Uncharted

This is now one of my personal top 10 books i have ever read. And it one of the top 10 Christian Fiction Novels of 2006. You will Never see the ending coming. It is not what you thought it would be. WHAM! It is an original. I love love this book!

Too preachy. Some good points.

I picked up this book based on the review that compared it to Lost, Castaway and the Great Divorce among other things. On the basis of that review I was disapointed. The style of writing was different than what I expected it to be; however, on its own it is a great book. After first reading the book I was going to rate it four stars because of a few flaws in the story. After a few weeks have gone by I have changed my review to a five star rating. This book has stuck with me and I find myself contemplating its messages and thinking through the story and how it impacts my life. As I belive this is exactly what the author intended this book to do I think it deserves a full five stars. I loved the set up of the book. Angela Hunt does a spectacular job at creating the characters and making them interesting. Once the action began it lost some of that flavor and I didn't enjoy it as much. It became too similar in tone to other stories about people on a deserted island as the masks the characters wore started to slip. The ending is haunting. That is what stuck with me all this time. It was not the shock other reviews proclaimed it to be. It's pretty easy to figure out if you are looking for a "surprise" ending. Knowing the ending doesn't detract from the book. It is the message in the ending that makes you think and evaluate your life. A book that is able to do that has done its job.

Sixteen-year-old Sarah Carter is on the beach when she discovers a bottle washed up from the ocean. It holds some pages from a book and the legible word "Sarah." The woman who is with Sarah forces the teen to toss the bottle away since it might carry some unknown disease. This brief prologue scene is in the present and the remainder of the novel flashes back to a year earlier. In short chapters, readers are introduced to six different people who met as college students about 10 years previously. As a way to earn some extra money, they sold a thin, self-published hardcover titled HAPPILY EVER AFTER for businessman John Watson. The book retailed for $14.00, and Watson gave them seven dollars for each copy sold. Of these six individuals, only David Payne, now a pediatric surgeon, read the volume and made a faith commitment. Each year he makes a missions trip and pointedly invites his five friends to come on the journey, yet each time they give some excuse. This year Dr. Payne plans to go to the island of Kwajalein and help the people of this remote Pacific island. After emailing an invitation to his five friends, he drives home only to be killed by an SUV that hits his vehicle. All five friends decide to attend David's funeral. As they meet, they each carry their own baggage from the past. Karyn Hall lives in Manhattan with her daughter Sarah and works on the soap opera "A Thousand Tomorrows" as Lorinda Loving. While selling the books, Karyn met and fell in love with Kevin Carter, who eventually became the Chief Marketing Officer at the Old Time Candy Company in Atlanta, Georgia. When Sarah was a child, the couple divorced because Karyn wanted to move to New York City to revive her acting career, even though Kevin's business was in Atlanta. Lisa Melvin cares for her elderly parents and runs a small children's daycare in Seattle. Susan Brantley Dodson had married an older wealthy man and moved to Houston, Texas. After her husband's death, Susan is immersed in a wealthy Texas lifestyle. Finally, Mark Morris owns and operates several car dealerships in the Cocoa Beach, Florida area. Impressions count for Mark, so instead of flying to the funeral, he makes a point of driving a gold Mercedes Benz. At the funeral, they're pressured into going on the missions trip and build a school on the island of Kwajalein in David's memory. Unfortunately, the flight is forced to land on a different Pacific island, so John Watson charters a boat to take them to their destination. But when a sudden storm wrecks the boat, David's five friends --- the only survivors --- are stranded on an uninhabited island, where they struggle to create a fire and find fresh water. They take refuge in a cave and discover a strange spot where they see a vision of their past life. Through their experiences on this island, each person discovers new truths about his or her life. Bestselling author Angela Hunt has crafted a masterpiece with this contemporary novel. Readers plunge into s

Angela Hunt never disappoints me! I just read Uncharted, and it blew me away. I can never tell what's just around the corner with Hunt's stories--and I like that. You really can "expect the unexpected" with her books. There's a challenge in this book, and I'm still thinking about it! Can hardly wait to see what she does next!

As we begin this read we become familiar with the lives of six people who were college friends at one time, but now have parted to live their own lives. One of these friends dies and the rest travel out of respect to his funeral. All have had a dream or vision of their departed friend before they knew he had died. Why? What did this mean? Was it a warning and will they heed his frantic cries? The answer will surprise you. It is somewhat difficult to review this work without revealing the shocking ending. I will say this; the remaining friends find themselves on an uncharted island after an accident. What they discover there about themselves and their lives will shake you up; cause you to rethink your own life and hopefully make some changes. This work has an outstanding storyline, great character development and quite an emotional ending. I give it a five star and a thumbs-up review. This is a wonderful book, not only a great read but one that has eternal heartstrings attached to it that you will remember for a long time to come. Don't miss this one.

...but not for the faint of soul. Angela Hunt wraps an eternal truth with an intriguing story and exquisite writing. You'll read Uncharted quickly and mull it over for a long, long time.