Scent of Lilacs ~ Review

Scent of Lilacs
The Heart of Hollyhill #1
By Ann H. Gabhart

Scent of Lilacs takes place in during the summer of 1964 in Hollyhill where nothing ever happens.  But this year is different, this year God has answered Jocie Brooke's dog prayer and her sister prayer!  A stray mutt from no one knows where has followed Jocie home.  Jocie feels that Zeb is God's answer to her years of praying for a dog.  The night after her dog prayer has been answered, Jocie's sister returns home

Seven years have passed since Jocie's mother and older sister Tabitha slipped away in the night.  Adrienne had married David Brooke thinking he was her ticket out of Hollyhill, but God had other plans for David that didn't include leaving Hollyhill.  David, who had taken over the weekly paper The Banner,  felt called to be a preacher.  But Adrienne didn't feel called to be a preacher's wife or even a mother left both David and Jocie behind, the only farewell a note having been written by then 13 year old Tabitha.

But Hollyhill is not just a quiet laid-back community, and like most communities a place where secrets are hidden just beneath the surface, if you care to look.  Jocie has questions and the answers she is about to unearth have the power to heal or to wound.  But Jocie wants to know the truth about who she is and about her family.

Hollyhill and the Brooke family are about to discover just how powerful truth is and the importance of forgiveness.  Sometimes family is not determined by the bonds of blood but by the bonds of love.  In a way the Scent of Lilacs can be viewed as a picture of the family of God.  We are all brought and bought into His family by the power of His love for each and every one of us.  But He doesn't force us into His family - it is a choice we each must make for ourselves.  Life has times of trial and storms but our Father is there for us, holding out His hand ready to steady and help us over the rough patches.

I received a copy of this title from the publisher Revell Books for the purpose of this review, but all opinions expressed are my own.

Available March 2013 at your favorite bookseller from Revell, a division of Baker Publishing Group.