A Damsel in Distress--Concluding Karen Witemeyer's A Tailor-Made Bride

Host: Jennifer Slattery

Love is in the air...but villains lurk on the ground.

I was not expecting Karen's ending. Here I sat, nose-deep in the story, envisioning wedding bells and lacy gowns when all of a sudden, out pops slimy Warren who grabs Hannah and holds her hostage.

And just when you start to hate this warty toad, he sheds a bit of his slime and offers Hannah an apology. My question to you is, what were your feelings toward Warren? Did you hate him entirely? Feel a smidgen of compassion?

And how did you feel a bit earlier when J.T. confronted Warren's father?

One thing I thought about during the interaction between J.T. and Warren's father was the tendency parents have to over-compensate. Compassion is a wonderful and necessary emotion, especially when it comes to parenting. However, taken to far, it appears, compassion can actually harm the recipient. Although there's no way of knowing if Warren's villainous behavior resulted from ineffective parenting, I'm sure we can all think of real-life examples where coddling led to spoiling.

How did you feel when Hanna returned from the picnic to find her store ransacked? Have you ever experienced a similar let-down? Maybe you worked hard for something, only to see the goal slip between your hands. Or maybe, like Hannah, someone worked against you. If so, were you able to rebuild and start again?

Finally, what did you love most about this book? Did God use this book to show you any truths? Were there any moments you felt drawn to God afresh?

Join our discussion then hop on over to Clash of the Titles to meet two more great authors. And I hope you're getting ready for our next book club. For July, we're diving into Eleanor Gustafson's The Stones! Fun, fun, fun!