No Greater Love

It was quite a weekend. It was junior prom at Oconto Falls High School, so Molly has been wound like a top for the last month. It was all worth it to see her looking like a movie star in one of the most gorgeous dresses I've ever seen, with her hair and make-up done. Doogie's girlfriend Bre is a junior too, so it was a big day for them as well. I don't think I've ever seen him look so handsome. He's lost about 50 pounds since this time last year, and he let me do his hair just a bit. It really hit me that he truly is an adult now.

It was one of those days that makes it easy to be a proud mom. Being the mother of two teenagers definitely keeps me dying my hair to cover the gray on a regular basis. Drama, heartbreak, back-stabbing friends, sinking grades, fear of the future, it's all part of our daily life. So it's nice to have a day when they are all cleaned up and looking their best. Mia kept the day balanced though. She was a bit jealous of the attention focused on her siblings, plus of Molly's dress, so she was more than a little cranky. In today's picture you can see the longing and melancholy in her eyes. I know that before I can take a breath it will be her I'm buying an incredibly expensive dress for and arguing with about tanning and shoes, but I'm not in any hurry! 

No Greater Love by Kathi Macias is the first book in the Extreme Devotion series about Christians around the world facing the ultimate test of faith. In 1989 South Africa is still under apartheid. No one knows that better than Chioma. Now a servant on the Vorster farm, she watched her parents slaughtered by the white authorities for insurrection, then her brother murdered by friends of the Vorster's son Andrew. She's tried to fight her feelings for Andrew, but his knowing blue eyes force her to see him as more than just the color of his skin. After yet another tragedy, Chioma lives on the run, hiding with rebel forces known as the ANC. Meanwhile, the Vorsters, Anana and Pieter are forced to reconcile their deep faith with apartheid and how it has affected their family. Macias does a wonderful job portraying the complicated emotions of the Vorsters as they struggle with their faith, as well as with Chioma's wavering loyalty. She puts the reader in the middle of a story that can have no happy ending, but forces us to sympathize with Chioma's suffering as well as the Vorster's confusion. Macias makes the characters come to life and refuses to take the easy way out. It's a powerful novel that will force readers to think deeply about what true faith looks like.
Thank you to Pump Up Your Book Promotion Virtual Book Tours for providing me with a copy of this book for review.