Karen Kingsbury has a talent for writing memorable Christian fiction that is deeply meaningful. I've read all her books and have gotten a lot out of them--especially the Redemption series. I have to say, Shades of Blue moved me more than anything she's written.
Brad is a twenty-eight year old man with a great career and a wonderful fiancee, Laura. Their wedding is set for 5 weeks away. Brad and Laura are serious Christians who have refrained from relations, waiting for their wedding day. Brad has let Laura believe that he is a virgin as she is. But he has a dark secret in his past that troubles him more and more as their wedding approaches.
Ten years earlier, Brad had made a terrible decision that is very much on his conscience. He and his childhood sweatheart Emma allowed their passion to overcome all their good intentions, and Emma became pregnant. Brad and she were 18, just ready to start college. When Emma told Brad they were going to have a baby, his reaction was not at all what she expected. He was stunned and dismayed at the news, and saw this as something that would ruin both their futures. He simply didn't have the courage and character to face the consequences of fathering a baby. He pushed Emma to have an abortion. Not wanting this, but so afraid of losing Brad, she reluctantly went through with the abortion. Afterward, Brad's love for Emma and his religious convictions couldn't withstand the tension over what they had done. His feelings for her changed and he just wanted to get away from her and forget what had happened.
Over the next ten years, Brad has managed to bury the experience deep in his memory. He has matured in his Christianity and fallen deeply in love with Laura, a devoted Christian who loves Brad completely. Now as the wedding is so close, Brad's conscience is bothering him so much that he realizes he cannot marry until he has gone to see Emma to apologize for everything he did and didn't do in the past. In the meantime, Brad's fiancee Laura has become very concerned that Brad might be getting cold feet, because he seems to be growing distant as the date nears. Brad finally tells Laura about his past and his decision to go see Emma and make his apology in person.
I won't go further into the story and spoil it for anyone. Suffice to say that Brad, Emma, and Laura are all suffering greatly as Brad heads back to his childhood home to look up Emma. Brad is overcome by guilt about the way he forced Emma to kill their unborn child, then abandoned her. Emma has become a first-grade teacher who has let her sorrow and guilt ruin her life. Laura is despondent that Brad misled her and now might be drawn back to a relationship with his first love.
Kingsbury delves deeply into the souls of these people as she tells the story. The dialog is believable. The sharing of feelings is so powerful that I seemed to see inside each character in turn. The recounting of the abortion itself was so realistic that I actually felt the anguish and terror of Emma's experience.
I don't think any reader could close this book unscathed. It made me realize how serious the consequences are when we knowingly go against God's will. One decision can change a person's life, and of course, one decision can take a life before a baby ever gets the chance to be born.
Karen Kingsbury courageously took on a hugely difficult and controversial subject, and she did it masterfully. I hope many, many young people read this book. In fact, I hope EVERYONE reads it. It is a masterpiece of Christian fiction.
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About the Author
Karen Kingsbury, #1 New York Times bestselling novelist, is America’s favorite inspirational storyteller, with more than twenty-five million copies of her award-winning books in print. Her last dozen titles have topped bestseller lists and many of her novels are under development with Hallmark Films and as major motion pictures. Her Baxter Family books are being developed into a TV series slated for major network viewing sometime in the next year. Karen is also an adjunct professor of writing at Liberty University. In 2001 she and her husband, Don, adopted three boys from Haiti, doubling their family in a matter of months. Today the couple has joined the ranks of empty-nesters, living in Tennessee near five of their adult children.
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