Amy Inspired

Amy Inspired by Bethany Pierce is a quirky Christian novel. Amy Gallagher has long desired to be a writer, but she has settled for teaching courses at a college and trying to write in her spare time. Her roommate Zoe has no trouble with writer's block, and Amy admires her faith in God and insistence in living life on her terms. When Zoe allows a friend, Eli a struggling artist, to move in to their apartment until he can find a job. Amy tries to fight her attraction to Eli because of his girlfriend, but also because he represents everything she hates in men: he's tattooed, scruffy, has long hair, and doesn't have a job. Meanwhile, her writing and her life have something in common: both are going nowhere. Pierce's writing is nearly impossible to define or describe. Amy's character is very real; she knows what she wants but has absolutely no idea how to get there, and she feels like something is missing from her life. Zoe is a crunchy Christian who eats vegan, recycles, and takes care of those around her, whether they want her help or not, but she's hiding the terrible pain and fear of losing her mother to breast cancer. The two best friends fight each other and God as they try to figure out what it really means to be a Christian. Pierce has done a remarkable job accurately rendering the state of Gen X Christians, but the book is hard to qualify as a romance, drama, or chick lit. It has aspects of each, but they are a bit muddled. The story is worth the read however to watch Amy travel from completely lost to Amy Inspired.

Thank you to Bethany House for providing me with a copy of this book for review.