At the Scent of Water

I picked up this book from our church library to read while on vacation and found myself engrossed in the story line immediately. Although not the age of the older woman in the book's opening chapter, I saw myself in her concern for another and in her desire to help in some way. Every year for the past 5 years when she has gone to her favorite mountain inn restaurant to celebrate her birthday with friends, she has seen the same man at the exact same time and at the same corner table and has noted that he is obviously waiting for someone who never comes. Her concern has caused her to begin to pray for him and for the circumstances of his life that have caused the deep pain and sadness she sees written across his face. The author weaves a story of answered prayer, of a renewal of faith in God's control over all of life, of being able to ask tough questions of "why?" I have struggled with my own questions to God, many of which were also asked by the characters in the book. The answers given by several godly people in the story were challenging and deeply thought-provoking and yet also deeply satisfying. I found my faith renewed in a way I never expected and realized I'd become very thirsty spiritually for more due to some deep sadnesses in my own life. Through this wonderful book which is now one of my top 5 books, I know God has worked in my heart in a very special way and will continue to do so. I do not believe it was by chance that I saw the book and checked it out. God had it all planned out for the book to be there just when I needed it. I also loved the truth of the verse, Job 14:9, from which the title of the book is taken. I highly recommend "At the Scent of Water" to anyone who is hurting due to the loss of a loved one.

I thoroughly enjoyed this novel by Linda Nichols. She is a gifted author she uses great detail in her writing, creating such a clear visual image of the events taking place in the story. It's a story of faith, hope, and of God's love and sovereignty. I strongly recommend this book.

Linda Nichols brings you face to face with the opportunity to look at your grief...whatever grief you may have in life...and still see the sovereignty and grace of Almighty God in the midst of it. Mrs. Nichol's characters and skillfully woven plot not only kept me intrigued, but also challenged my faith and my expectations of God in times of overwhelming grief or difficulty. Why does God allow tragedies? How am I to respond to them? Who is He in the midst of them? Mrs. Nichols addresses these questions and more, in the midst of a story that manages to stay delightful amidst deep questions and sorrow. The final chapter had a great twist that brought a huge smile to my face! Definitely worth reading and passing on to a good friend as well!

After reading the other reviews all I can say (WITHOUT GIVING TO MUCH AWAY) you will not be sorry you picked this book up. I have gone back through and looked up scripture reference. And wrote the ABC of salvation in the back of my bible to share with others later. Today I am purchasing Linda Nichols other books.

I really enjoyed this book and the depth that this author goes into with the various characters. We have two broken people who are deeply in love, but because of tragedies, they end up going their separate ways. The book shows how Annie and Sam try to move on, but you can sense that they are not complete without the other. This book was set in the mountains of Tennesee. You can feel the beauty of that area throughout the book. I loved the story about the other Annie from a long time ago, and how similar she is to the current Annie. I thought this was such a great book. Look forward to more books by this author.