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Outside of Grace
Ava Sanford longs to be known as more than the pastor's kid. When the opportunity arises to study abroad in Scotland, she jumps at the chance to leave the Texas coast and the pressures of Grace Church behind. But she never meant to leave God, too.
Her roommate's partying lifestyle promises the fun Ava has been missing out on—until a traumatic assault leaves her faith and pride in ruins. As her life in Scotland begins to crumble, rumors race back home, threatening her relationships with her family and friends, including Jack Shields.
A former athlete, Jack keeps his head down, working through college and coasting through life. After losing both his mother and his scholarships, he knows the things you love can disappear at any moment. But when his best friend seems to be next, the nonchalance and security he carefully guards are broken. Fighting for Ava will mean risking it all, and he can't do it alone. Only God can show them both how far grace can go.
Her roommate's partying lifestyle promises the fun Ava has been missing out on—until a traumatic assault leaves her faith and pride in ruins. As her life in Scotland begins to crumble, rumors race back home, threatening her relationships with her family and friends, including Jack Shields.
A former athlete, Jack keeps his head down, working through college and coasting through life. After losing both his mother and his scholarships, he knows the things you love can disappear at any moment. But when his best friend seems to be next, the nonchalance and security he carefully guards are broken. Fighting for Ava will mean risking it all, and he can't do it alone. Only God can show them both how far grace can go.
314 pages, Kindle Edition
Published November 17, 2022
552 people are currently reading
180 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 76 reviews
October 3, 2024
Grace loves angels with broken wings
Attention all Christian people!!! Please read this with open eyes!!! Let's stop judging and assuming and start loving and supporting! The truth in this book is so well demonstrated! Very well done!
Attention all Christian people!!! Please read this with open eyes!!! Let's stop judging and assuming and start loving and supporting! The truth in this book is so well demonstrated! Very well done!
September 20, 2024
This is a Christian novel and a good one. I wouldn't call it a romance (although there is some romance), but more of just a story about a young woman (pastor's daughter) in college who took a semester of study in Edenborough Scotland and the challenges she faced in that unfamiliar setting and away from her friends and family. It's a very interesting read and I think the author included some harsh truths about what a young Christian often goes through when "cut off" from their familiar and nurturing surroundings and thrust into a decidedly unChristian environment. It was often painful to watch Ava struggle and question and flounder and fail. The story plays out with some interesting characters, including Ava's long-time best friend Jack. The story drags a bit at times, but mainly keeps moving along. It's kind of a study in what a Christian goes through in such a situation and how they hopefully come through it with God's help.
November 29, 2022
Outside of Grace by Anna Daugherty is a coming-of-age story about Ava, a shy ‘pastor’s kid’ from Texas. Approaching her third year of college, Ava still lives at home with her parents and two brothers; a very sheltered existence she dreams of breaking free from. An opportunity to do a semester abroad in Edinburgh, Scotland might be just the type of change she needs. But thousands of miles away from her family, Ava’s faith gets tested. Her roommate is a party girl and soon, Ava is hitting the bars, drinking and flirting with boys from her new school. Her best friend back home is Jack, a former football star with a dysfunctional homelife. Neither Ava nor Jack is ready to declare their love for each other and the trans-Atlantic phone calls between the two are often quite heated and rife with arguments and misunderstandings.
After a horrific night ending with a violent attack, Ava shuts down emotionally. She is filled with shame, convinced that she led her attacker on. Once she is back home in Texas, Ava needs to figure out how to rebuild her relationship with Jack and regain the faith that has always sustained her. Outside of Grace is a heartfelt, emotional story with memorable characters and a storyline that will keep you turning pages.
After a horrific night ending with a violent attack, Ava shuts down emotionally. She is filled with shame, convinced that she led her attacker on. Once she is back home in Texas, Ava needs to figure out how to rebuild her relationship with Jack and regain the faith that has always sustained her. Outside of Grace is a heartfelt, emotional story with memorable characters and a storyline that will keep you turning pages.
November 30, 2022
I would like to thank Anna Daugherty, Netgalley and Black Rose Publishing for a copy of this book and I am voluntarily leaving a review. Ava is going to study in Scotland for a semester. It's the first time the pastor's daughter will be away from her parents,her friends and her church. She's allowed to drink there and one or two won't hurt her,will they? She's a virgin who's never been kissed but a few kisses here and there are fine,right? Ava feels lonely and unwanted by her new friends and the people she left back home. She slowly begins to unravel and makes questionable choices that lead to an event that she will never be able to forget. Her long-time friends Jack and Talia start to hear from her less and less. Ava has always held a special place in Jack's heart and he wants to help her any way that he can. Will she ever feel worthy enough to tell her truth to the people who matter the most?Trigger warnings:peer pressure,rape,panic attacks.
