Young mom Becky Miller daydreams about the happy endings she sees during her weekly movie nights with her husband. But problems mount with the remodeling of the new house. Her mother-in-law moves in, her eldest son gets in trouble at school, her sister arrives for a visit, her best friend starts acting weird, and work becomes more stressful than ever before. Can Becky stop trying to fix everything and let God renovate her heart so she can find her own happy ending?
Sharon writes "stories for the hero in all of us" - uplifting and entertaining novels about ordinary people called to extraordinary challenges.
She recently was awarded a Christy Award for Hidden Current. She's also won several Carol awards for both contemporary Christian fiction and fantasy, and was a Christy finalist for The Restorer - a genre-blending adventure of a soccer-mom in an alternate world.
When she isn’t wrestling with words, Sharon enjoys speaking to conferences, retreats, and church groups. She and her family make their home in the Midwest.
This review is a bit hard to write after my last review, in which said Sharon Hinck can write no wrong. :P
This book was a little disappointing. It felt forced, and didn't seem to have the same 'heart' behind it. The conflict\resolution was basically the same as the first book, just varied slightly with different issues. It was still very good, just not as good as all the rest of Hinck's books. It pains me to give a book by this fabulous author any less than 5 stars.
That being said, I still enjoyed this immensely!! I loved hearing more about Becky and her sweet family and friends. I love the storyline with Lori, although I feel that it wasn't wrapped up as well as it could have been. The storyline with Judy as well. I loved the end climax! It was perfect! I loved all the medical details and such. ;)
I’m having trouble putting my feelings for this book into words. Lets start here - I’m an atheist, always have been. But this book made me see religion as a comfort blanket, I looked at Becky regarding God as a child would their grandparent. And it made me smile. The struggles of parenting, marriage, mother in laws, and friends can weigh on a person so heavily if they let it. This book opened my eyes to difficulties I was having with making boundaries in my own life. And the ending was nothing but superb.
I say this with no sarcasm. Thank God for this book - I needed it.
It was a perfect choice because I am ABSOLUTELY the target audience for this book! I am a Christian mother of four who tends to bite off more than I can chew. Not only did I love living through Becky's story with her, I was constantly reminded to evaluate and re-evaluate my priorities as I read.
It took me three times as long as it usually does to read through a book this length, because I found it easy to put down. In this case, that wasn't at all a bad thing. I had a LOT going on in my life and needed something that I could grab in a few spare moments and then leave behind for a while. Becky has become a friend after reading her thoughts and struggles these last few months!
Thank you, Sharon Hinck, for writing a book that reminds us to be who God has us to be in this moment - and no more. So many of us are striving for the sake of striving in this Christian culture. I love that you took the time to write something just for us!
Also, I loved the references to White Christmas and Narnia in this one. You speak my language, Sharon!
I really enjoyed reading about the latest adventures of Becky Miller. While this is a light enjoyable chick-lit read, the storyline speaks volumes on how we should balance our lives. This book spoke to me about our daily walk with God and was the inspiration for our book club retreat this spring; taking your personal relationship with Christ from Drab to Fab!!!
I realized halfway through the book that there was a sticker on the side that said "Family". I appreciated that it was clean, and I enjoyed the story very much.
Hinck's sequel to The Secret Life of Becky Miller is Christian mommy-lit, and a quick, enjoyable, don't-have-to-think-too-hard read. But I find myself thinking a lot about what Hinck was trying to accomplish with the character of Becky Miller. Becky is someone I could easily identify with--a woman of faith, a working mom who carries on despite exhaustion, a wife who tries hard to please her husband (as well as the rest of the world), a woman who thinks she can fix everyone and everything. Recovering from a leg injury from a car accident in the first book, Becky finds it difficult to get up and down the stairs of her new country home--a fixer upper that needs more work than she and her husband expected. That house symbolizes so much about Becky, myself, and women and mothers in general; something always needs to be fixed, and we think we have all the answers.
In Renovating Becky Miller, Becky encounters a few situations she can't fix--her husband's abusive childhood and her best friend's depression--and it forces her to constantly remember that God is in control, God is the ultimate repairman. One interesting thing about Becky is her vivid daydreams, with each chapter opening with an action scene from a well-known movie and Becky fantasizing about being in the lead role. I definitely can identify with Becky here, drifting into a dream world where she is strong, invincible, able to conquer the world--a far cry from the ordinary woman she thinks she is. I'd like to think we all have a little bit of superhero strength within us.
This book is a sequel to, "The Secret Life of Becky Miller". I enjoyed this book very much. Though my kids are grown, I so remember how crazy things could get. Becky is trying to juggle three kids, a job, husband and a sick mother inlaw. She wonders why she is tired? She thinks she has to fix everyone and every thing. In the process her marriage suffers, her kids suffers, and frankly she suffers. When she has had enough, and realize's God never meant for her to try and fix everyone and every thing, that is His job. And when she gives God back the controls, she then becomes a more peaceful person, and begins to enjoy life, instead of trying to juggle it. I hope you enjoy this book as much as I have.
Honestly, this sequel was not any better than the book that precedes it. The portrayal of the husband/wife relationship was more realistic and the author tried to deal with more real life issues, but overall I just wanted to slap Becky and tell her to wake up and have some boundaries. Definitely not a book I would recommend or read again.
if i attended church, were a faith based person, and a busy mom, this book would have been great. but since i am neither of those things, i have no idea why i read the whole thing. favorite part would be when the husband falls off the roof and his gimpy wife tries to bring him inside and then to the hospital. i'm such a bad person.
I listened to the audio book of this book and was somewhat put off by the movie tie-ins at the beginning of the chapters. Also, I kind of wanted to shake Becky and tell her to grow up, which she was doing by the end of the book.
Apart from the short movie tie-ins at the start of each chapter, I thought this book was great. Becky is a likeable and relatable character, and I enjoyed the Christian elements.