“After a life-shattering trauma, Molly is ready to follow God into the next chapter of her life—if only she can put her pencil down and let Him write the story.
Molly Taylor spent the last three years running away from her painful past, searching for peace in an endless desert. Now, having faced her darkness and with her life rededicated to Christ, she stands at the edge of that desert, curious what future awaits her on the other side but hesitant to step into it. She knows she needs to keep walking, to trust that God will walk with her as she takes her first wobbly steps forward.
The ghosts of her past aren’t easy to shake, however. The fear that she’ll mess up again—and her lingering regret over losing Tanner Walters, the boy-next-door she thought she’d marry one day—keep her feet planted in place. Devastated that he didn’t wait for her during her lost years, Molly throws herself into her continued healing, determined to move on from Tanner. To step into her promised land. But as she watches her family and friends find their happily-ever-afters around her, she can’t help but wonder if her past mistakes disqualify her from finding her own.
Until Tyler Sanderson, the handsome young man who helped bring Molly back to life during the years she was on the run, unexpectedly shows up at her front door. As she cautiously makes plans with Tyler, she begins to think happily-ever-after is possible after all.
But as Molly writes the first words of the next chapter of her life, she forgets one crucial detail.
She isn’t the one holding the pencil.
God is.
And when it becomes clear that He’s writing a very different story than the one Molly has in mind, she comes face to face with a question she thought she’d already answered: is God truly enough for her?
The answer sends Molly down a path she never would have chosen for herself, shattering her heart once again. All Molly wants to do is faithfully walk the road God is laying out for her.
She never imagined it would be so twisted and rocky, though.
Will Molly keep the window of her heart open to God’s plan, or will she wrestle for control and slam the window shut?” -An Open Window, Sara Whitley
Two weeks ago I reviewed the first book in Sara’s pro-life fiction trilogy, Another Ending. Today, I’m going to be continuing to talk about Molly’s story! Again, I will state that because this book is realistic pro-life fiction, it does discuss rape and abortion, and again I want to be clear in mentioning that Sara handles both of these topics with care and grace.
Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐/⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Another Ending ended on a cliffhanger, and I was very glad to continue reading Molly’s story in An Open Window. Something that I really enjoyed about this book is that we got to see Delilah’s story. Delilah is a very solid Christian character who was faced with a teen pregnancy and is now raising her son in the small town that Molly is living in. Readers were introduced to Delilah in Another Ending, and now we get to have some first-person POV from her as well.
Because this is realistic fiction, life isn’t perfect. While I love my ‘happy ever afters’, it is refreshing to see characters struggle with things we can identify with. Delilah and Molly both struggle with things we are apt to take for granted, such as dating and motherhood. They have disagreements and insecurities. I can plainly identify with both ladies in different ways. That is one of Sara’s many skills. She weaves everyday life and struggles with hope and the promise of a good God.
Throughout Molly’s story, there is a clear thread of the sovereignty of God. He is in perfect control, but this can be a little scary. Through her characters, Sara shows that it can be hard to accept this. Bad things happen sometimes and that is immensely hard on us, but our God is a good God. He has a purpose.
I loved seeing Molly’s growth in this series. She starts off mad at God, questioning His motives. This is realistic to me. I can see where she’s coming from. But her growth in understanding God’s grace and power is amazing. It’s still hard. Molly still struggles. There are bad days. But there is freedom in trusting God.
One more book in Molly’s story awaits me. I’m ready. I want to see her blossom. She’s grown so much in two books and I’m attached to her journey. Sara does a great job of taking us through the journey of a broken girl who finds her purpose in lifting up the Lord of all creation.
Much like the first book, An Open Window is a solid Christian book with lovely language and a deep pro-life message. Please dive into the word of pro-life fiction with Sara’s books.
Storm
Links for An Open Window:
Storm Shultz 