my favorite books

One of my favorite books since 1997.

Maybe 1998. I can't be sure when I first read this book. But believe me when I tell you it was a long time ago.

Yes, I realize I was only, like, ten years old. I started early.

Quick side note: A friend and I were once talking about the book Redeeming Love by Francine Rivers. It's a book about this prostitute and this man, and how he falls in love with her and marries her but she never believes she's good enough for him and keeps trying to return to her sinful ways. She liked it; I didn't. (I pretty much don't like any Francine Rivers, though. I also don't like books about prostitutes, and I'm not exactly sure why that is.) Anyway, we were talking about why I didn't like it and I said something along the lines of it had been a long time since I had read it and I might like it more if I read it again. She said something about how I was probably too young for it at the time. I got the impression she was thinking I was about fifteen or sixteen. I didn't dare tell her I was probably more twelve or thirteen. Twelve years old and reading books about prostitutes. It's a wonder I turned out okay.

But yes, I was about ten or eleven when I graduated from my Babysitter's Club Books and started reading Christian romance for adults. So believe me when I tell you I've been reading in this market for a while.

Anyway, Pretense was one of my first few books. I started out with some (very) tame Janette Oke (if you've ever read the Love Comes Softly series you know what I mean) and moved on to Lori Wick, who is still one of my favorite authors. Although her recent books aren't as interesting as her first, in my opinion.

At 708 pages Pretense is a whopper for a ten-year-old, but I loved it. I read that book so many times you wouldn't even believe it if I told you. I used to have my sister read a paragraph from the book, close it, hand it to me, and I would be able to find it within two minutes.

Perhaps I was slightly obsessed.

I lost my copy of Pretense a couple years ago. I miss my old beat up copy. At the time I had been lending books to several people, and I'm not sure what ever happened to it.

For those of you who borrow books from me now, I keep a list.

I'm weird like that.

Anyway, after about a year I bought another copy with the new cover. It's not the same.

From the back cover:

Meet the Bishop sisters--Two women at the crossroads of life.

On the outside, the Bishop girls appear as different as sisters can be. Mackenzie is a mahogany-haired beauty who inherited the determined nature of her Army-officer father. Her infectious sense of humor and rare gift of imagination are often hidden by a reserved manner.

Radiant, blond Delancey views the world through an artist's eyes, drawing what she sees with wide sweeps of emotions. Her charming and trusting personality easily wins friends and admirers, but also leaves her sensitive heart vulnerable to hurt.

As the girls grow, unexpected difficulties threaten their world. Will their life-changing experiences bring them together or tear them apart? Where will they find the love they seek?

Like I said, one of my all-time favorites. Enjoy!