Blog Tours with Book Reviews


There is nothing like falling in love with the characters and place in a novel. This is what happens in Casting The Net by Pam Rhodes. From Neil, the priest, to his wanna be fiancees, Wendy and Claire, there is love, loss and almost any emotion possible to name. The novel takes place in Dunbridge, England. Almost the whole town goes to St. Stephen's. The congregation is very close to one another feeling the joy or sadness of one another. I will never forget Margaret. She is the woman in the church who has a deep understanding for those who are grieving. However, when Margaret suffers personal loss, the death of her husband, the congregation waits anxiously to see if she can pull herself up and go on with her life. Through her battle, I learned the lesson that it is impossible to foretell how we will react to hurt when it comes our way.

Another character who will stay with me is little Ellen. Baby Ellen suffers with eye cancer. Having a child was not easy for Ellen's parents. They had fertility problems. For this reason there love for Ellen is extra strong. Dealing with her illness, is an awful experience for both parents. It is these type of situations which tied me to the people in Dunbridge. Of course, Neil, the priest, has his situations to face too. When his mother, Iris, comes to visit, he really has his handsful. Unfortunately, she nags him to no end. Still, there is room for growth even in the life of a woman like Iris.

Every word of this novel seems lovingly written. It's as if these are real  people Pam Rhodes must have befriended in her life. However, I had one problem with my visit to Dunbridge. What in the world does it look like? I have the address of Neil's parsonage. I know there is Paddington train station and King Cross. Sadly, there isn't any descriptions of places. So I felt as though Casting The Net by Pam Rhodes happened in only God knows where. I am sure Dunbridge is a lovely town. I suppose that's one of the reasons Iris chooses to move from her home town to Dunbridge. I wanted the author to share the beauty or the mediocrity of the town with me. There must be beautiful stained glass windows in St. Stephen's, but there is no description of the pews, the pulpit or any other place in St. Stephen's. I definitely want to continue reading this wonderful series, The Dunbridge Chronicles, no matter what. Still, I hope the author will share what the town looks like with the readers. Really, there is no clear idea what the characters look like either. Odd, because the characters are so well developed. What does Neil look like?

I also would like to know a bit of background about the characters. Why is Claire an atheist? What happened in her life to sway her away from God? Where was Neil before he came to Dunbridge? In seminary school? I'm sure answers to all these questions or questions like them can only make a swell novel an excellent novel. Lion/Kregel, http://www.pamrhodes.co.uk/

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