Love Will Keep Us Together by Ann Dayton and May Vanderbuilt - REVIEW AND GIVE AWAY!

“I fight the urge to turn around. I can’t bear to see if our little mark on the world has been washed away already.” (p.12)


Anne Dayton and May Vanderbilt have so accurately captured the pain and joy of a senior’s year in high school that I am left amazed, and deeply moved. I’ve read all but one of the Miracle Girls series, and Love Will Keep Us Together is truly a precious testimony to God’s faithfulness in our lives – even during those confusing, awful, wonderful years of high school. Riley McGee is the center of the story, and my oh my, but she does face some rather tough challenges during her senior year!


“If God has a plan for my life, he could be a little clearer about it.” (p.20) Remember wondering why everyone but you had their life mapped out from beginning to end by the time they turned sixteen? Riley is the epitome of indecision as she begins her final year at Marina Vista. She has the world at her feet as far as choices go, but sometimes too many choices are overwhelming. Add to that pressure the reappearance of an old boyfriend, the blossoming of a new relationship, a youth pastor who seriously needs to mature and you have enough to keep you turning pages at a frantic pace!! Oh, and I forgot the part of the story about Riley and her defense of her brother who is struggling with Asperger’s Syndrome. I’m telling you, Anne and May didn’t leave anything out of Riley’s life when they wrote this story!


And as overwhelming as it may sound, all teens on the brink of their march into the adult world feel each situation in their life is a dramatic, life-changing moment. These issues Riley must face are not only realistic, but her response to each situation is thoughtful, honest and painfully real as well. Her faith has blossomed and grown strong enough to face the challenges of her senior year, and I am so incredibly proud of her!! Of all the Miracle Girls! I have grown to love the Miracle Girls a great deal, and I have to believe that I haven’t reached the end of this journey. I really don’t want my reading relationship with this group to end. I heartily and happily recommend this entire series for teens of all ages – even those in the 40+ crowd! And I thank Anne and May from the bottom of my heart for writing such an amazing series!

I have an extra copy of this terrific book to share! Please leave your name and a comment on this post to be entered to win!!

ABOUT THE AUTHORS:
ANNE DAYTON

Anne was born in San Jose, California, where she wasted her childhood playing Nintendo and watching The Facts of Life. Eventually, she went off to Princeton where she learned many important things, including how to recognize a kumquat. Four years and a useless degree later, she landed a job at Random House, where she promptly got bored and applied to graduate school, trained for a marathon, and reminisced about her days as a competitive finswimmer. A few years later, a blond guy showed up at her door with power tools and gazpacho. They live in Brooklyn. An editor by day, she enjoys bad horror movies, good cheese, and Count Chocula.



MAY VANDERBILT
May grew up in Panama City, Florida, otherwise known as the Redneck Riviera. She graduated from Baylor University in Waco, TX and went on to earn her MA in Creative Writing from Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, MD. After living in Brooklyn for four years and working at Random House as an Assistant Editor, Vanderbilt moved to fabulous San Francisco, putting an end to her long tour of undesirable cities. May is a Southern girl who is always on the search for decent grits in the Bay Area and makes artisanal cheese at home.