Susan May Warren’s latest Christiansen Family installment is chock full of gems and goodies. Picking up shortly after “When I Fall in Love” and her novella, “Evergreen,” took place, “Always on My Mind” continues with the story of Casper Christiansen — the adventure loving, treasure seeking middle child of the clan, and Raina Beaumont — the beautiful woman he quickly fell in love with the past summer but is now, quite literally, carrying a major secret after a one-night mistake.
You see, “The woman he loved was having his brother’s baby.”
“Always on My Mind” gets down and dirty and deep as Casper and Raina must decide what they want out of life — can he forgive both himself and Raina as well; can she forgive herself for the “mistake” she made; can she raise her baby by herself, or is the loving option to give the baby up for adoption, therefore never telling the Christiansens of their newest family member; can Casper be a light and a hope for Raina; and does Raina want the quick and easy and convenient path, or the harder but more substantial path?
The novel is a beautiful telling of how to be God’s light to others, of allowing God to fix other’s problems and not taking on the problems by one’s self. It reminds us to let go of the darkness and bitterness we each find in our lives and, like Casper must learn, to “be patience, be light … let all this anger and darkness go.”
In addition to Casper and Raina’s story — and whether they will ever forgive themselves and each other and give in to love — we pick up with brother Darek’s story. As he attempts to take over Evergreen Resort from his parents, Darek and his new wife, Ivy, are also raising his son, Tiger, and expecting their own baby. Darek struggles to keep the resort afloat and must learn what’s truly important in life.
There’s also a fun mystery from the past that Casper and Raina attempt to solve, as they unexpectedly come together to find answers to a decades old local myth.
“Always on My Mind” will give you a fun, well-told story with great characters, as well as amazing spiritual truths — the mandate to reach out to the hurting; the power of being God’s light to others; and to not exchange worship for worry. As Darek tells Casper: “When God brings Christians into the lives of the hurting, it’s because He intends to use us to be the truth and light to them. Not fix their problems but point them to the One who can.”
This book will leave a smile on your face, a song in your heart and a clamoring for “The Wonder of You” — which unfortunately doesn't come out until this summer!
So, until summer, Susan May Warren … See you then!
Five stars out of five.
Tyndale House Publishers provided this complimentary copy for my honest, unbiased review.
“Always on My Mind” (a Christiansen Family novel) by Susan May Warren
Please enjoy the essay below, written by author Susan May Warren.