I just finished reading this book, and want to share with my readers what a wonderful read it was! Quite honestly, I had picked it up and started reading it several times, before I "got into" it. That doesn't necessarily mean anything, it may have just been me...seeing as how I hadn't read a novel in a very long time and was distracted by little things, (like my life), along the way. I can assure you though, that it is well worth taking the time to be so mesmerized by and immersed in this story, that you literally can't put it down. That's what happened to me last night.
Here is the synopsis of the book:
Mercy Land has made some unexpected choices for a young woman in the 1930s. The sheltered daughter of a traveling preacher, she chooses to leave her rural community to move to nearby Bay City on the warm, gulf-waters of southern Alabama. There she finds a job at the local paper and spends seven years making herself indispensable to old Doc Philips, the publisher and editor. Then she gets a frantic call at dawn—it’s the biggest news story of her life, and she can’t print a word of it.
Doc has come into possession of a curious book that maps the lives of everyone in Bay City—decisions they’ve made in the past, and how those choices affect the future. Mercy and Doc are consumed by the mystery locked between the pages—Doc because he hopes to right a very old wrong, and Mercy because she wants to fulfill the book’s strange purpose. But when a mystery from Mercy’s past arrives by train, she begins to understand that she will have to make choices that will deeply affect everyone she loves—forever.
Mercy Land is not a place, (as I had first thought from the title), but a person. She was born (quite literally) on the banks of Bittersweet Creek during a lightning storm. What an exciting way to come into the world! She has fond memories of her childhood friend, "Tommy Taylor" and their endless days of playing along those same banks where she was born. She was brought up by her father the preacher, her mother and "Aunt Ida," who was
influential in helping her make some of the choices and decisions that would ultimately affect who she would become and what paths her life would take.
That's what this story is about. Choices. We all make choices every day, good or bad, right or wrong. And every choice we make affects not only our own life, but that of those around us, perhaps even perfect strangers. The writer takes us on a supernatural journey, which, though it is definitely fun to read, has a much deeper meaning to the reader. It may just cause you to reflect on the decisions you've made in your own life, and what effect they've had on the outcome of your life and those around you. I think it might even help me to stop and think before making some choices in the future. The Miracle of Mercy Land is very well written and I highly recommend it. Just make sure you have a few hours to read it before picking it up...it's seriously hard to put down!
About the Author:
River Jordan is a critically acclaimed novelist and playwright. Her previous works include
Saints In Limbo and
The Messenger of Magnolia Street. She speaks around the country on the "Power of Story" and produces and hosts the radio series
Clearstory from Nashville, Tennessee, where she makes her home.
The Miracle of Mercy Land was provided to me for review, free of charge, by Kelly
Blewett of
KBK Public Relations. This book is available from
Amazon.com and
Randomhouse.com.