April 6, 2023
What a wonderful book! I enjoyed every moment of it and was sad when it ended (but a good, satisfied sad, with a happy sigh). The characters are so relatable and their story took me in. It’s an easy ready, full of suspense, adventure, and hope. I recommend this for anyone who enjoys travel, love, humor, adventure, personal growth, encouragement, or just a good book!
March 20, 2025
Gracefully beautiful and effortlessly engaging story of unwavering love in every situation, including those of shame, unworthiness, overwhelm, pressure, miscommunication, misbehavior, unfairness, harshness, unacknowledgment, and unkindness!
April 5, 2025
Christian Fiction about a girl who was raped. How she found God again.
September 24, 2024
Warning: This book involves some Scottish history that I believe is needed in order to help American understand what the fictional character Ava endured whennshe was there. You can skip it or read it, but since some of it involves my own time living there, I hope you'll take the time to read it.
Like all teens and young adults, Ava wanted to fit in and make new friends during her semester in Scotland at the University of Edinburgh. And like too many of them, she found out it was necessary to fit in with what she didn't want to be, or stay estranged from most of the students.
The history part: I lived in Scotland for 3.5 years a long time ago, and even then, there were few evangelical churches and even fewer youth and young adult groups. I can only imagine it has gotten worse since then. I was in my early 30s, and had been saved at age 19 from the occult...had backslidden when the youth group I was in had joined up with the "Children of God" cult out west (David Koresh's cult, with which more people are familiar, was an offshoot of the cult my group joined). I was still thinking for myself, and the things they were demanding were thngs I couldn't do because they were wrong. One was to sell all you had and move in with the people who were going, which included dropping out of college and selling flowers at the roadside; another was to empty your own bank accounts and any joint accounts - which, at our ages, meant our parents' accounts - and to gain access to their other accounts and properties and sell them, leaving their families destitute and homeless to put those funds at the disposal of the cult. I refused. I knew how my family struggled financially and I could never bring myself to do something like that to them. And I spread that to the others, whose claim was that their parents were "too materialistic" so it didn't matter. But there were a few whom I wakened up and who changed their mind about joining the cult, and I thank God for that. But while the cold response of the church I grew up attending had driven me away from God, this drove me further away. If I wasn't really a child of God because I had common sense, maybe the atheists were right and there was no God. Certainly my exoeriences my whole life had taught me that God, if He existed, blamed me for my parent's divorce and had a lot of idiots for followers. The Bible, which seemed to have started coming alive for me, had been skewed by an overemphasis on what was called "Christian demonology," to which, with my background, I was very susceptible. And so I stopped believing. I faked it in church and around church-goers, but I didn't believe. Not anymore. It took a patient (I'm a retired RN) witnessing to me and a new church to answer the questions I had about the cruel way a Jehovah's Witness had treated me when I rejected her cult (all I had wanted to know was why they refused blood transfusions, nothing more), and the lingering questions about why God kept rejecting me (to my way of thinking), to get me back to who Jesus really was, and His presence in keeping me safe from the cult and, through me, warning others off.
This made me very sensitive to the auras inside churches, esp. when I was overseas with my now-retired military spouse. When we were in Puerto Rico, for example, one of the churches felt as demonic as anything I had done in the occult, and inside, there was plenty of evidence of demonic activity. We were in Scotland after the lightning hit York Cathedral, just after their preacher had said that there was no God and that if there was, he invited God to strike him dead right there in the pulpit. When God didn't, he used that as proof that there was no God and that the Bible was just a lot of morality tales designed over history to teach us to live good lives. The spot the lightning struck was the pulpit where, around 12 hours before, the preacher had challenged God to strike him dead if God exisited. Thankfully, the location of the strike was enough to convince many that God had spared the preacher's life in hopes he would repent, but last I heard (which has been a good whioe ago), he had not changed his mind despite God's mercies in the warning. Churches have always had a certain feel about them to me, one that inspires a quiet reverence - even in non-believers and those of other religions - that causes a sort of respectful silence. But when we took Mom through parts of England, esp. York, there was no feel of what I had come to think of as God's presence in that fancy cathedral. Even the stained glass windows were dulled, their once vibrant colors now faded to tans, greys, and other neutral colors. About 6 months ago, I came across photos taken more recently, by someone who had visited Yorkminster, and described the feeling inspired by the Spirit of God present in places where His name is worshipped, and the vibrant colors were back. Apparently, those who had always believed and those whose minds were changed by the event, plus new people moving into York, had revitalized the once-forsaken cathedral. And finally, there was a cathedral in the town where we lived while we were there, and it was inhabited mostly by old people and young kids. There was no musical notation in their hymnals, just the words, and the nusic set to the often familiar words was completely different from that in American churches. The service had a litany not unlike the Roman Catholic churches I attended as a kid with my RC friends, a litany meant to be easily memorized by illiterate churchgoers. There was also an inhabited castle there that was open to visitors once a year, and I got to see that. The sense of the dfferences between the aristocracy and the commoners has never gone away over there. The positive part of this is that people there don't see service as demeaning. The negative is that no matter how much of a success you become as a commoner, you will never be accepted by the "bluebloods" as an equal. Also, the land all belongs to the aristocracy, and buying or building a home there requires getting the landowner's permission and the paying of ground rent (something that still happens in some E. US states, Maryland being one of them, though not all land is owned by the aristocracy who settled here in royalty-appointed offices of governance before 1776). There are increasingly wider swaths of land that are privately owned. The issue with ground rent is that if the blue blood who owns the land either takes a dislike to you or decides to do something else with that land, your house becomes worthless unless you can afford to move it to a different place, hopefully one where you can buy the land and not run into the issue again. They're not forced, even today as far as I know, to buy your house at a fair market value and send you off, cash in hand, to find a new place.
