The Christmas Secret

Donna VanLiere is the author of many NYT Bestselling titles, and The Christmas Secret is her most recent.  I am happy to announce that I’ve been provided with 2 copies to give away to a few lucky readers!

The Christmas Secret follows single mom, Christine, through a rough spot in her life, having to leave her two children home alone, so she can go to work and stash some money away for rent, heat, and a few presents to put under the tree.

Christine struggles with the idea of dating again on top of everything else she’s juggling and as a single mom, I could really relate to the confusing thoughts and emotions that go through her mind as she tries to justify her feelings regarding the new man in her life.

He’s so handsome. What’s the point? Maybe he’ll love kids. When he hears about the kids he’ll be gone. He’s too young for me. I’m too old for him.”

With the support of friends and those who create a new family for her and the children, Christine rises above the pain and hurt from her past and steps into the warmth of the holiday spirit, surrounded by love from those lighting her path.

Pain is a part of love…I don’t think we’d recognize love without it.”

The Christmas Secret is just one of many titles by VanLiere. Others include The Christmas Promise, The Christmas Blessing, The Christmas Shoes and The Christmas Hope. Three of these books have also been turned into movies, with The Christmas Hope recently premiering this weekend as a Lifetime Original Movie. Look for it on Sunday, December 13th.

You can also read my review for her memoir, Finding Grace, a book that is both haunting and healing.

If you’d like to win a copy of The Christmas Secret, for yourself, or as a gift for someone else, please let me know what your holiday secret wish or burning desire is this season! Mine is to find a job that will allow me to move closer to my family, and Mr. Right.

Good luck.

Happy Healthy Hip Parenting
Peace Begins in the Home

Amazing Grace

The one complaint I have about Finding Grace, by Donna VanLiere, is that there wasn’t an index highlighting the many brilliant minds mentioned throughout the book. Quoting authors, poets, philosophers, and even the Bible, VanLiere’s literary education is quite impressive. The best quotes though, in my opinion, are from VanLiere herself:

“Sometimes we need to be reminded why we’re here, that we are valued and loved, and at the end of the pain there are still deeper and higher dreams to discover.”

“The mysterious yet wonderful attribute of grace is that it is never earned or deserved, and it will never be forced upon anyone – it can only be received.”

VanLiere’s memoir is at once heartbreaking and inspiring. Her story starts when, as a young girl growing up in Ohio, she is sexually abused. Through this experience and many others in her life, Donna manages to find grace with each new challenge she is faced with.

The author’s search for herself never fails to amuse as she uses humor to sail through the difficulties presented to her.

“No matter what you’re going through, you can be assured of advice from stupid people.”

Reading this book brought me to many different places from my own childhood, growing up in the Midwest, learning – too early – about sexuality, and questioning what it means to trust.

I started reading this book in the morning one day and found myself returning to it again and again, finishing the last page close to midnight that same night. There is something so transforming about reading this book that I definitely recommend setting aside a full day to absorb the intensity of the emotional roller coaster found within.

Finding Grace is so much more than about sexual abuse, becoming a mother or adoption. It’s about discovering the meaning of life and understanding its joys and disappointments. VanLiere’s book is both disturbing and comforting, touching readers in a way that will have them looking inwards and realizing that grace can be found in every situation.

“We arrange our lives to alleviate disappointment, frustration, dissatisfaction, and pain, viewing them as enemies of our soul. But are they always bad? Can’t disappointment and broken dreams actually be good if we listen to what our life is saying through them?”

Donna VanLiere is a bestselling author and speaker. She has published many novels, including The Christmas Hope series. She has won numerous awards and speaks at countless events for women and families.

She lives in Tenessee with her husband and three children.

Happy Healthy Hip Parenting
Peace Begins in the Home