Faking Grace

Title: FAKING GRACE
Author: Tamara Leigh
Publisher: Multnomah Books
August 2008
ISBN: 978-1-59052-929-4
Genre: inspirational/chick lit

Maizy Grace Stewart needs a second job to pay the bills. Her job at a Nashville newspaper didn’t result in a full time position, and now Maizy’s savings are gone. So she applies at Steeple Side Christian Resources. Only problem is, Steeple Side only hires committed Christians. So Maizy changes her name to Grace, starts toting Jesus-themed accessories, and learning “Christian Speak” with the help of the Dumb Blondes Guide to Christianity.

Maizy is hired at Steeple Side, but the senior editor there, Jack Prentiss, seems determined to prove that Maizy is a fraud. Which she is. So she sets out to fool Jack and keep her job by attending a church and actually buying a Bible.

When Maizy’s boss at the Nashville newspaper wants Maizy to investigate—and expose—and skeletons in Steeple Side’s closet, along with the assignment comes a cushy increase in salary and Maizy’s dream job. Only problem is, Maizy has begun to care about her co-workers at Steeple Side. Will Maizy deliver the dirt or lean on her new-found faith and pray for grace?

I have read Ms. Leigh’s previous books, but FAKING GRACE is hands down my favorite. Quirky and lighthearted, with Christianity unabashedly woven throughout, and deliciously developed characters that I wished could walk out of the pages and into my life.

Maizy Grace is delightful, and I couldn’t help but pull for her as she struggles to make sense of the life, situation, and people that God placed in her life. And the secondary characters are very well rounded, making this book come alive. Don’t miss FAKING GRACE. $12.99. 400 pages.