Wonderful Debut! My Review of 'If We Make It Home' - by Christina Suzann Nelson

About the book:

An exciting story of survival and spiritual renewal!

When four college friends graduated from the University of Northwest Oregon, their lives stretched before them, full of promise and vows to stay connected. But life has a way of derailing well-laid plans.

Now they haven't spoken in twenty-five years. But against all odds, three of them have found themselves back in the same place--at their alma mater, wondering how they got there. When they discover their fourth friend, Hope, has died, Jenna, Ireland, and Vicky decide to embark on a wilderness adventure to honor her memory--and for secret reasons of their own. Jenna wants to show her husband that she's more than a helpless, overweight, middle-aged empty nester. Ireland wants to get back to the nature she loves and hide from the charges being pressed against her. And Vicky wants to show she cares for something besides her ministry--and put off the disaster waiting at home for as long as possible.

They never bargained for the dangers they face in an unforgiving wilderness. Now they'll have to work together if they hope to make it home alive. While the three women fight to survive the elements, their toughest battles may be with themselves.       

My review:

I absolutely loved this book!  I was on the edge of my seat as the women end up in one bad situation after another.  It felt very believable as none of them really knew what they were doing and it showed!  It was also fascinating to see how they reconnected after all those years apart  and finally showed their true selves and shared their struggles with each other.  Each woman was in a very different place yet all struggled with knowing what their purpose should be and felt like they wanted to run away from their normal lives.  It was especially interesting to see how Ireland survived as she was a vegan.  The story switches back and forth between the three women and are told from the first person so you really get the inside scoop of what they're thinking.  The spiritual message was great as each woman had different struggles there, too.  Ireland had walked away from her faith years ago, Vicky was trying to be perfect and earn her way to Heaven and Jenna felt like she had to be needed to have worth.  There's nothing like a trip to the wilderness to realize you can't make it on your own and that you need to depend on God!  I enjoyed the humor and the writing was wonderful!  I'm definitely going to be watching for her future books.  I highly recommend this book if you like survival stories or just a fascinating well-written book!

I received this book free from Kregel Publications in exchange for an honest review.