The Desire

Title: THE DESIRE

Authors: Dan Walsh and Gary Smalley

Publisher: Revell

August 2014

ISBN: 978-0800721503

Genre: Contemporary / Marriage issues

Can faith build a bridge between their dreams?

For two years, Allan and Michele have been trying to have a baby. The emotional ride has been taking a toll on their hearts--and their relationship. Michele is obsessed with researching fertility treatments while Allan seems content to spend his time--and their money--on supporting displaced children in Africa. Something's got to give. But they both hope it's not their marriage.

Still, God has a plan for Allan and Michele that they could never have imagined. And all it takes to set it in motion is a change of heart . . .

THE DESIRE is the third book in The Restoration Series, but it does stand alone. The main characters in this book are Allan and Michele, though her parents and siblings do play a key part.

I haven’t really enjoyed any of the books in this series. The story does drag and is very slow, with lots of backstory--just in case you missed a book, I think. And it includes a message I figured out a long time ago. When you’ve been married to the same man for thirty years, it is a lesson learned that comes with the time and effort invested. If you read the first book in this series, or read any of Mr. Smalley’s marriage books, you have the message in fiction. Men and women are different. Women need to understand how men think. Men need to understand how women think. And it is a valid message. It needs to be heard. So many marriages end in divorce that could’ve been avoided if….

And that’s the thing. Maybe that one IF is addressed in THE DESIRE? Maybe by reading this book, it will touch something deep inside you and you’ll understand something. Or you’ll hear a message intended for a friend and be able to pass the book along to help her/him along the road.

In today’s, “I don’t like what you’re saying/doing to me, so I’m leaving” world, where too many marriages end in divorce and so many young couples are avoiding the marriage commitment altogether, wouldn’t it be wiser to listen to an expert and fix the problem than let it destroy lives?

THE DESIRE covers a valid topic. And gives helpful hints. It’s kind of nonfiction in a fiction style. And the story is good too.

$9.99 Kindle. $14.99 paperback. 363 pages.