Blog Tour - Book # 2

Thirsty
Tracey Bateman
WaterBrook Press



Back Cover:

THERE’S NO PLACE LIKE HOME, THEY SAY.

“Hello, I’m Nina Parker…and I’m an alcoholic.”For Nina, it’s not the weighty admission but the first steps toward recovery that prove most difficult. She must face her ex-husband, Hunt, with little hope of making amends, and try to rebuild a relationship with her angry teenage daughter, Meagan. Hardest of all, she is forced to return to Abbey Hills, Missouri, the hometown she abruptly abandoned nearly two decades earlier—and her unexpected arrival in the sleepy Ozark town catches the attention of someone—or something—igniting a two-hundred-fifty-year-old desire that rages like wildfire.Unaware of the darkness stalking her, Nina is confronted with a series of events that threaten to unhinge her sobriety. Her daughter wants to spend time with the parents Nina left behind. A terrifying event that has haunted Nina for almost twenty years begins to surface. And an alluring neighbor initiates an unusual friendship with Nina, but is Markus truly a kindred spirit or a man guarding dangerous secrets?As everything she loves hangs in the balance, will Nina’s feeble grasp on her demons be broken, leaving her powerless against the thirst? The battle between redemption and obsession unfolds to its startling, unforgettable end.



My take:

Ok, I have to admit, I’m a chicken. I don’t do horror movies, those paranormal shows scare me and Stephen King is not, I repeat, NOT my friend. So to be honest, I agreed to read and review Thirsty by Tracey Bateman for 2 reasons: first, I really enjoy Tracey Bateman’s writing. She’s an incredible writer with talent galore, especially when it comes to the Westward Hearts series –a few of my all time favorites! Secondly, I grabbed a chance to read her latest book, out of pure curiousity. Christian vampire fiction, really? There exists such a thing? How is that possible? Let’s see…

Nina Parker is a captivating heroine battling to get her life back on track after years of alcohol abuse. She’s lost everything: a thriving career, a gorgeous husband and her 2 sweet children. And when she heads back home after a stint in rehab you’d think she’d be on the road to recovery, right? Well, yes and no. Going home is never easy, especially when you have to face those you’ve hurt and those you’ve lied to. To compound the situation Nina’s teenage daughter has a major attitude problem and the once peaceful small town is being threatened by someone or something that is killing its residents and animals.

Thirsty is a captivating story about a woman who’s made all the right choices only to blow them all to pieces because of her addiction. Nina is a dynamic heroine who learns that she can be stronger than her addiction, one step and one day at a time even when life is hard and there’s a vampire waiting your return.

I have to mention there were two uncomfortable parts to reading Thirsty. As I mentioned earlier, I’m a scaredy-cat and I don’t like things that go bump in the night, so a few of the scenes in the book were a bit too graphic for me. However, for those of you who love horror movies with Freddie, Jason and Chucky, I’m sure you’ll feel right at home with the eerieness that caused me to look over my shoulder more than once. Enjoy!

Now for the tough part. This one area was a sticking point for me as a Christian reader. And while it may not be that important to some, for me, leaving out the God element in this book, left me feeling very disappointed. Thirsty parallels Nina’s thirst for alcohol and the vampires thirst for Nina. Ok, no problem. I also get that the book is a vampire story. No problem. So where’s the problem? No God.

I was able to suspend my disbelief about vampires and enjoy a really good book about struggles, sacrifice and redemption, but I wanted to see Nina understand and accept that God was in her life either because she came to know him because of her alcoholism or by seeing him mirrored in the lives of those she loved. However that did not happen. With one minor exception, there was little to no mention of God throughout the entire book. Now I understand metaphors and the good vs. evil battlefield. Obviously we're given evil by way of the vampire and his adversary, but where was the good? Where was God? I wish it had been clearly spelled out so that I could’ve not only cheered on Nina’s success over addiction, I could’ve read with anticipation as God trampled over evil once again.


Overall, I'd rate this book a 3.5 out of 5 stars for the author's ability to tell an excellent story - I just wish God had been prevelant in this Christian fiction story.

For purchasing information please visit: www. waterbrookmultnomah.com

*** This book was provided by WaterBrook Press for review purposes only, no cash or payment was received for this review.***