AMAZING! I honestly cannot believe how powerful this book is! I truly fell in love with the passionate and faith-driven Nigel... he really made a difference in Mary's and so many other peoples lives. I know that this story is loosely based on a true story (one that no one really knows very much about) but the powerful parts that the author imagined or took from truth was truly terrifying but equally inspiring!! Probably the first time I have realized the absolute power of God! I cried, laughed and rejoiced many times throughout this novel... wow!

This book took me two years to read, it's not because it's a long book. It's not compaired to some of her novels but it's not an easy book to read. There are some very sad things that you have to weed through in order to get to God's Redeeming power. It's not an easy read if your a mother, sister or even a women. This book show's how cruel life can be and just how many ways a women can be hurt.

I really want to love Christian fiction and give raving reviews. I do. The cheese factor was there for me with this one. I think the author did a great job covering very hard topics without being descriptive. It was the male/female relationships that were odd to me, especially at the end. I think if those were left out or were done differently, I would've liked it more. Overall, a decent, heartwrenching, and often hard to read story. You should be prepared to read this as it is a heavy read. I had two books going at the same time with domestic violence and wish I hadn't. Domestic violence, child abuse, prostitution.

3.75 ⭐️

Reviewing this book is difficult. Reading it was also sometimes very difficult, and I would be concerned if it were not.

As a modern-day retelling of Mary Magdalene, there is a lot of very heavy content— not graphic or explicit, but enough to feel the depth of hurt and depravity of the situations that the characters face in this novel. (Kingsbury does indicate this in her author’s note at the beginning of the book.)

I feel it does a wonderful job of displaying that there is no height, depth, or width that can keep us from the love of God— that there is nothing that we have done that will separate us from the love of Jesus, should we choose Him as our Lord and Savior.

However, I would be hesitant about recommending this book because of the nature of the characters’ traumas— it is not for everyone.


Content Considerations: Suicidal ideations/attempted suicide, domestic abuse, kidnapping, sexual abuse/exploitation (adult & child), drug use/trafficking/overdose, prostitution, violence, attempted murder, death, grief

En lättläst roman som ändå är trögläst kan inte få alltför högt vitsord enligt mig. Oftast är Kingsburys böcker medelmåttiga men den här var sämre än de flesta jag läst. Delvis tror jag det berodde på att jag inte orkade emotionellt engagera mig så jag läste boken utan att låta den påverka mig alltför djupt. Men det fanns också mycket annat i boken jag inte gillade, speciellt slutet!
Tror det blir en liten paus från Kingsbury för ett tag.

Still processing this reread. I read this about 12-13 years ago and it meant so much to me back then. The foundation/overall message of this book still means a lot to me and holds true, but I’m still processing how I feel about other aspects of this book… how the author handled/presented certain things… i was not always a fan of.
However i always will appreciate how reading the same book at different points in life can have various impacts. I’ll continue to process;)

This is the first book in the "Christian fiction" realm I've read. The writing was decent, the story pretty good in a page-turning, 'what happens next?' sense, but it's all wrapped just too awfully darned tidily for my I-was-an-English-major self: and then the love of Jesus saved them! I feel the passion and love of the author, but as a literary device I didn't find that it worked. I realize that literary criticism may not be the appropriate lens through which to view faith-based writing, but there you have it, that's the tool I can't help using.

Setting the reimagined story of Mary Magdalena in a modern setting must have been a challenge. That said, I would dare to say I believe she would have been pleased about the end result.

Powerfully redemptive, but sensitive readers should be cautious. Kingsbury immerses readers in the darkest of shadows even while leaving a glimpse of light visible through the cracks. Difficult book to read.

This is the story of two women. Mary, who was at one time an abused woman who was addicted to drugs. She now runs a shelter that changes the lives of women who are now going through the same thing. Emma, the abused drug addicted mother of two who desperately needs help.

This book takes you along the journeys of both of these two women. It shows you how bad abuse can be, why women allow themselves to be abused. It also shows the tough road the recovery process can be. As always, Kingsbury relies heavily on faith and the power of prayer.

I cannot say enough of Karen Kingsbury's writing. I am by far a very big fan.

Divine was a good book. Well written and captivating. I appreciated that the author did NOT make it graphic in scenes that could have easily been. The topic was horrific enough without having it detailed. I enjoyed it, until the last couple of chapters. It fell flat. I am a Christian and I believe in Christ, but I think the author took the idea of following Jesus a bit too far. She made Mary and Nigel out to be a nun and a priest. They got to a point where the only thing they wanted do was follow Christ and do His work, to the exclusion of all else. I believe that He wants us to follow Him and do His work, but that He also wants us to LIVE. Anyway, the ending was disappointing. I will read another of Karen Kingsbury's novels, because it was a captivating story and well written.

Karen Kingsbury brings the story of Mary Magdalene into modern times. Not one to shy away from tough topics, the author brings to light the horrible circumstances many people find themselves in: addicted to drugs, involved in harmful relationships, forced into prostitution, etc. That makes this hard to read at times, but, the overall story is one of God's love and grace. Much like the Biblical account of Paul, the moral of the story is: If the Lord can forgive these people for all they've done...He can forgive you as well.

I have mixed feelings about Karen Kingsbury books. I have found them to have incredible stories and to be very moving and convicting. However, I find them so intense that I don't like to read them that much.

This is the story of a young woman named Mary who works in a women's shelter. She is telling the story of her life to another young woman named Emma. Both of these women have been through a lot of terrible things.

This book made me feel all kinds of things. That's what it was trying to do as well, and it really did. But I don't always want to feel all the things. Sometimes I just want something light and fluffy. This is not that.