Crossing Oceans

2011 Carol Award winner for Debut Author from ACFW (American Christian Fiction Writers)Jenny Lucas swore she?d never go home again. But being told you?re dying has a way of changing things. Years after she left, she and her five-year-old daughter, Isabella, must return to her sleepy North Carolina town to face the ghosts she left behind. They welcome her in the form of her oxygen tank-toting grandmother, her stoic and distant father, and David, Isabella?s dad . . . Who doesn?t yet know he has a daughter. As Jenny navigates the rough and unknown waters of her new reality, the unforgettable story that unfolds is a testament to the power of love and its ability to change everything?to heal old hurts, bring new beginnings . . . Even overcome the impossible. A stunning debut about love and loss from a talented new voice. From Publishers Weekly Jenny Lucas has returned to her childhood home, a refuge of picket fences and lace-covered tabletops. But with an intensity likely garnered from years of unpublished suspense writing, debut novelist and blogger Holmes slowly unveils the hidden angst in this homecoming. A single mother, Jenny must find caregivers who will raise her five-year-old daughter when shes gone. Shes forced to mend relations with two possible custodians: the babys father, who doesnt know he has a child, and her own cold-hearted father. As Jenny comes to face her future as well as her past, dramatic emotions yield to an appreciation of life and an enjoyment of the grace of fleeting moments. There can be no happy ending, but Holmes ties a neat bow of acceptance around this haunting tale that packs an emotional wallop. Keep tissues near. (May) Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. From Booklist Jenny Lucas has to go home again-shes dying of cancer. As the single mother of a young daughter, Isabella, Jenny knows the little girl needs a family. Theres only one problem. Jenny never told her high-school sweetheart, David, that he had a daughter. Now she has only months to heal old wounds, and she prays this will be done before her death. Holmes characters are so real they pop from the pages: David, his current wife (a nice surprise), an earthy grandmother, a bitter father, and Jenny herself. Healing doesnt come easily in this dramatic, emotional, faith-based novel about a prodigal daughter who seeks forgiveness on an unforgiving deadline. --Shelley Mosley Review "Poignant and unforgettable, CROSSING OCEANS will break your heart -- and then put the pieces back together again. This is an uplifting and inspiring tale that reminds us to live every day as if its our last."Tess Gerritsen, NYT Best-selling author"Poignant and unforgettable, CROSSING OCEANS will break your heart -- and then put the pieces back together again. This is an uplifting and inspiring tale that reminds us to live every day as if its our last."Tess Gerritsen, NYT Best-selling author