2020 Book Review #10: Water From My Heart

This book!

Oh my goodness.  Susanne, my dear blogging friend, and host of the weekly Friday Fave Five exercise, is the one who first introduced me to this author.  I had never heard of him and I never see his books on the NY Times bestseller lists.  Which is weird because his books are very good!

I've read three of his novels so far and this is by far my favorite.  The genre is fiction or Christian fiction but the way he adds the spiritual twists is very subtle.  In other words, a non-Believer could read his books without being "preached" at.  The message is clear throughout most of his story, but it is subtle which I like and also.....it isn't a sappy read.  For some reason, many books labeled Christian fiction, just seem so sappy to me.  This one has a bit of romance, mystery, action/thriller, and lots of drama.  

STORY SUMMARY

Charlie Finn is alone in the world.  He's been on his own since he was a teenager and earned a scholarship to go to Harvard where he then earned an MBA.  However, he learned more out of the classroom than in it.  He has always been on the edge of society....particularly  privileged society. However, out in the real world, he learned how to take risks and take advantage of others and their vices/addictions.  It's a skill that served him well in the business world and it definitely served him well in the lucrative business of drug running off the coast of Miami, Florida and down into Central America. He has one close friend named Hack, an older man who taught him alot about life, fishing,  and the woodworking business.  He loves Hack but Hack is slowly dying.  His other close friend is Colin (a business partner and extremely wealthy) and his wife Marguerite and their children Zaul (17) and Maria (12).

Charlie has always kept his personal life separate from his business one.

But...one day those worlds collide and all of a sudden, life as he knows it, changes drastically.  He learns that the choices he has made has left devastating loss in dear friends.....horrible consequences for the few people on the earth whom he loves.

He is determined to make the wrongs, right.  This leads him to Costa Rica and Nicaragua.  It is there that he meets, in a rather coincidental manner, the beautiful woman named Leena (Paulina), a widow, and her adorable little girl Isabella.  He meets their dear friend...an  man named Paulo and their  old friend Roberto.  It is through these dear innocent people that he realizes he has a chance at redeeming his life. But.....

  Little do they know that he is one of the people responsible for their loss of the coffee plantation and all that followed.

Will he ever be able to love and forgive himself? Will he be given a new chance at life??  and love?

MY THOUGHTS

This is a powerful look at redemption, forgiveness, friendship, love and family.

It deals with  drug addiction, specifically cocaine. It also deals with child neglect,

abandonment, loose morals/ethics, and gambling. It deals with abject poverty and much wealth.  It also deals with tragedy, loss, death. It deals with parental permissiveness and what happens when teens have no boundaries put in place for them. 

A key element in this plot is the concept of hope.  

I loved the development of Charlie and his love for Leena.  Isabella is a little girl you will fall in love with.

There were 2 scenes that just made me tear up,  and then one scene that made me  scream!  I literally screamed aloud at one point when I thought a certain character was going to die.  This book keeps you turning the pages long after your bedtime light should be off.

I learned a great deal about Nicaragua and the people there.  I learned alot about the mudslides, and what happens to a community when their main means of employment is gone. 

I ended up just loving the character Zaul (Colin's teen son).  My heart broke for him because of all that he was dealing with and because of the relationship or lack thereof from his dad.

The ending is exquisite if not a bit predictable.  But it's so well done and left me with wanting more.

Here are some quotes from the book that really stood out to me:

"...when I first traveled to the States to study I was struck by how everyone I encountered spent their days working feverishly to make enough money to buy a better tomorrow.  Here, people are content---they buy what they need today and leave tomorrow to God....." (pg 144 Water From My Heart c. 2015)

" I love them without trying to change them. I look at their suffering, their hopelessness, and while I'd like to wave a wand and fix it, I can't, so I do what I can."  "Which is?" "Climb down in their misery and love them where they are...." (pg 155 Water From My Heart, c.2015)

"....if it's dark and you want light, you either need a source outside yourself or you need to get to one----because nothing resident in me lit that hole....." (pg 287 Water From My Heart, c.2015) 

 The very end of the book has author notes.  Read them!  It explains where he got the idea of the plot. 

In my opinion, this book is appropriate for ages 17 and older (due to some mature content).

On a scale of 1-10, with 10 being the highest, I rate this a 10.