So it is very different there. Even private apartment buildings made for lower income families are not exempt from having the tenants evicted and the building torn down. The effect this has on many younger residents of the British Isles is a feeling of hopelessness. There is, outside of council housing (translation: the Projects), no housing security, even when a building has stood there and been kept in good shape for decades. With little change, except in the few evangelical churches, to the ancient model of a memorizable litany for the largely illiterate "great unwashed," the worship is formalized and begins to feel somewhat empty. A catechism of sorts for the Presbyterian Church (or "kirk" as they call it) is taught in all schools, and Roman Catholic churches - found more in the Highlands and Islands than the Kirk of Scotland (or in England, the Episcopalian or Anglican church) - do as is done in America, with Saturday catechism taught the RC way in their churches before noon, hoping to force young children away from Saturday morning cartoons on the telly, and prepare them for First Holy Communion then for confirmation.
So, if there was no way to find a wee evangelical church in the story (they can rarely afford to advertise in the papers or on social media), it was no surprise that Ava did not find a church where she felt welcomed. It takes a historical mindset to understand the whys and wherefores of the Protestant churches in the British Isles. If Ava had not made time to study up on history and to listen to the older people in the kirks who knew its history, the experience would baffle her. The preacher spouting hellfire and brimstone was most likely an overzealous fan of the preaching styles of Calvin and Knox, who, unlike the pastors they admired, left God's grace completely out of the picture for the actual or would-be believer. Not knowing where to look nor even that she would need to look specifically for an evangelical church, Ava lost her way. Soon, her roommate, one of the young people who had likely been guzzling apple cider (there is no such thing as non-alcoholic apple cider in the UK), and things like lemonade shandy and cider shandy (mixes of low alcohol beer and either lemonade or cider in a 50-50 mix, when I was in severe pain from the fibromyalgia that nothing would relieve, I used cider shandy and it eased the pain...I used it rarely enough...and yes, I believe it is OK to drink in moderation and have tasted various single malts, my favorite being Glen Fiddich with a 2nd, lower alcohol version being Drambuie). Drinking doesn't have the societal extremes there that it does in American society, and they have less teenaged alcoholism (or did when I lived there).
Wanting acceptance in a group is a recognized developmental goal, esp for teens and young adults, and so Ava ignored the emptiness she saw in Rosie's eyes, and finally went along with her, only to experience the most terrible thing she could experience - people acting like date rape was normal and that she was upset when it happened to her because she was "frigid." Unwilling to report her attacker in Scotland and unable to come to terms with what happened to her, she spiraled down into anxiety, depression, and self-loathing, and finally, someone brought her home after making sure she could either drop courses or finish online.
The question becomes, for Ava, is she right that God hates her for losing her virginity to date rape and there is no way back, or are her parents and her best friends right when they say there is nothing God can't forgive if your heart is contrite and you repent of anything you did wrong? That is the question that the entire book is about, starting with her arrival in Scotland.
So, for those Christians going overseas for a while, study the history and think about the repercussions for the church. Look up your denomination to see if they hwve planted churches near where you live. If not, find other evangelical denominations with whom you can broadly agree and see if they have planted churches near you. They won't be able to afford ads on the telly, social media, or the newspapers, so you need to do your homework to find a spiritual home. And recall their culture will affect their worship, so it may differ from worship in an American church.
