A Promise to Remember

Title: A PROMISE TO REMEMBER
Author: Kathryn Cushman
Publisher: Bethany House Publishers
October 2007
ISBN: 978-0-7642-0380-0
Genre: Inspirational/women’s fiction

Andie Phelps is mourning the death of her son, Chad. Chad had been trying to raise scholarship money and he wanted his mother to help with the posters. Andie is trying to work on the posters in her son’s memory, but her husband, Blair, suggests that the memory is too hard on her, so he donates a large amount in Chad’s name.

Melanie Johnston is a single mom who has just lost her only son, Jeff. Jeff’s life was snuffed out when Chad Phelps was driving with a suspended license. Jeff’s only legacy is a scrapbook Melanie is making in his honor—until she reads in the paper about the Phelps family donating a scholarship in Chad’s memory. Melanie is bitter and upset about a killer having a legacy, so she picks up the phone and calls a lawyer.

The accident has changed everything in these women’s lives, and now opposite worlds has collided. How are will these women go to fulfill A PROMISE TO REMEMBER?

A PROMISE TO REMEMBER is a strong, emotion-filled story reminiscent of Karen Kingsbury’s writing style. Don’t read this book without a box of tissue nearby. I instantly felt for Andie and Melanie, their circumstances, and their quests to remember their sons’ memories.

This is an absolutely amazing debut novel, and I will definitely look for more books by this talented author. The writing is tight, gripping, the story moving, and one that will stay with me for a long time. An excellent story of love, loss, and forgiveness. This book will touch the heart of the reader. $13.99. 316 pages.