To those who matter in 1950s Hollywood, Lena Scott is the hottest rising star to hit the silver screen since Marilyn Monroe. Few know her real name is Abra. Even fewer know the price she’s paid to finally feel like she’s somebody.

To Pastor Ezekiel Freeman, Abra will always be the little girl who stole his heart the night he found her, a wailing newborn abandoned under a bridge on the outskirts of Haven. Zeke and his son, Joshua, Abra’s closest friend, watch her grow into an exotic beauty. But Zeke knows the circumstances surrounding her birth etched scars deep in her heart, scars that leave her vulnerable to a fast-talking bad boy who proclaims his love and lures her to Tinseltown.

Hollywood feels like a million miles from Haven, and naive Abra quickly learns what’s expected of an ambitious girl with stars in her eyes. But fame comes at an awful price. She has burned every bridge to get exactly what she thought she wanted. Now, all she wants is a way back home.

This is only my second book by this author, and I have to admit, I was pretty disappointed by how much I struggled to connect with it. After reading Redeeming Love and naming it my Book of the Year a few years ago, I went into this with high expectations. I’ve heard so many wonderful things about her backlist, so I was surprised that this one didn’t work for me.

While there’s no language and no spice, this is an incredibly heavy, hard-hitting story filled with mature themes. Sensitive readers will definitely want to check trigger warnings beforehand, as it covers difficult topics like abortion, suicide, substance abuse, sexual abuse, rape, eating disorders, and emotional manipulation. I happened to read this during a month when I picked up another emotionally intense book, and I could definitely feel the weight of it all starting to wear on me.

I listened to the audiobook, and unfortunately, the narration didn’t work for me at all. Since it’s quite long, around 18 hours, I stuck with it to move through the story more quickly, but I wouldn’t personally recommend this format. The pacing overall felt very slow and drawn out, especially in the first half. There were several points where I considered putting it down because I just couldn’t fully engage with the story. I was reading it for a book club challenge, though, so I kept going to see if it would improve. In some ways, it did, and in others, it didn’t.

The second half was stronger for me. The plot picks up, and the story becomes more engaging, which helped to keep my interest. However, I still struggled to connect with the characters. The writing style also didn’t fully work for me. It leaned more toward telling rather than showing, almost like a play-by-play, and I found myself wishing for more emotional depth and insight into the characters’ inner lives.

Abra, also known as Lena, was a particularly difficult character for me to root for. She makes a series of frustrating choices, and there were moments where I felt more exasperated than empathetic. Watching her repeatedly allow the men in her life to control and take advantage of her was hard to read. Her story is undeniably tragic and, at times, heartbreaking, but I found it difficult to fully connect with her journey.

That said, I do appreciate the heart of the story. At its core, it’s about brokenness, forgiveness, and redemption. I did find value in Abra’s spiritual journey as she slowly begins to seek God and allow His love to guide her back toward healing and the people who care about her. Those elements were meaningful, even if the overall story didn’t fully resonate with me.

In the end, I can absolutely see why this book might be powerful and impactful for many readers. It tackles difficult topics with honesty and depth, but for me, it felt overwhelmingly heavy for most of the story. The somber tone rarely lets up until the very end, and I wish I had known that going in.

I’m still open to reading more from this author because I know how much I loved Redeeming Love. This one just didn’t quite land for me, but I’m hopeful another book of hers will be a better fit.