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Chautona Havig

Chautona Havig

Using story to connect YOU to the Master Storyteller

Why Sometimes Awful Books Are the Best

by Chautona Havig · 10 Comments

Have you ever noticed how legal novels tend to have black, gray, and red covers?  Sometimes dark browns and golds. Sometimes dark blues. But seriously, though. I went looking on Amazon to see, and almost all of them were either some version of black and red or browns and golds.

I think that’s probably why the book stood out to me.  With dark to almost aqua blues and bold splashes of yellow in crisp, vivid colors, the cover spoke to me.  The title drew me in.  Delayed Justice. I mean, honestly.  Isn’t that what all justice is?

So, with everything going for it except an unfamiliar author, and they often tend to become very familiar once I’ve read a book or two—ahem—I decided to request a review copy.

It arrived months before the tour would begin.  I had plenty of time to read.  Plenty.

Then life threw me a curveball with an unexpected surgery. It took a few days to recuperate, but I was back on track. Curveball two hit—an unexpected trip to Oklahoma. And the hits just kept on coming.

So, I woke up this morning to a friendly reminder that my review was due. Tomorrow.

Fortunately, I’d planned for this (thank you, Lord, for my editorial calendar!).  But, that reminder got me reading a bit earlier.  I don’t know why.

Then it happened.  My daughter walked into the room. “Is it a good story?” (note: she didn’t ask if it was a good book).

“It’s a horrible story—amazing book.”

I think she walked away confused. I can’t be sure. You see, I was lost in the pages again.

Why Sometimes Awful Books Are the Best

Note: links are likely affiliate links. Additionally, I requested a review copy of this book. I chose to review it and here it is.

Why Sometimes Awful Books Are the Best

I’d never read anything by Cara Putman before Delayed Justice. Never fear. I’ll remedy that forthwith.

Look, there’s no way I’ll ever say this is a “good story.”  It’s not. It’s a horrible story that far too many boys and girls in the world can echo. It’s horrible and awful, and I hate that the need to write it exists.

Every bit of me wanted to throw it across the room as I read. But there was one problem.

I couldn’t stop turning the pages to pause long enough to aim.

It’s that good. It’s that awfully good.  Ms. Putman takes the horrible reality of child abuse and lays it out with no holds barred.

And yet she did—she held back exactly where she should. Not many authors know that delicate balance between dangling you over the cesspool of life so you are fully aware of its existence and the reason we’re to fight it without at least dipping a small toe into it.

Cara Putman didn’t.  Not even once.

We lived the horror with young Jamie without actually seeing or hearing anything too graphic.  We knew it was—we knew.  But with skillful writing and the brilliant use of subtext, we got a full picture without ever once having the veil of discretion raised.

Even if I didn’t like the characters, the description, the setting—the rest of the plot!  Even if I hated the rest of the book, I swear I’d have given her five stars just for that.

Look, when I realized that she was going to take us into the heart and mind of misused children, I didn’t know if I could take it. I can handle a lot, but sexual crimes are my personal line.  It’s just… I can’t.

Don’t get me wrong.  I’m throwing a caveat out here. If abuse is a trigger for you, be warned.  You may have trauma reading this book.  I expected to close it and respectfully bow out of my commitment or skim anything remotely related to Jamie’s case.

It absolutely wasn’t necessary.

Were the characters great?  Yep.  For once, you have two broken people—one not ready to trust a romantic interest.  The other just barely ready to consider it.  Both navigated the change naturally and without instant changes of heart just because of hormones.  That alone should win Putman some sort of award.  I’ll nominate her for anything just for that alone.

But her descriptions.  Wow. She writes descriptions I love to read—just enough to let me see what’s going on and no more. I wasn’t overpowered by lengthy details about every knickknack on every shelf in every room as if she’d taken writing lessons from Dickens.

Thank you, Ms. Putman!

Instead, I learned about each character by what she did share… and each character was so raw and real I felt like I’d met them before.  Characterization—spot on.

Her writing style engages the senses and emotions exactly as it should. Only once (and remember, I read an advance reader copy, so it was likely corrected) did I find a couple of paragraphs where I wanted to say, “Okay… does every sentence need to start with ‘she’?”  That’s it.  That’s the only objection I had in the whole book.

Even the “conversion prayer” didn’t bug me like so many do. This wasn’t some Sunday school paper contrived tale. It was a realistic, reasonable moment that required prayer.

Score one for reality.