I was always an independent cuss, which saved my bacon my entire life. I was never enamored of belonging to a group that did not value the same things I valued. Had I attended an evangelical church that disagreed with drinking, I would not have used even the lightweight alcohol I used only for severe pain (thankfully, a rare occurrence at the time). This would have been out of respect for a group I had agreed to attend. Had anyone asked my thoughts on alcohol consumption, I wouldn't have lied, but I woukd have abstained from drinking anyway, out of respect. Paul noted the freedoms we have as believers, for example, whether to eat meat sacrificed to idols that were never real gods or not. He said he had no qualms about itnsince their idols were fake gods, but if someone with him believed that meat sacrificed to idols was an abomination befire God, he would abstain from eating meat rather than cause that brother confusion and possibly endangering his salvation. I feel the same way about alcohol and agree with Paul, that I will not intentionally do anything to make a new brother or sister in Christ lose their faith. A few of these guidelines would have helped Ava in her search for a church and might have helped her find an evangelical church that would have supported her in her need for acceptance in a more wholesome setting.
Like all teens and young adults, Ava wanted to fit in and make new friends during her semester in Scotland at the University of Edinburgh. And like too many of them, she found out it was necessary to fit in with what she didn't want to be, or stay estranged from most of the students.
The history part: I lived in Scotland for 3.5 years a long time ago, and even then, there were few evangelical churches and even fewer youth and young adult groups. I can only imagine it has gotten worse since then. I was in my early 30s, and had been saved at age 19 from the occult...had backslidden when the youth group I was in had joined up with the "Children of God" cult out west (David Koresh's cult, with which more people are familiar, was an offshoot of the cult my group joined). I was still thinking for myself, and the things they were demanding were thngs I couldn't do because they were wrong. One was to sell all you had and move in with the people who were going, which included dropping out of college and selling flowers at the roadside; another was to empty your own bank accounts and any joint accounts - which, at our ages, meant our parents' accounts - and to gain access to their other accounts and properties and sell them, leaving their families destitute and homeless to put those funds at the disposal of the cult. I refused. I knew how my family struggled financially and I could never bring myself to do something like that to them. And I spread that to the others, whose claim was that their parents were "too materialistic" so it didn't matter. But there were a few whom I wakened up and who changed their mind about joining the cult, and I thank God for that. But while the cold response of the church I grew up attending had driven me away from God, this drove me further away. If I wasn't really a child of God because I had common sense, maybe the atheists were right and there was no God. Certainly my exoeriences my whole life had taught me that God, if He existed, blamed me for my parent's divorce and had a lot of idiots for followers. The Bible, which seemed to have started coming alive for me, had been skewed by an overemphasis on what was called "Christian demonology," to which, with my background, I was very susceptible. And so I stopped believing. I faked it in church and around church-goers, but I didn't believe. Not anymore. It took a patient (I'm a retired RN) witnessing to me and a new church to answer the questions I had about the cruel way a Jehovah's Witness had treated me when I rejected her cult (all I had wanted to know was why they refused blood transfusions, nothing more), and the lingering questions about why God kept rejecting me (to my way of thinking), to get me back to who Jesus really was, and His presence in keeping me safe from the cult and, through me, warning others off.
This made me very sensitive to the auras inside churches, esp. when I was overseas with my now-retired military spouse. When we were in Puerto Rico, for example, one of the churches felt as demonic as anything I had done in the occult, and inside, there was plenty of evidence of demonic activity. We were in Scotland after the lightning hit York Cathedral, just after their preacher had said that there was no God and that if there was, he invited God to strike him dead right there in the pulpit. When God didn't, he used that as proof that there was no God and that the Bible was just a lot of morality tales designed over history to teach us to live good lives. The spot the lightning struck was the pulpit where, around 12 hours before, the preacher had challenged God to strike him dead if God exisited. Thankfully, the location of the strike was enough to convince many that God had spared the preacher's life in hopes he would repent, but last I heard (which has been a good whioe ago), he had not changed his mind despite God's mercies in the warning. Churches have always had a certain feel about them to me, one that inspires a quiet reverence - even in non-believers and those of other religions - that causes a sort of respectful silence. But when we took Mom through parts of England, esp. York, there was no feel of what I had come to think of as God's presence in that fancy cathedral. Even the stained glass windows were dulled, their once vibrant colors now faded to tans, greys, and other neutral colors. About 6 months ago, I came across photos taken more recently, by someone who had visited Yorkminster, and described the feeling inspired by the Spirit of God present in places where His name is worshipped, and the vibrant colors were back. Apparently, those who had always believed and those whose minds were changed by the event, plus new people moving into York, had revitalized the once-forsaken cathedral. And finally, there was a cathedral in the town where we lived while we were there, and it was inhabited mostly by old people and young kids. There was no musical notation in their hymnals, just the words, and the nusic set to the often familiar words was completely different from that in American churches. The service had a litany not unlike the Roman Catholic churches I attended as a kid with my RC friends, a litany meant to be easily memorized by illiterate churchgoers. There was also an inhabited castle there that was open to visitors once a year, and I got to see that. The sense of the dfferences between the aristocracy and the commoners has never gone away over there. The positive part of this is that people there don't see service as demeaning. The negative is that no matter how much of a success you become as a commoner, you will never be accepted by the "bluebloods" as an equal. Also, the land all belongs to the aristocracy, and buying or building a home there requires getting the landowner's permission and the paying of ground rent (something that still happens in some E. US states, Maryland being one of them, though not all land is owned by the aristocracy who settled here in royalty-appointed offices of governance before 1776). There are increasingly wider swaths of land that are privately owned. The issue with ground rent is that if the blue blood who owns the land either takes a dislike to you or decides to do something else with that land, your house becomes worthless unless you can afford to move it to a different place, hopefully one where you can buy the land and not run into the issue again. They're not forced, even today as far as I know, to buy your house at a fair market value and send you off, cash in hand, to find a new place.
