The Secret Life of Daydreams

Lucinda
Whitney
Genre: 
Inspirational

CONTEMPORARY:  Josh Conrad has been running away from life after a painful divorce, using his job as a photographer to leave everything he once knew behind. After landing in Portugal, he rekindles a friendship with the girl he baptized into the LDS church eleven years ago who is now an attractive woman. Sofia is struggling to help her mother deal with Alzheimer’s and working hard just to make ends meet. Her old crush on Josh flares into something more, but Josh has turned away from the church he once loved and Sofia can’t reconcile that with the man she once knew. Can they find common ground before Josh has to leave the country?

 

This book has a lush setting in Portugal and the author does a fantastic job of describing it so the reader feels like they’re really there. Sofia was easy to relate to with her conflicting feelings about reconnecting with Josh while balancing her other responsibilities in taking care of her mother. Are her dreams for her life out of reach? Josh was a hero who supported and helped, but let Sofia be independent as well, which was refreshing. The story does have pacing issues and a lack of tension that bogs it down in several places, but the easy writing style helps keep things moving forward. Readers not familiar with the Portuguese language or LDS customs might be lost in places, but this inspirational romance will make you believe in second chances and the redeeming power of love.

 

Kate Campbell