Derailed

I love it when you find a true treasure in a great series of books. The kind that make you sad when you finish one because you have to wait for the next one and often times it could take awhile. Such is the case with The Windy City Neighborhood Series by authors Dave and Neta Jackson. After reading Grounded, their first novel in the series, the second book, Derailed has finally picked back up with our favorite characters we met in the first one. Perhaps by far, my favorite character is Estelle Bentley, because she has the faith that most would dream of having. The kind that offers up simple prayers as easily as having a one on one conversation with a close friend. But what we discover is that even those prayers are offered up, they are not always answered in the way we would like to. Even when it seems that the steps we take are guided by God, it soon leaves us second guessing if we didn't in fact step out on our own instead.

This novel is based on the Harry Bentley, Estelle's husband that was once blind but now can see, is asked to go undercover as a blind man in disguise working for the police on board the Amtrak trains. It takes us into the back story of Harry that we only glimpsed in passing in the first novel. Since Harry is new to the Christian faith, living with Estelle as a strong woman of faith makes him question his own actions at times. I love this honesty of how the life of faith isn't an easy one to walk and at times, we all find ourselves questioning whether we are doing what God would want or simply our own desires. He struggles being the head of the house and financial provider of learning to reverse the roles of putting his family first instead of his job. Not an easy one for men to live up to.

The Bentley's life hasn't been an easy one but is a true testament of what faith can do when it is applied correctly. Harry's son, Rodney has been in prison but now upon his release is looking for ways to turn over a new leaf. Since his son, DaShawn has been living with Estelle and Harry, Rodney is hoping to secure a decent job and find a way to start a new life for him and DaShawn. Perhaps my favorite part of this book, isn't really the individual stories but one of how they all interact with their neighbors. It shows us an example of what a faith based community should look like even if our neighbors are not believers. It shows us how to respond in love and kindness and role models what we all can hope to obtain by being better people to those around us.

I received Derailed by Dave and Neta Jackson compliments of Worthy Books and Christian Fiction Blog Alliance for my honest review. I did not receive any monetary compensation for a favorable review and the opinions expressed are strictly my own. I can't wait for the next book in this series Penny Wise which you get a sneak peek at in the conclusion of this novel. There are also discussion questions included to make this a great novel for book clubs. I'd rate this one a 5 out of 5 stars. For more information about Derailed, Dave and Neta Jackson or where you can pick up a copy of this book today, please click on the links below:

Derailed by Dave and Neta Jackson

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• Series: Windy City Neighbors (Book 2)
• Paperback: 320 pages
• Publisher: Worthy Publishing (October 8, 2013)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1617950017
• ISBN-13: 978-1617950018
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.5 x 1 inches