Fields of Grace

Starred review from September 23, 2013
Luce's book starts and ends in a field, because that's where her life's story almost came to a close, but really just began. The tale is gripping, for numerous reasons. Not only is she heart-wrenchingly transparent at every turn, but journalist Fisher also provides detail and perspective that bring stirring depth to an already absorbing account. Luce is honest about growing up as the daughter of evangelical rock star Ron Luce, cofounder of Teen Mania Ministries. She struggles with her faith, and her relationship with her father, as she wilts under the pressure of an extreme, emotional, and experience-driven Christianity that she finds empty and lacking heart. She begins to drift away from both faith and family during college, until she connects with young men who emulate the very father she was distancing herself from. The narrative comes to a dramatic climax in a Kansas field when her plane crashes, her best friends are killed, and she walks away the sole survivor. In recovery, she not only finds physical healing, but convalescence for her soul and her relationship with "Papa." It is a calamitous, fascinating memoir, written with surprising spiritual sophistication. In some ways, Luce's story serves as a tragic microcosm for an entire generation finding a faith of their own, and it is one that deserves enthusiastic attention. Agents: Brandi Bowles and Peter McGuigan, Foundry Literary and Media.

November 15, 2013
Luce would seem to have it all: an influential fatherRon Luce, a well-known youth evangelista family who loves her, close friends, a beautiful home, plans to travel the world, and self-confidence enough for several young women in their early 20s. Yet one day her life takes a nosediveliterally. While flying to a Christian youth rally, her plane crashes in a Kansas cornfield, nearly burning her to death and killing four of her close friends. Even before the crash, which brings about a crisis of faith, Luce's hunger for reading and learning causes her to question her father's ministry. Despite her reservations, she and two dear friends work for her father's cause. After the horrifying plane crash, she must reckon with the heartbreaking loss of her friends, as well as survivor's guilt. She must also undertake an arduous recovery that involves accepting a patchwork of skin grafts in place of her old skin. This riveting personal account is not for sissies, yet it deftly conveys the beauty and depth of love and faith among friends.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2013, American Library Association.)