Mike Dellosso steps away from his usual supernatural thriller fare with his latest novel, “A Million Miles From Home,” a heart-wrenching story of resentment, redemption and restoration.
Benjamin and Annie Flurry have been in love since they were 13. Both fleeing abusive homes, they leave North Carolina and begin their married life in Pennsylvania. After having their miracle baby, Lizzy, life is good. Ben loves his job with the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection and Annie delights in homeschooling their daughter.
But that all comes to a crashing halt one night when a terrible accident takes the life of Annie and severely crushes Lizzy’s legs. To pick up the pieces, Ben is forced to move back home to North Carolina. Will Lizzy be able to heal physically and will they both be able to heal their hearts? And will Ben be able to redeem the relationship with his formerly abusive father?
“A Million Miles From Home” is a deeply emotional novel, filled with very real and raw moments as Ben and Lizzy deal with the grief and loss of their wife and mother. This story shows how each person deals with impending storms differently, and what we can learn from each other’s responses. It reminds us that suffering is, unfortunately, a part of life, but that God has a plan for us; sometimes it feels like God has abandoned us, but He is always there; we can choose to either run to or away from God during difficult times; the importance of forgiveness; and the image of being made new.
Dealing with the storms of life is a major theme, and Dellosso reminds us that God will always walk us through those storms.
Written in a reminiscent tone, like your friend is telling you his story while rocking on the front porch, the story switches back and forth between the present and situations in Ben’s past. Besides the lovable Ben, Annie and Lizzy, Dellosso writes some great characters, including the amazingly supportive Tom, the hospital’s maintenance worker Ben meets after the accident and who basically becomes a member of the family. Dellosso writes his characters with very real, relatable flaws.
Even though this story is very different from Dellosso’s usual offerings, “A Million Miles From Home” is an incredible novel that will wrench your gut and make you wonder how’d you get through a similar situation.
Fans of authors like Nicholas Sparks, Richard Paul Evans, Jodi Picoult and even Billy Coffey will enjoy this novel.
Five stars out of five.