CFBA Review: Quilted By Christmas by:Jodie Bailey

This week, the Christian Fiction Blog Alliance is introducing Quilted by Christmas Abingdon Press (October 21, 2014) by Jodie Bailey

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

A note from the Author: Well, I’m a regular ol’ person. Who just happens to write. A lot. Probably more than I should. I firmly believe that God created me to be a writer. From the time I learned how to string letters together into words I’ve been making up stories. Believe me… I have a very rich imagination. I used to think I was weird; now I know God just put me together that way. I can’t even watch commercials without expanding them into stories in my head. I am humbled and honored all at the same time that God looked down from heaven on me and said, “Jodie, do what you love.” Wow… how awesome is that?

I have always loved to write. I have stories that I wrote when I was in first grade. I used to sit at my grandmother’s yellow electric typewriter for hours, banging out my own little stories. When I was eleven, she bought me a typewriter of my own (It was 1984, okay?) and I would write and write on it. I wrote stories out by hand, and they ran to hundreds of pages. I got my first computer when I was eighteen, and the first thing I did was write a story on it. I wrote for school. I wrote for fun. I wrote for my friends. I’d get them on the phone and make up stories for them. (I earned the nickname “Dreamweaver” for that one. Nobody calls me that anymore, but it still stands as the coolest nickname I ever had.)

ABOUT THE BOOK

Taryn McKenna believes she’s easy to forget. Abandoned by her parents and left behind when her high school sweetheart joined the army, she vows to never love again and throws herself into her love for the outdoors and the pursuit of a college degree—something no one else in her family has ever accomplished. Her goal, as a young teacher in the hills of North Carolina, is to leave a legacy in the lives of the middle-schoolers she teaches. When Taryn’s grandmother Jemma, the only other person who ever held her close, has a heart attack that reveals a fatal medical condition, Taryn is corralled into helping Grandma work on a final project—an Irish chain quilt that tells the story of her history and the love Jemma knows is out there for Taryn. As the pieces of the quilt come together, Taryn begins to see her value. Can she learn to believe that God will never leave her behind even though others have?

If you would like to read the first chapter of Quilted by Christmas, go
HERE.
My Review:
  Sometimes after deep heartache, you feel the tears dry and you think maybe I have moved on. Just to find out that years later there is so much emotion, hurt, and pure love that you still hold on to, for that individual. Time doesn't heal all wounds, it just puts a band aid on the situation. Taryn soon realizes this after her first love returns to their town after an extended stay abroad after serving in the Army. But soon her past and her reality will face each other when Justin returns to help his father.

 Taryn has survived all these years without Justin holding on to a secret that only Jemma--her grandmother knows. Taryn has been so busy taking care of her grandmother expecting it not to go badly but at last fate has reared its ugly head and Jemma's illness has taken a turn for the worse. Jemma has made a request that Taryn may have to see through on her own. So now not only is Taryn faced with the reality of her first love's return, but also the secret that once again will have to come to the surface, but her grandmother's health also weighs in the balance of it all. Taryn will have to rely on God for such an endeavor as this, will she trust Him enough to carry the weight of the load?

If you are interested in learning more, you can at this link.

**Disclosure** This book was sent to me free of charge for my honest review from CFBA.