Review of Song of Sugar Sands by Debra Coleman Jeter

Welcome to the review tour for Song of Sugar Sands by Debra Coleman Jeter. This is the second book in the series. I reviewed the first book, Joy After Noon, over at Andi's Book Reviews. Today I have an excerpt for you and then I'm sharing my thoughts on this book. Follow the tour to find out what others thought of this book as well.

Song of Sugar Sands

A deeply committed young man falls in love with the beautiful but troubled Acadia, who knows herself too selfish, too sinful, and too skeptical in her faith to marry a preacher.

Acadia Powers nearly lost her faith at an early age due to what she saw as the hypocrisy of her parents’ generation. In college—where the novel begins—she meets and falls in love with Peter O’Neil, who is fervent in his faith and wants to share the good news with the world. Despite serious doubts about her ability to survive as a preacher’s wife, Acadia finally agrees to marry Peter. The two embark with high hopes on a new life in Sugar Sands, Alabama, where Acadia takes a position as a high school teacher while Peter becomes pastor of a small church. SONG OF SUGAR SANDS recounts Acadia’s struggle to come to terms with issues of faith, while also telling the story of Peter and Acadia’s falling in love and the traumatic first year of their marriage. When one of her students attempts suicide after confiding her problems in Acadia, and a new friend and mentor, Beatrice Wood, reveals that she has terminal cancer, Acadia almost quits. Can she reach deep enough inside, or beyond herself, to find what she needs to keep on trying, or has she made too many mistakes already?

Read an excerpt:

I stand at the edge of the water, a deep aqua today, as I listen to the waves crash onto the shore. I think back to all the times I’ve stood here, all the moods we’ve shared this past year, the gulf and I. Times when I was saying goodbye, convinced I could not survive another day in this life, in this place. Times when the water drew me in, embraced me, caressed and comforted me. And times like today when I gaze in awe at the magnificence of the vast waters before me, at their power and the power of their maker.

A girl crystallizes before my eyes, rising like a mermaid from the water. That girl would never, in a million years, have believed that Acadia Powers, at the ripe age of twenty-four, would find herself in this position. Not only in this position, but actually grateful to be here. That girl would have been appalled. For an instant I can see her and feel her as vividly as if that time were yesterday, the scene in my head as real and as near as the sand beneath my feet.

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**My thoughts**

It's so hard to date someone whose faith is so different from your own. Peter is deeply devoted to his faith, aspiring to become a pastor as soon as he can. Cadi has some faith but has found herself slipping away from it over the years and simply cannot comprehend how Peter can feel the way that he does. She is so lost in general, that I felt like she just kind of gave in to marrying Peter because she knew he was sincere in his feelings for her and would provide for her. I know that she says that she is in love with him, but it feels more like she is in love with an idea of him instead of him for who he really is.

As you're reading the book, it definitely has a slow burn and a detachment that reflects how Cadi is feeling in her life as she is telling her story. She wants to do right by her students, as a preacher's wife, and in her marriage, but isn't sure which direction to turn. And because she is struggling with her faith, the last place she feels like turning is to God. She really wants Peter to see her, acknowledge her, but he is so wrapped up in his new church, which is having difficulty growing and moving into more modern times (in this book, the late 1970s/early 1980s). Keep in mind the time period as you read this book and some situations play out. 

I think this book is going to speak to people who have struggled with their faith over the years, because they will recognize their own struggles in Cadi's story, even if they handled it differently.

Thank you to the author and Goddess Fish for providing me an Advanced Review Copy. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

About Debra Coleman Jeter

A Professor Emerita at Vanderbilt University, Debra Coleman Jeter has published in popular magazines, including Working Woman, New Woman, Self, Home Life, Savvy, Christian Woman, and American Baby. Her first novel, The Ticket, was a finalist in two categories for a Selah Award. Her short story, “Recovery,” won first prize in a competition sponsored by Christian Woman; and her book “Pshaw, It’s Me Grandson” was a finalist in the USA Book News Awards. She is a co-writer of the screenplay for Jess + Moss, a feature film which premiered at the Sundance Film Festival, screened at nearly forty film festivals around the world, and captured several international awards.

She loves to be in the water—whether snorkeling, water skiing, boogie boarding, or just floating around—which may explain the setting for her newest series. Her family suspects her of being selkie. The Sugar Sands novels are set in a small beach community in LA (lower Alabama). Each book in the series stands alone.

The Amazon page: http://www.amazon.com/dp/1941103863/

Author website: www.debracolemanjeter.com

Author blog: http://www.debracolemanjeter.com/blog

Guest Blog on Pushing Boundaries: http://freshfiction.com/page.php?id=7259

https://www.pinterest.com/njjeter/the-ticket-a-novel/

https://www.goodreads.com/author/dashboard

https://twitter.com/DebColemanJeter

Info on Song of Sugar Sands http://askdavid.com/reviews/book/christian-romance/17332

Links to info on all Jeter’s books http://askdavid.com/books/18723

Debra Coleman Jetter will be awarding a $10 Amazon or Barnes and Noble GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour.

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