IF ONLY YOU KNEW, by Mags Storey

The Christian Mystery Writer's Forum welcomes you to another Christian Fiction Review Blog tour, this month, IF ONLY YOU KNEW, by Mags Storey.

Maybe because I'm old, maybe because I'm a guy and romances aren't really my thing, the book just didn't seem to come together like I wanted it to. It is well-written in every other aspect, but I found the pacing a bit off. Some things seemed a little predictable, although this was twisted a bit so you weren't really sure if your first instincts were correct.

Okay, now that I've gotten the negatives out of the way I can get right to this really great work. Romance writers always fight an uphill battle with me, so the above comments should be taken with about a bag or so of salt. IF ONLY YOU KNEW is about the life of Joanne Mackenzie. It's summer and she's between high school and the rest of her life. As she looks around she feels like everyone else has their lives mapped out, but Jo doesn't have a clue. She's living with her cousin, jobless, and not all that interested in getting a job. (I remember those day). She doesn't think she's ugly, but less than average. If the short end of the stick were given out as a prize she would be sure to win it...every time. Her perception of herself doesn't change after meeting this gorgeous guy who asks her out. Of course his ability to meet her at the appointed place and time may have had something to do with that, as well as her falling off a railing into the lake below, then being escorted out by a guy she saw earlier get dumped by a "psycho".

IF ONLY YOU KNEW is filled with personal insights into the conflicting emotions of a young woman trying find her bearings in life. At times it is humorous, and other times you just want to slap some sense into her. One of the absolute best things about this book is Mags Storey's ability to make you feel your way through. That is to say, she draws you so far into the characters that you experience their emotions, their feelings, their triumphs and failures, that you feel like you know these people. I know I'm probably supposed to say things like, "Jo meets a guy she saw run down a year ago and now has to deal with the fact that he not only survived, something she totally thought impossible at the time, but someone who ends up becoming a key figure in her life." I'm choosing to take another route, because this isn't so much about who did or did not get run over as it is about a young woman so lost she will turn against herself if she happens to have a good day. She's a real person in this sense.

Apart from the pacing problem mentioned at the outset, IF ONLY YOU KNEW is an amazing story that deserves your consideration. You will be delighted in Mags Storey's story telling abilities. You will find yourself wondering why such and such happened, or why she just doesn't get this or that. It's fun to read, exciting and fresh. Check out the links below and get your copy today.

Now don't forget to visit Mags' site. I visited it and although I'm not big fan of the romance genre, she has a really great site and talks about some really interesting things. She doesn't preach at anyone...except maybe herself. You'll find her site HERE

Some of the places you can purchase her book are:

ChristianBook.Com

Amazon.Com

Barnes & Noble

Check out these other member blogs this week for more info.
Careful now. You might just find some people posting more than once, also you can visit any CFRB member's site and, hopefully, you will find a standard post. The links below indicate that you will find special posts.

IMPORTANT
The Christian Fiction Review Blog (known as CFRB) is a ministry that promotes quality Christian fiction in order that the Gospel of Jesus Christ may be shared with others who might otherwise not hear it, at least in a context that they would appreciate and understand. Each book is "previewed" in order to maintain the quality and content of the book. Books that are accepted for blog tours are given to the members by the author to review, according to the number of members requesting a copy. It is the belief and practice of CFRB to post positive reviews as a type of payment for these books. However, I want to emphasize again that these books first go through a preview stage where they are deemed of a high enough quality to tour.