Unfortunately, it is your typical Christian romance. It glamorizes Alzheimer's disease (all sufferers are not cute and comical) and doesn't delve deeply into the personalities of any of its characters. I find it very difficult to believe that someone who is visiting their mother for the first time in years on the event of her inevitable death would be caught up in a whirlwind romance. In my experience, grief monopolizes your time.

It is fairly well written for its type so might be appealing to those who want a quick read. ( )

Mercy Come Morning is the story of a woman struggling to understand her complicated relationship with her mother as that mother lies dying in an Alzheimer's Care Facility. With her mother unable to communicate, Krista, the daughter is left with sporadic journal entries and love letters received by her mother as the only means to understanding their shared history and her mother's life prior to motherhood. I enjoyed the way that the author told the story through three separate times and perspectives - the mother's personal journal entries, Krista's remembrances of her childhood and youth and the current story. I also liked how we as readers were not privy to the entire back story - we learned and understood as Krista did. Ultimately, while the book is a story of the difficulties associated with losing someone you love to this awful disease, it is truly a story of rediscovery and forgiveness. Learning to see beyond the hurt and feelings of abandonment to the good in a relationship, no matter how trying it might have seemed. I do feel that the book didn't make full use of all of the characters, and could have more fully developed those relationships and histories; but, I also recognize that at its heart it is solely about Krista's own journey to understand her relationship with her mother and to come to some kind of peace about it. ( )

Book Title: "Mercy Come Morning"
Author: Lisa Tawn Bergren
Published By: Waterbrook Press
Age Recommended: 18 +
Reviewed By: Kitty Bullard
Raven Rating: 5

Review: Having a grandmother in a nursing home, suffering from Dementia and the first stages of Alzheimer's this book really hit home. Alzheimer's is a disease that can really devastate a family and hurt so many. It's hard to watch a loved one drift further and further away from you every day and there's nothing that can be done about it.

In this novel, Krista Mueller has been out of touch with her mother, Charlotte for several years. Now an entire decade has gone by since her mother began her battle with Alzheimer's and she has recently been diagnosed with heart failure. Feeling her mother slipping further away, Krista returns to the home of her youth to spend those last precious days with her mother and hope to recapture a relationship they never really had the chance to have.

The book is beautiful and at the same time heart-wrenching. So many valuable messages are conveyed in this novel that reading it can give a person a much better understanding of just how important family relationships are. I highly recommend this novel and intend to read more of Lisa Tawn Bergren's passionately written works.

Read more: http://www.greatmindsthinkaloud.proboards.com/index.cgi?action=display&board... ( )

Krista's mother was gone long before the Allzheimer's started to destroy what was left of her memories. Having fled New Mexico to escape this maddening disease, Krista returns home to say her final goodbyes to the mother she never really knew.

Meanwhile, she re-establishes her relationships with an old flame (Dane), who just happens to be running the home where her mother is placed, and with her family friend Elena, who has provided shelter for Krista on a number of occasions.

While Krista watches her mother slowly die, she reads through some of the journal entries her mother wrote as Krista was growing up. From these entries she learns that she and her mother were more alike than she ever imagined. Making amends, Krista begins to repair her relationships of the past, while tentatively walking towards an unknown future.

"Mercy Come Morning" will make you laugh, smile, and even cry. Reading about Alzheimer's and how it affects the patients and their families was really tough because I want to "fix things" and unfortunately, it's not something I can fix. I enjoyed the heart-warming story of a restored mother-daughter relationship as well as a possible romance.

Lisa T. Bergren is a wonderful storyteller and has crafted a touching story that will seep under your skin and warm your heart. ( )

"Mercy Come Morning", by Lisa Tawn Bergren, is a beautifully written story of coming home again, learning to forgive and be forgiven, and letting go in order to move forward. Krista Mueller is called home when her mother, Charlotte, becomes critically ill. Charlotte has suffered from Alzheimer's Disease for many years, and Krista has always ensured that her mother received the best of care. Now, however, her mother is dying, and Krista must face her complicated feelings about her relationship with her mother. For years Charlotte has been cared for at a facility run by Krista's first love, Dane McConnell. Coming home to be with her mother means Krista will also be spending time with Dane, for whom she still has feelings. Dane has always loved Krista, and he has waited for her to one day resolve her personal issues and be ready to return his love. There are many sensitive issues touched upon in this story, and the author presents the highly emotional subject matter with a gentle, sure hand. The reunion romance between Krista and Dane is one that will make you long for a happy ending for the couple. The setting of Taos, New Mexico is presented in such an appealing way that you wish you were right there to see the "blue suede color" in the sunset. The story line of the difficult and complex relationship between Krista and her mother really resonated with me. I saw many aspects of my own mother and myself in Krista and Charlotte. Most of us never achieve total resolution, but we must all learn to be kind to ourselves in order to find some measure of peace of mind. Sometimes letting go is the only way to receive what we really need.

Review Copy Gratis WaterBrook Press ( )