The Miraculous Journey: A Day Made in Heaven

by Dlana Hall Bodmer

What would you do if your sister were brutally murdered and her body never found? No doubt you would do all you could to find her body, but would you also expect to have a transforming experience about the power of love?

In late June, 1980, eighteetn-year-old Gina Renee Hall disappeared. She made one last phone call to her sister Dlana the night she disappeared, saying she was looking at a lake, and spoke one last word--Steve. Gina did not come home. The composed story from her killer and his friend led the authorities to theorize that "Steve" had convinced her to leave the place where she had been dancing and go to the lake house to be with him. Those who knew Gina never accepted that story. In the aftermath of her murder, Epperly's violent past revealed he was not the all-American boy as many believed. Although Gina's body was never found, insurmountable circumstantial evidence met the burden of proof that she was brutally murdered by Stephen Epperly. He was sentenced to life in prison.

This is a journey where the ordinary becomes extraordinary. At first, it may seem to be the story of Gina's heinous murder. It is, but it is so much more. It is a story about Dlana's quest for truth. For Dlana, closure could not happen until truth was known. After decades of dealing with her grief over her lost sister and her hatred for her sister's killer, in 2016, Dlana suddenly began receiving spiritual messages she did not understand and could scarcely believe. Little did she suspect then that she was being led on a miraculous journey, not only to search for the location of her sister's body, but to bring her peace, healing, and a new understanding of God and his plan for us all. Be prepared to have all the boundaries of human thinking tested.

Dlana details every step from the day her sister disappeared in 1980 through her search for that body thirty-six years later. She digs through details hitherto unexplored, and she literally digs up riverbeds to search for her sister's hidden bones. Surrounded by evil, Dlana's faith protects her in her quest for truth, but she could never foresee how her faith would lead to healing in multiple ways. It's a journey filled with miracles, including communication from a spiritual realm. Many will wonder -- did her sister communicate with her from beyond the grave? Experience the journey through the eyes of Dlana, her digital journal often capturing the inexplaneable moments--the Miracles. Become immersed in this real life experience.

In The Miraculous Journey, not only will you get a look into how a murderer's mind works, you will begin to question as Dlana did when the details of her sister's case were unveiled--Is Epperly a serial killer? You will experience the power of a sister's love, the power of God's love, the invisible forces of good and evil that surround us and fight over us, and ultimately, how forgiveness can transform the heart. You will see for yourself the only truth that matters - the Message in the Miracles!

The essence of Gina's pure innocence and goodness lives on in this story. It is not just Dlana's memoir. Nor is it only Gina's memoir. It is a memoir of two sisters...Sisters' story of two interlocked hearts stronger together, forever.

It is time for Gina's story--Her Voice.

Genres: True Crime, Nonfiction

504 pages, Kindle Edition

Published June 13, 2019

Reviews

[Amy Rhodes]

I would love to read this book I can’t find it anywhere Amazon says it’s $400 and I don’t have a Kindle working up on this book

[Loki · Rating 2 out of 5]

I dnf it I couldn't read it anymore. within the first chapter it kept saying the same thing over and over. I couldn't take it anymore, so I'm dnfing it and finding a new home for it.

[Tena · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have written quite a few book reviews and read books that I haven't reviewed. Sometimes I just read for pleasure. Sometimes I read a book that is so good a review seems necessary. The Miraculous Journey by Dlana Bodmer is a conundrum. I need to review it. It requires a review. But it is the hardest book, quite possibly, that I will ever review. You see, Dlana is a precious friend. She is someone that left an impression on my life and never left my heart even though time separated us. I first stepped into her life weeks after a horrendous tragedy happened to her. Dlana’s younger sister was brutally murdered. Dlana was never able to bring her sister, Gina, home because her body was never found. But the murderer was convicted and is serving a life term in prison as you are reading this. I don't want to refer to him as Gina’s murderer because she doesn't share that distinction, or so Dlana is led to believe in the book. And I literally mean led to believe. The story of The Miraculous Journey is Dlana’s account of the search for her sister’s body almost 39 years after the murder occurred. She is led by messages delivered through dreams, personal encounters, music, and memories. Dlana gives her reader a first-hand experience of the anguish and triumphs in this journey from digging tirelessly through the ”muck place” to encountering beautiful images that could only come from God. Several times I found myself trying to understand the miracles that Dlana shared as she tirelessly searched for her baby sister’s body. As my eyes filled with tears and my heart pounded I was overcome with emotion. As she states in the book, ”there are no coincidences”. A dream would prophetically make sense days, sometimes, years later. A song that randomly played on a playlist or radio would prove important. Let me be clear: this book is not about the story of the brutal murder of Gina Renee Hall. This book is about a sister that misses her baby sister and is willing to do whatever it takes to bring her body back to a grave that has been empty for 39 years. Well, that might have been the original premise of Dlana’s search for any remaining bone or fragment of her sister's body. But, in the end, the story is about so much more. It is about finding peace in tragedy and finding yourself when you didn't even know you were lost.
If you aren't familiar with the story of the murder of Gina Renee Hall please go to the website https://themiraculousjourney.com/

[Marlene · Rating 4 out of 5]

Inspiring

I would recommend this book. The personal journey to forgive and find peace is very inspiring. God was truly present in this journey.

[Toni Mitchell-Dye · Rating 5 out of 5]

No idea the number of books I have read in my lifetime. But this was a first for so many things. I have always purchased and read local authors. It just makes me proud to have authors that come out of this very rural area. I cried and I prayed while reading this book. I would have to put it down at times because some things just spoke directly to my heart. I don’t know the author or her family. Since reading the book I have met a lady that knew her sister Gina from school and living in the same little town of Coeburn. The things that were shown to this author will move your heart and your faith. I have said so many times in the last three years how can God let all this bad happen ...why does it seem like everyone is filled with hate or evil?? How can God not answer my prayers when they are not even for me! So many more times I have just asked why. I got sick of being rejected and ignored in the community by SOME fellow church members so I just quit. I quit going I quit having faith I just quit!! After reading this book and hearing what the author, her sister ( an angel and there is no doubt) went through in their lifetime. I believe... I believe that God is real... some prayers don’t need to be answered because he knows best. And that there is evil out there and always will be. But good has to always fight .... Good Will always beat evil. We can never stop believing and loving.

[A Osborne · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love

The Message is simple. Choose Love, at the end it is all that matters. Following Dlana’s Journey was Inspiring and uplifting. Her sister is Dancing in Heaven.