speed on the lives of the Baxter family, up to the point where they are coming together to celebrate their father's 70th birthday. I appreciated the "refresher" of the previous books, and I found myself saying, "Oh yeah, I remember that. That was a really good story!" For those that haven't read the other Baxter books, I can see where this would be really helpful, so you don't feel so lost with the characters. BUT, if you haven't read the Redemption series, I highly recommend you at least read that series first, so there aren't any spoilers for you, if you do plan on reading that series. It's a GREAT series (my personal favorite of all of Karen's books!).

I didn't have any idea of what would happen in the book, but as the story progressed, things did take a turn that I wasn't really expecting. The Baxter family is faced with an unimaginable tragedy, and through it all the Baxter's faith is tested. The family takes a pretty big hit, and we get to see the family work out their faith as they question God.

Is the story completely realistic? No. Is the reader able to glean some biblical truth and insight from the story? Yes.

While I didn't love this book as much as the first books, I did like it, and thought that is was good. It held my interest, and even brought a few tears. While not Karen's best work, it's worth reading.