They Almost Always Come Home by Cynthia Ruchti
May 1st 2010 by Abingdon Press
Paperback, 320 pages
Review Copy
Book Synopsis
When Libby’s husband Greg fails to return from a two-week canoe trip to the Canadian wilderness, the authorities soon write off his disappearance as an unhappy husband’s escape from an empty marriage and unrewarding career. Their marriage might have survived if their daughter Lacey hadn’t died…and if Greg hadn’t been responsible. Libby enlists the aid of her wilderness savvy father-in-law and her faith-walking best friend to help her search for clues to her husband’s disappearance…if for no other reason than to free her to move on. What the trio discovers in the search upends Libby’s presumptions about her husband and rearranges her faith.........(GoodReads)
Memorable Quote
I'm locked in a prayer cemetery. Ghosts and shadows but nothing that touches heaven.
Pg. 37
Review
We all know that feeling…..the one you get when a loved one isn’t home when they say they will be. That itchy squirm on our skin, that sick feeling of worry while we deliberate the worst scenarios. That’s how it begins for Libby, a small uneasy feeling that blossoms into full out gripping fear when she realizes her husband Greg is really not coming home...........
Already facing problems in their marriage Libby’s story slowly lets us into her crumbling marriage, her secrets and her inner thoughts. Ruchti gives life to a beautiful character that easily resembles every married woman and asks the tough questions that every woman struggles with. Unable to except the possibility that Greg may have died on his canoe trip she believes he is hurt or even scarier....that he’s left her for good. I think this is, even if it was just a small portion of the book, where I most connected to Libby. When she examines the cellulite on her thighs and looks over her imperfect body and wonders if that drove her husband away. I think she shares in the fear that at one time or another every woman has asked……Am I good enough….do I look good enough….did I love him well enough…….do I even still love him?
Libby teeters on the edge of even wanting Greg to come home, she knows from wanting to leave the marriage herself that he was unhappy as well. Slowly we find out that a death of a child has changed the marriage, changed Libby and ultimately the entire family dynamics. Libby goes from a mind frame of ending the marriage to the hysterical worry of wanting to know he’s ok, and possibly saving the marriage.She (like the quote above) wonders in her graveyard of darkness, far away from who she once was and far away from a faith she once loved. In the midst of questions and guilt consuming her, Libby with the help of her best friend and father in law embarks on a journey to rescue her husband and walk in his last steps. One foot on the path of fear and one foot on the path of hope, Libby’s journey will change her heart…and her life forever.
I loved reading this book, not only did it make me cry a few times, it had very relatable feelings in marriage and was full of humorous moments to lighten the seriousness of the story. Very well done with in-depth characters, beautiful writing and a gripping plotline.
Rating
They Almost Always Come Home is a suitable book for most readers, but does center on very adult themed content including: crumbling marriages, sex, death, worry, fear, struggling faith, cancer, sickness and dangerous adventures. Highly recommended, a very moving story of love, real life and the fragility of the human heart.
4/5- Christian Fiction
Thank you to Kathy Carlton Willis Publishing for review copy.
Thank you so much, Tina! I'm so blessed that you connected with Libby...and with other women like her. You've given your blog readers a wonderful glimpse into the tone and "climate" of the book. I'm grateful. And I'm eager for other readers to discover what you did in the pages.
ReplyDeleteSounds awesome
ReplyDeleteHave you ever read Erynn Magnum, Jenny B. Jones, Robin Jones Gunn, or Melody Carlson? They all have wonderful Christian books.
ReplyDelete