It only took one bullet. Austia's friend and student fell dead. And
with a glimpse of a newspaper headline, the young and recently widowed
Austia knows more about what happened than the police. From that fatal
night, Austia’s secret outreach to the U.S. Muslim community—in the
guise of English language classes—becomes a target. Local Muslim
extremists set their sights on ending her ministry and even her life.
And the women she ministers to will be next.
A thick web of
deceit closes in around Austia, and her circle of friends becomes
smaller by the day, even as she finally opens herself to the idea of
falling in love again. But who can she trust? Facing a spiritual battle
that proves more treacherous than it at first seemed, Austia’s
convictions are tested to their limits and her heart becomes primed for
breaking. She must ask herself: how much she will risk to stay true to
her herself, her faith, and to the lives of the women she serves?
My Thoughts:
I have to admit that I found myself feeling a bit uncomfortable reading this book. I think the frightening level of evil portrayed in Austia's enemies made me wonder about how realistic that level of hatred is and how scarey it is to think of it in our country. It made me nervous, you know?
I struggled to get into the story a bit at the beginning, but ended up caught up in the suspense of the characters and their attempts to outsmart Hussein, who seems all-powerful. The ending came a bit fast for me, and left me wondering if there are plans to bring these characters back in another book.
Book Bullets:
- My rating: 4 out of 5 stars
- Genre: Suspense Fiction
- Part of a Series: No
- Publication year: 2011
- Publisher: David C. Cook