Frankly, I recommend this book to anyone—with a reminder of its content.  This is a hard-hitting book about topics that shouldn’t even exist!  And it’s handled with skill, sensitivity, and authenticity. Bravo.

Yeah. Sometimes awful books about terrible things are the best—at least when the author knows how to make sure we see the evil without being steeped in it.

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Comments

  1. Cara Putman says

    October 10, 2018 at 11:55 am

    I am humbled and blown away by your review. WOW! Thank you for reading my book. And thank you for capturing the heart of the book. Most of all thanks for loving my characters and writing. Wow!

    Reply
    • Chautona Havig says

      October 10, 2018 at 4:34 pm

      It was an honor to read your book. I’m dying to start with the first now, but I have a few more reviews and manuscripts due, first. 😀

      Reply
  2. Paula Shreckhise says

    October 9, 2018 at 12:09 pm

    I love your reviews. You tell it like it is! I have been looking forward to reading this book. I’m reading #1 right now. Thanks!

    Reply
    • Chautona Havig says

      October 9, 2018 at 1:11 pm

      I think you’ll really enjoy this. I’m going to go back and read the others now. This reads as a stand-alone, but I can tell there are other stories there. She does that better than most.

      Reply
  3. maggie kaz says

    October 9, 2018 at 10:07 am

    Wonderful review about an awful subject. I would recommend it too.

    Reply
    • Chautona Havig says

      October 9, 2018 at 1:11 pm

      Really love it.

      Reply
  4. Pamela Baier says

    October 9, 2018 at 9:03 am

    I love your reviews. Even if the book doesn’t seem like it is one I would like to read, you make them so intriguing I want to get them. It sounds like this is a hard book. They take me forever to read as I have to take a break sometimes. I am putting this on my TBR link. Thanks!

    Reply
    • Chautona Havig says

      October 9, 2018 at 1:15 pm

      Compared to most, I didn’t have to put this one down because of how well she handled it. 🙂

      Reply
  5. Lila Diller says

    October 9, 2018 at 6:40 am

    Thank you so much for a wonderfully written review! I always love reading your reviews, because they’re as good as another story. 🙂

    “Both navigated the change naturally and without instant changes of heart just because of hormones. That alone should win Putman some sort of award.” I heartily agree! I’m so sick of hormones and looks being the main reason two characters “fall in love.” So thankful to see that there are still Christian authors trying to buck that trend.

    Reply
    • Chautona Havig says

      October 9, 2018 at 1:13 pm

      Right? In this one, when he noted her beauty (to himself) it was more because he learned something about her because of it and it made an impact on him.

      Reply

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Episode 164: A Chat with Christian Fantasy Author, Ernest Yip
byChautona Havig

When I talked to Ernest Yip last month, I was crazy excited to learn about his fantasy novel, The Shattered King, an allegory about the attributes of God. Ernest talks about his inspiration, how he got started, and what’s coming next for us. I loved hearing more about the story and my copy is on its way to me now. EEEP! Listen in to learn more.

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Experience the Attributes of God in a Whole New Way

In the tradition of Pilgrim’s Progress or the parables of Jesus, Ernest Yip brings us a story that introduces to a King like no other through the various attributes our main character meets through out the book. I love a good allegory, and listening to Ernest talk about his book had me choming at the bit to get started.

Though written for teens, The Shattered King is sure to appeal to anyone who loves fantasy and adventure. I especially love how it is a great introduction to who God is without being a heavy or preachy tome of apologetics. Instead, we’re taken on an adventure to discover it all for ourselves.

I can’t wait to see what Yip does next!

The Shattered King by Ernest Yip

Finding his way home means finding something else first—someone else.

When a dark force shatters the benevolent and mighty king Eloa, the land of Astrea lies broken and dying. Though Eloa lives, he is a shadow of his true self, unable to restore his kingdom unless he is reunited with the living Fragments of his being and made whole again.

Catapulted into this unfamiliar world and gifted with a magical sword, teenager Jax faces the ultimate test—finding the lost Fragments of Eloa. Only by fulfilling this quest will he be able to return home. But there are new forces in power, forces that will do whatever it takes to thwart Jax’s efforts and defeat Eloa.

But Jax will soon find that Eloa is no ordinary king, and neither are his Fragments—

A creator of living stone beings A father of orphans in a storm-filled land A desert warrior of limitless power

And they aren’t the only ones out there…

Encounter the Fragments of The Shattered King, a tale of danger and discovery that explores timeless truths about the world we live in, where justice and mercy are sometimes the most powerful weapons.

You can find out more about Ernest from his WEBSITE.

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