Angel Song

June 14, 2010
Women of Faith speaker Walsh (Beautiful Things Happen When a Woman Trusts God) and novelist Cushman (Leaving Yesterday) have co-authored a yarn about a young woman's unawareness of angels surrounding her every move. Annie Fletcher has returned home to Charleston, S.C., from her busy life as a New York designer to celebrate her younger sister Sarah's graduation when Sarah dies in an auto accident. Distraught and feeling more alone than ever, Annie begins to have dreams and hear music—angelic music—and does her level best to escape it. When her deceased sister's neighbors come calling, Annie gets even more uneasy as 12-year-old Keith, who has Down syndrome, starts talking about seeing angels all around. Troubled and scared, Annie fights memories of a painful childhood even as she battles present-day business adversaries and internally rebels against evidence in her life of invisible angelic protectors. Walsh is known for communicating with real depth in her nonfiction titles; sadly, this fictional offering isn't as riveting. Many of the story's angelic occurrences are more contrived than divine.

August 1, 2010

Annie Fletcher's return to Charleston, SC, is supposed to be a happy occasion--her sister Sarah is receiving her master's degree. But when Sarah is killed in a car accident, Annie is left not only with the heartache of losing the sister she loved but with the responsibility of fixing up the family home for sale. Carpenter and neighbor Ethan McKinney volunteers to help Annie get things ready. His dashing good looks and gentle kindness prove to be a soothing distraction for Annie. Then there is Keith. The 12-year-old son of another neighbor, Keith has Down syndrome--and claims to be able to see angels. VERDICT This is an essential purchase for all CF collections. Walsh has cohosted TV's 700 Club and is well known to evangelical Christians--particularly women, as a result of her speaking appearances at the annual Women of Faith conference. The writing here is even, the characters likable, and the story charming.

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