Aloha Rose

This week, the Christian Fiction Blog Alliance is introducing Aloha Rose Abingdon Press (November 19, 2013) by Lisa Carter

MY THOUGHTS:
 I love to quilt and I love books about quilts! This is NOT a book about quilting, but a beautiful baby quilt plays a key role in the story.

Laney Carrigan knows nothing about her birth family except that she was left on a doorstep wrapped in a Hawaiian quilt by a friend of her adoptive mother. She has spent her life feeling abandoned and unwanted at the core, despite the love of her adoptive family. Now, at the  prompting of her birth father, she flies hours away to Hawaii to meet the family of her heritage.

In the process she meets Kai, an adult who was a foster child in her Hawaiian family. He suffers PTSD from his time in Afghanistan and from a terrible childhood trauma. 

The story evolves as these two, who feel like 'stray cats' in the world, learn about their pasts, seek to heal their wounds, and try to fit into an 'ohana' family.

This is part of the Quilts of Love series published by Abingdon Press. The series has been well written and includes fascinating 'back stories' of quilts. Aloha Rose includes fabulous scenic descriptions of the 'big island' of Hawaii and it almost feels like a vacation with a loving Hawaiian family. It is a great, fun read.



ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

A word from the author:

I am a wife and mother. My husband and I have two daughters and make our home in the beautiful state of North Carolina.

I am a teacher. With a Master’s degree in history, I have taught at the university, high school and middle school levels. After years of church involvement as a soloist, choir member and worship leader, I also teach music.

I am a writer. Delighted by the rhythm and musicality of words, I have been writing since childhood. In 2001, I won the Mothers of Preschoolers (MOPS) Story Writing Contest that re-ignited a lifelong love of writing.

I am on a journey of faith. My ultimate desire through my life and my writing is to proclaim the truth of God’s Word, His redeeming love as seen in the life of Jesus Christ and to help others know for themselves this great, awesome God of all comfort and wisdom. He is enough for every need.

ABOUT THE BOOK

When Laney Carrigan sets out to find her birth family, her only clue is the Hawaiian quilt—a red rose snowflake appliquéd on a white background—in which she was found wrapped as an infant. Centering her search on the Big Island and battling fears of rejection, Laney begins a painstaking journey toward her true heritage. Kai Barnes, however, is determined to protect the people he’s come to regard as family. He thinks Laney is nothing more than a gold digger and blocks every move she makes toward her Hawaiian family. As their conflict escalates, it puts at risk the one thing that Kai and Laney both want most—a family.

If you would like to read the first chapter of Aloha Rose, go HERE.

Thanks to Abingdon Press for providing a copy of the book for this review!