I had never before read a novel by Christina Suzann Nelson, so when I picked up her new released entitled “Shaped By The Waves” I really wasn’t sure what to expect.  I knew it was contemporary fiction about a girl going back to her hometown, and the cover was lovely with the ocean and seagulls gracing the eye-catching paperback… But that was about it!  Boy, was I in for a surprise.

The layers in this book are incredible to watch unfold – the characters who shape the story hold so many secrets and traumas and dreams and struggles, and as I watched it all take shape into one unforgettable story I was almost mesmerized.  It was so deeply beautiful… and yet also tragic, and poignant at the same time.  Themes of identity and forgiveness, of finding who we are and letting go of the past, of trusting God and believing He is writing our stories, and of the struggle of watching as someone we love fade away – these themes and more fill the pages of this story.  One very unique aspect is that a key portion of the story is told through a manuscript – but our protagonist doesn’t know who sent these pages to her, who wrote them, or who the words are telling a story about.  This lends a breathtaking air of mystery to an already fascinating story.

Without question, I highly recommend this remarkable tale that is filled with beauty and hope, as well as loss and pain.  It is a journey that will touch your heart and imagination, and if you are like me, you will not walk away from it unchanged.

“Book has been provided courtesy of Baker Publishing Group and Graf-Martin Communications, Inc.”