Isabella Alcantara and her husband Francisco are newly wed and expecting their first child when Isabella's family are killed by banditos and they are encouraged to sneak across the Mexican border to escape the indecencies happening to the Mexican people by her own kind. Her Abeulo, has given his life savings to them in order to hire a "coyote" to take them across into America where he believes they can have a chance at a better life for their baby.
Carolyn Sinclair, her daughter Miriam and grandson Davey are in mourning over the loss of Miriam's husband, David, a border patrol officer who was killed in the line of duty. Miriam hates illegal aliens and believes them to all be thieves and murderers. Carolyn and Davey hold onto faith that everything has a reason even though Davey is young, his understanding of God and humanity is remarkable.
Isabella and Francisco have been left in the Arizona desert to die, their "coyote" stole all of their money and left them to wander aimlessly. They happen upon a group of people whom they believe to be their salvation and find themselves in a worse situation. Believing God will see them through, they wait for their chance to escape their newly found prison. When the miracle arrives on Thanksgiving morning, the two set off into the unknown to find a safe haven in which to have their baby and begin their new life.
The members of both families have their own agendas with God and each person must find their faith in order to survive the insurmontable lessons that life is dealing in order to heal their broken hearts.
I was enthralled with the plot of this story, the evils that humanity can do to another is heart-wrenching. If you have a weak disposition, some of the scenes described may upset you, they are written with much depth of emotion that you cannot help but cry from the injustice in the world.
I found that each of the characters were strongly written and well described. Each one had their own persona and you will have no problems following any dialogue that may occur. The dialogue was a bit cliched in areas, but it works for the believability of human nature, we don't always speak in well structured sentences and most of our lingo or common speak is full of cliches.
I loved the back story characters, especially Isabella's grandfather, his emotions brings you closer to the world around us. Through his eyes we see the decay of his neighbourhood and watches the joy slip from his neighbours eyes. Everyone walks while looking over their shoulders wondering when the next senseless acts of barbaristic attacks to the innocent will occur. I found the book to fray your emotions on many levels.
I would give A Christmas Journey Home a four and a half stars out of five, I did find the story to be a bit predictable but the read is still entertaining and the characters ingraining. You feel for everyone in the story, as everyone is reaching for the same ideals, without even realizing it.
The ending was superb and author, Kathi Macais, leaves you with enough to let your imagination finish the tale without having to do it for you.
SYNOPSIS:
During Isabella Alcantara’s seventh month of pregnancy, her parents and siblings are murdered in gang- and drug-related violence, simply because their home was targeted by mistake. Isabella knows she was spared only because she now li
2 Comments on A Christmas Journey Home by Kathi Macias, last added: 10/28/2011
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This book is the classic story of King Arthur and Camelot. I really enjoyed the story and the book. I have always liked the story of King Arthur and although the book is really sad in many ways, it is also a great story about overcoming the evils around us. The reason the rating is so low is because later in the story there is a lot of discussion about adultery with Lancelot and Guinevere. The book is split into four parts. The first is my favorite since it covers the story of the sword in the stone off of which Disney based the classic movie of the same name. Each of the other parts covers a different stage of Arthur’s life. This is a classic piece of literature and is a great read, but may not be the best for younger readers.
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- Eleanor and Eddie Hall embark on a mission to rescue their missing aunt and uncle from a magical dream world.
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-When Eddie receives a magical stereoscope in the mail, Eleanor and Eddie enter the magical world of self discovery. (The book also deals with the question of religion)
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- It's Mildred's first year of witch school and she just can't seem to stay out of trouble. When her class is selected to perform at the most important celebration of the year, Mildred is determined to change her ways.
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Thanks for this fabulous review, Jennifer. I'm glad you enjoyed Kathi's first annual Christmas novel.
Readers can find a trailer for the book at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HeI-m0X2Osw
Wishing you the best,
Cheryl
www.pumpupyourbook.com
Thanks so much for this great review! Multiplied blessings to you and your readers!!!