Book Review: Sins of the Mother by Victoria Christopher Murray

Sins of the Mother by Victoria Christopher Murray

Publisher: Touchstone

Publish Date: June 1, 2010

Paperback, 400 pages

My Review:
I'm not sure where to start with this book review, Sins of the Mother is a powerful book that provokes a lot of feelings through the book.  The main thing I had a hard time with was I didn't like Jasmine, but I really liked the book.  I know you might wonder - how do you like a book and not like one of the main characters?  Well, the truth is even though I did not like or truly approve of Jasmine, there were things about her I could relate to.  I can only imagine how it feels to have a child go missing and Jasmine's motherly love shows through even when other moral issues rise up.  I do feel relieved at the end to read the interview questions with the author, Victoria Christopher Murray and find that she doesn't really like the character, Jasmine either. 

This is not Ms. Murray's first book with Jasmine - she is featured in several earlier books.  I can see where reading the earlier books would help the reader understand Jasmine and her past more, I don't feel the books are necessary for you to be able to read Sins of the Mother.  I have checked out the first book, Temptation since I started reading Sins of the Mother.  I may not like Jasmine but I am intrigued by her and after reading Sins of the Mother, I know I like Victoria Christopher Murray's writing.  She tells a story well and will keep you engrossed from the first page to the last.  I also like how real her characters feel.  They are everyday people (even the TV preacher, Hosea, Jasmine's husband) fighting everyday temptations and feelings. 

I liked the side-story of Alexis and Brian, it meshed with the main story very well.  These characters were also in an earlier book and Brian is Jaqueline's father. They played an interesting role and I enjoyed watching their interplay to take away from the tension of what was going on in New York with the missing daughter.

If you are expecting Christian fiction, you will get it in a way, but I don't consider this to be straight Christian fiction.  This is the newer Christian fiction, it's more mainstream. There is a message and it comes through loud and clear, but the story line and some of the situation are a little rawer than straight Christian fiction.  There is no bad language, but there are sexual situations that occur, they are not detailed, but they are there - so be warned if that is something that will offend you.  It fits with the story and doesn't seem gratuitous.

Overall, I thought this was a very good book.  I went through the gamut of emotions with this one and could not stop turning the pages.  I am impressed with my first outing with Victoria Christopher Murray.  Take a chance with this one, I don't think you will be disappointed.

My Rating:  4.5/5.0

About the Book:
Have the sins of the mother come upon the daughter? Jasmine Larson Bush is finally living a drama-free life. She’s left her lying, cheating, stealing stripper days behind and is standing by her husband’s side as the first lady of one of the largest churches in New York City. The Bushes have been blessed with the best of everything—including two lovely children.

But just when Jasmine has committed her life completely to God, her daughter Jacqueline is kidnapped from a mall the day after Thanksgiving. The police and the church community join in the frantic search to find the four-year-old. As the days pass without any sign of her daughter, Jasmine begins to crack under the strain and turns to Brian Lewis, Jacqueline’s biological father, for solace.

Has Jasmine’s past finally caught up to her? Will her daughter be found or will Jasmine pay the ultimate price?

About the Author:
Victoria Christopher Murray is the Essence bestselling author of the novels Truth Be Told, Joy, and Temptation. Visit her at www.victoriachristophermurray.com. She lives with her family in Inglewood, California.

For more information see my FIRST Wild Card Tour post.

FTC Information: I received this book from Mallika Dattatreya and Ashley Hewlett of Touchstone/Fireside Publicity Simon & Schuster, Inc. for FIRST Wild Card Tours for review.  I have Amazon links on my review pages but I do not make any money from these because of NC laws.  I put them solely for people to check out the books on a retail site.