So it is very different there. Even private apartment buildings made for lower income families are not exempt from having the tenants evicted and the building torn down. The effect this has on many younger residents of the British Isles is a feeling of hopelessness. There is, outside of council housing (translation: the Projects), no housing security, even when a building has stood there and been kept in good shape for decades. With little change, except in the few evangelical churches, to the ancient model of a memorizable litany for the largely illiterate "great unwashed," the worship is formalized and begins to feel somewhat empty. A catechism of sorts for the Presbyterian Church (or "kirk" as they call it) is taught in all schools, and Roman Catholic churches - found more in the Highlands and Islands than the Kirk of Scotland (or in England, the Episcopalian or Anglican church) - do as is done in America, with Saturday catechism taught the RC way in their churches before noon, hoping to force young children away from Saturday morning cartoons on the telly, and prepare them for First Holy Communion then for confirmation.
So, if there was no way to find a wee evangelical church in the story (they can rarely afford to advertise in the papers or on social media), it was no surprise that Ava did not find a church where she felt welcomed. It takes a historical mindset to understand the whys and wherefores of the Protestant churches in the British Isles. If Ava had not made time to study up on history and to listen to the older people in the kirks who knew its history, the experience would baffle her. The preacher spouting hellfire and brimstone was most likely an overzealous fan of the preaching styles of Calvin and Knox, who, unlike the pastors they admired, left God's grace completely out of the picture for the actual or would-be believer. Not knowing where to look nor even that she would need to look specifically for an evangelical church, Ava lost her way. Soon, her roommate, one of the young people who had likely been guzzling apple cider (there is no such thing as non-alcoholic apple cider in the UK), and things like lemonade shandy and cider shandy (mixes of low alcohol beer and either lemonade or cider in a 50-50 mix, when I was in severe pain from the fibromyalgia that nothing would relieve, I used cider shandy and it eased the pain...I used it rarely enough...and yes, I believe it is OK to drink in moderation and have tasted various single malts, my favorite being Glen Fiddich with a 2nd, lower alcohol version being Drambuie). Drinking doesn't have the societal extremes there that it does in American society, and they have less teenaged alcoholism (or did when I lived there).
Wanting acceptance in a group is a recognized developmental goal, esp for teens and young adults, and so Ava ignored the emptiness she saw in Rosie's eyes, and finally went along with her, only to experience the most terrible thing she could experience - people acting like date rape was normal and that she was upset when it happened to her because she was "frigid." Unwilling to report her attacker in Scotland and unable to come to terms with what happened to her, she spiraled down into anxiety, depression, and self-loathing, and finally, someone brought her home after making sure she could either drop courses or finish online.
The question becomes, for Ava, is she right that God hates her for losing her virginity to date rape and there is no way back, or are her parents and her best friends right when they say there is nothing God can't forgive if your heart is contrite and you repent of anything you did wrong? That is the question that the entire book is about, starting with her arrival in Scotland.
So, for those Christians going overseas for a while, study the history and think about the repercussions for the church. Look up your denomination to see if they hwve planted churches near where you live. If not, find other evangelical denominations with whom you can broadly agree and see if they have planted churches near you. They won't be able to afford ads on the telly, social media, or the newspapers, so you need to do your homework to find a spiritual home. And recall their culture will affect their worship, so it may differ from worship in an American church.
I was always an independent cuss, which saved my bacon my entire life. I was never enamored of belonging to a group that did not value the same things I valued. Had I attended an evangelical church that disagreed with drinking, I would not have used even the lightweight alcohol I used only for severe pain (thankfully, a rare occurrence at the time). This would have been out of respect for a group I had agreed to attend. Had anyone asked my thoughts on alcohol consumption, I wouldn't have lied, but I woukd have abstained from drinking anyway, out of respect. Paul noted the freedoms we have as believers, for example, whether to eat meat sacrificed to idols that were never real gods or not. He said he had no qualms about itnsince their idols were fake gods, but if someone with him believed that meat sacrificed to idols was an abomination befire God, he would abstain from eating meat rather than cause that brother confusion and possibly endangering his salvation. I feel the same way about alcohol and agree with Paul, that I will not intentionally do anything to make a new brother or sister in Christ lose their faith. A few of these guidelines would have helped Ava in her search for a church and might have helped her find an evangelical church that would have supported her in her need for acceptance in a more wholesome setting.
November 29, 2022
Outside of Grace is a skillfully written story of a young woman’s journey into a world that is both literally and figuratively foreign to her. Author Anna Daugherty carefully weaves her way through this touching drama, with vivid descriptions that allow readers to immerse themselves in the characters and their story. Anyone who has faced adversity will be touched by this young woman’s struggle to overcome a life-changing experience that leaves her questioning her faith and the love of those around her. It’s a story of faith, love, family, and the harsh realities of life that you won’t want to put down. Barbara a. Luker, author of I Carry Your Heart.
September 20, 2024
It can take a while to see the whole grace of God.
This book is beautifully written to tell the story of the value of friends, family, church group and God. I guess it's a woman's book but teenagers could benefit by reading it. It was a great story
This book is beautifully written to tell the story of the value of friends, family, church group and God. I guess it's a woman's book but teenagers could benefit by reading it. It was a great story
November 30, 2022
Outside of Grace is a powerful story of a young woman’s dark night of the soul and her struggle for redemption. It is a modern parable for anyone who has lost touch with their faith in the face of the world. Tension builds throughout as Ava, feeling lost and alone in a foreign place, struggles to fit in, after the local faith community turns her away for being an outsider. The narrative also captures how emotional healing and spiritual healing, while not one and the same, can work together to create the space necessary to open your heart to God’s grace.
September 4, 2023
I found this book very enlightening, as it helped me deal with what happened to me over fifty years ago. Through my lifetime, I have been reminded that God loves me with all my imperfections. I am secure in His arms.
December 5, 2022
I thoroughly enjoyed this book. It was an excellent representation of what can happen when we change ourselves to fit into the places we are in or the people we are around instead of keeping God at the forefront of our minds and following our instincts in situations.
I do feel that trigger warnings are needed, especially when it comes to sexual assault. But that being said, the author was not graphic or gratuitous in the depiction. She didn't focus on the assault, but on the aftermath and how Ava responds to herself and others. Walking with Ava through her experience was real and honest. Following her struggle to learn to trust herself, her friends, and God was right on. Watching Ava remember and believe that God really did love her and was always with her was a beautiful thing to see.
Thank you to NetGalley and the Publisher for an advanced copy in exchange for my honest review.
I do feel that trigger warnings are needed, especially when it comes to sexual assault. But that being said, the author was not graphic or gratuitous in the depiction. She didn't focus on the assault, but on the aftermath and how Ava responds to herself and others. Walking with Ava through her experience was real and honest. Following her struggle to learn to trust herself, her friends, and God was right on. Watching Ava remember and believe that God really did love her and was always with her was a beautiful thing to see.
Thank you to NetGalley and the Publisher for an advanced copy in exchange for my honest review.
November 26, 2022
Outside of grace is a wonderful read. I loved the pacing of the book and how it would change perspectives. The chapter length was great for me as a mom of 5 littles. I felt like I could pick it up and read a chapter whenever I found a few minutes in the day. Of course I almost never read just one chapter because the story drew me in and I didn’t want to stop reading. The author provides terrific location descriptions. I felt transported to Scotland and the Texas coast. The characters were relatable and realistic. The book delves into some tough subjects but the best stories don’t shy away from hard things. I could feel the pain and desperation the main character went through. I loved the theme of grace and redemption though. Definitely worth the read!
December 1, 2022
This coming-of-age-story is quite on point in regard of how easy it is to leave the path you're on without even noticing at first. Christian parents often think it's enough to raise their children in a Christian way - but unfortunately it isn't, and it's not even necessary to go abroad. But God's forgiveness is limitless and we're never outside of grace.
April 6, 2023
In the genre of Christian fiction, Outside of Grace is an enjoyable but rugged story. It deals with some brutal topics experienced by Ava, a pastor’s daughter who spends a semester studying abroad in Scotland. Anna Daugherty is a great writer. It moved along, and she also took time to include descriptions of Scottish landscape and culture. I recommend this book to those who like that genre. It examines faith, forgiveness, repentance, and God’s faithfulness. I hope this author writes more!
September 17, 2024
If you are looking for a book that is incredibly well researched, thought out, thought provoking, and entertaining; this is your read.
Anna Daugherty masterfully combines character dialogue, Christian theology, and storytelling in Outside of Grace. This is your read. When you finish with this book, pick up the second in the series, Reaching for Grace.
Anna Daugherty masterfully combines character dialogue, Christian theology, and storytelling in Outside of Grace. This is your read. When you finish with this book, pick up the second in the series, Reaching for Grace.
November 29, 2022
Told with unflinching and sometimes heart-breaking honesty, Outside of Grace is a compelling story about dealing with the world around us with both its beautiful and ugly elements. It delicately tackles the reality of recovering from trauma, learning to live again, and hopefully even thriving.
November 1, 2023
This book expressed, so beautifully, the emotions, doubts, questions we go through when hard times come our way. I could relate to Ava’s self-doubt- I think anyone can! Then the realization that God’s Grace had always been there. The author did a great job of developing each character and their relationships within the plot.
November 3, 2025
Outside of Grace
Beautifully written book! The story was SO good, and the way the author handled the situations both in Scotland and after Ava returned home were very believable and realistic. I won’t over reveal here, so no spoiler alert needed, but this would be a great book for a youth group or high school or college-age people to read. It would provide so many lessons and thoughts for discussion. The main lesson is that God’s Grace is sufficient and He loves us unconditionally. His love is not because of what we do, but in spite of what we do. I honestly don’t think fie stars are enough for this book! Also, it was very well-edited.
Beautifully written book! The story was SO good, and the way the author handled the situations both in Scotland and after Ava returned home were very believable and realistic. I won’t over reveal here, so no spoiler alert needed, but this would be a great book for a youth group or high school or college-age people to read. It would provide so many lessons and thoughts for discussion. The main lesson is that God’s Grace is sufficient and He loves us unconditionally. His love is not because of what we do, but in spite of what we do. I honestly don’t think fie stars are enough for this book! Also, it was very well-edited.
February 22, 2023
Good story of coming of age and the struggles of making your faith in God personal.
February 19, 2023
couldn’t put it down!
I binge read this one! I didn’t plan on it, but I connected with the characters and the story so much, and it was so well written. I laughed and I cried - I felt all the emotions!! I���ll be keeping an eye in this author! Loved this so much!! 5 stars!
I binge read this one! I didn’t plan on it, but I connected with the characters and the story so much, and it was so well written. I laughed and I cried - I felt all the emotions!! I���ll be keeping an eye in this author! Loved this so much!! 5 stars!
February 18, 2023
Great book, great truths
Great book about real life and God in it. The people are very real and personal, multidimensional. I hope there are more from Anna Daugherty.
Great book about real life and God in it. The people are very real and personal, multidimensional. I hope there are more from Anna Daugherty.
September 6, 2024
I confess, at first, I didn't like where the book was going. I didn't like that it wasn't a 'traditional' romance and that Ava was making some very unwise choices.
I didn't like it because it was real. It was raw. Anna perfectly captures Ava's struggles and feelings on paper. I praise God I haven't had to deal with what Ava went through, but I have struggled with depression, and Anna hit the nail on the head with those struggles.
I'm so glad I pushed through the nasty, though. Though this book is fiction, the redemption through Christ is not. This story shows it beautifully.
So yes, parts are hard to read, but life is hard. The whole story is beautiful.
I didn't like it because it was real. It was raw. Anna perfectly captures Ava's struggles and feelings on paper. I praise God I haven't had to deal with what Ava went through, but I have struggled with depression, and Anna hit the nail on the head with those struggles.
I'm so glad I pushed through the nasty, though. Though this book is fiction, the redemption through Christ is not. This story shows it beautifully.
So yes, parts are hard to read, but life is hard. The whole story is beautiful.
September 8, 2024
Excellent
This book is no light weight. Ava was like many young believers, sheltered from the world's enticement and unaware of enemy strategies with awful consequences. Yet God redeems. I found myself pacing when she would not share what happened to her with those who loved her and could help. This covered many aspects of this type of boundary crushing. A great book to teach our young women, so they may avoid this.
This book is no light weight. Ava was like many young believers, sheltered from the world's enticement and unaware of enemy strategies with awful consequences. Yet God redeems. I found myself pacing when she would not share what happened to her with those who loved her and could help. This covered many aspects of this type of boundary crushing. A great book to teach our young women, so they may avoid this.
August 25, 2025
Restoring her love of God and family
Lovely story about second chance at life. Ava thought her life was over due to a traumatic experience at university. It took a long journey for Ava to finally accept what Jack and her parents were saying. Her return to church and the love of God, Jack and her family came through for her.
Lovely story about second chance at life. Ava thought her life was over due to a traumatic experience at university. It took a long journey for Ava to finally accept what Jack and her parents were saying. Her return to church and the love of God, Jack and her family came through for her.
August 10, 2023
This book is fantastic. The characters were well rounded and convincing and the story line flowed well. I was really impressed with how she inserted Bible verses and Christian ideas without being preachy or cheesy.
January 9, 2026
Rather shocked by this Christian fiction
While characters may, at times, lead a story, the author always has the final say. So why is a book marked as Christian fiction and, in all fairness, that has some Christian content and a host of Biblical references at the end, have Blasphemy in it like this? Not just the usual where 'God' is used as an expletive, which is bad enough and used several times throughout the book, but also 'Jesus' is used in like manner! Nobody that loves Jesus should use His name in this way. Not even to convey a backslidden Christian. It was already abundantly clear anyway.
Secondly, there is a lot about her discovering, really discovering, that Jesus loves her, but not once do we read about her actually repenting and asking God to forgive her. Not for the rape, obviously. But for her other choices.
Seemingly there is no accountability for anyone, including the villains. Only for a obscure character mentioned but never met. Bizarre.
Honestly, I would have gone with one star but parts of the second half and the ending, brought it to 2. This could have been a 4 but the blasphemy, absence of any repentance and accountability, spoiled the story for me.
It is also a very slow read at first. Picks up a bit midway. Overall, very disappointing to see 'Christian' fiction tainted in this way.
While characters may, at times, lead a story, the author always has the final say. So why is a book marked as Christian fiction and, in all fairness, that has some Christian content and a host of Biblical references at the end, have Blasphemy in it like this? Not just the usual where 'God' is used as an expletive, which is bad enough and used several times throughout the book, but also 'Jesus' is used in like manner! Nobody that loves Jesus should use His name in this way. Not even to convey a backslidden Christian. It was already abundantly clear anyway.
Secondly, there is a lot about her discovering, really discovering, that Jesus loves her, but not once do we read about her actually repenting and asking God to forgive her. Not for the rape, obviously. But for her other choices.
Seemingly there is no accountability for anyone, including the villains. Only for a obscure character mentioned but never met. Bizarre.
Honestly, I would have gone with one star but parts of the second half and the ending, brought it to 2. This could have been a 4 but the blasphemy, absence of any repentance and accountability, spoiled the story for me.
It is also a very slow read at first. Picks up a bit midway. Overall, very disappointing to see 'Christian' fiction tainted in this way.
January 14, 2024
God's love has no boundaries
Ava is to spend a semester abroad in Scotland. She is a pastor's kid, raised in a faithful, Bible based home and church. A leader in her college Christian groups, she expects to find that kind of faith based activity and a temporary church home in Scotland. However, the churches are not like hers at home, and the Christian groups on campus are not for exchange students. Lonely and homesick, she allows herself to be guided by her roommates, which lead her to partying, drinking, and more. At home they worry about her, especially her family and her two best friends, Talia and Jack. When she stops responding to their calls, texts, and emails, Jack is determined to do something about it. God's love knows no boundaries!!
Ava is to spend a semester abroad in Scotland. She is a pastor's kid, raised in a faithful, Bible based home and church. A leader in her college Christian groups, she expects to find that kind of faith based activity and a temporary church home in Scotland. However, the churches are not like hers at home, and the Christian groups on campus are not for exchange students. Lonely and homesick, she allows herself to be guided by her roommates, which lead her to partying, drinking, and more. At home they worry about her, especially her family and her two best friends, Talia and Jack. When she stops responding to their calls, texts, and emails, Jack is determined to do something about it. God's love knows no boundaries!!
February 2, 2023
Though I would probably classify this book as predictable, I did enjoy it. It portrays a pretty accurate picture of what it's like to grow up as a pastor's kid, and I appreciated how eye opening it was for anyone who has never experienced "life in the fishbowl" the way pastor's kids do.
I also appreciated how it caused me to think about what I would have done in the lead character's shoes, and reminded me how easily it is to give in to temptation, even when you know what is right and wrong.
An excellent glimpse of the way all of us need grace!
I also appreciated how it caused me to think about what I would have done in the lead character's shoes, and reminded me how easily it is to give in to temptation, even when you know what is right and wrong.
An excellent glimpse of the way all of us need grace!
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