REVIEW: Without Faith by Leslie J. Sherrod

Date:                         11/2/13

Title:                          Without Faith

Author:                     Leslie J. Sherrod

ISBN 13:                    978-1-60162-770-4

Pages:                        301

Publisher:                Urban Christian

Cover:                        Paperback

Rating:                      5 Stars

Let me start by saying, if you have followed Literary Wonders! reviews over the last twenty years, you know that it is seldom that we give a “fiction” book a five-star rating. A five-star rating would mean that our reviewers could not put the book down, we frantically turned each page to see what was happening and the ending had our mouths wide open.  Without Faith by Leslie Sherrod did just that for this reviewer. This is the second in the Sienna St. James Series. And although I enjoyed Losing Hope, the first book in the series, it was a bit slow for me. Without Faith did not disappoint.

Sienna St. James has gotten past the cat-and-mouse games she faced in the first book, but chasing someone who may or may not have existed is nothing compared to the bizarre situations she finds herself in this time around. Although she hasn’t gotten it all together, Sienna has bought her own home and has started her own practice. Little does she know that counseling a problem couple could nearly cause her to lose her life, nor does she realize sending her son on a school trip would bring answers to questions she has had for years.

Sierra is so busy chasing her past, and her son, that her ability to recognize and choose one of the two suitors who clearly have feelings for her, fails her. SPOILER. I wish that this book could have ended with Sierra finding happiness with either Leon or Laz, but it doesn’t. Leon leaves for Houston to support his niece. But I guess that is why this is only the second book in the series. Perhaps Mrs. Sherrod will finally give Sierra the love she’s been longing for in book three or a future installment of the series.

I truly believe that this book is Hollywood worthy—can someone please get Tyler Perry or another great producer on the line? Author Leslie J. Sherrod has a hit screenplay she needs to give you.

Look for our 5-Star VidReview coming soon!

BLOG TOUR: Without Faith Virtual Tour with Leslie Sherrod

About the Book

A diva and a gentleman have shown up for couples counseling, but now Sienna is the one in

danger....

She’s a sleuth. She’s a scorned wife. She’s a sista on a mission. Sienna St. James is more than a sharp-witted social worker. She’s a problem solver who keeps getting pulled into life-and-death mysteries that only complicate her already complex life. With a head-strong teenage son and a missing, estranged husband - who could be anywhere on the globe - Sienna has to figure out what gets her focus first: the questions she has about her own love and loss or the dangerous quirks and dark confusion of her current clients... And then there are the current eligible men around her who are jockeying for position, waiting for her to make up her mind about it all.

About the Author

Leslie J. Sherrod, the recipient of the SORMAG Readers Choice Award for Christian Author of the Year (2012), has a Masters in Social Work and has worked as a therapist, just like her

current protagonist, Sienna St. James. Her novels, Losing Hope, Secret Place, and Like Sheep Gone Astray have been featured in Baltimore’s Enoch Pratt Free Library Writer’s LIVE! Series, as well as local CBS and NBC affiliates, and on AOL’s Black Voices. She has received a starred review from Booklist and is a contributor to the bestselling A Cup of Comfort devotional series. A graduate of the University of Maryland, she also took courses in writing at The Johns Hopkins University. Leslie lives in Baltimore, Maryland with her husband and three children.

Excerpt

Sienna St. James is a woman who is dedicated to following her instincts and getting answers, even when doing so puts her own life and safety at risk. She is a social worker who keeps getting mysteries on her caseload, all while trying to manage the complex issues in her personal life.

As a social worker myself, I was intrigued at the idea of having a helping professional who is addressing harrowing situations while trying to maintain her own sense of sanity and integrity. Writing about her is somewhat of a release for me as I am frequently exposed to real life stories of pain, hurt, and devastation in my line of work. With Sienna St. James, I can broach those same topics but offer hope. I guess being able to control what happens and making sense out of the suffering is my own form of therapy.

Did I just say I can control what happens? That’s not entirely true. I have to follow my character’s lead, listen to her voice and trust that the story will go the way it’s supposed to. She’s different from me; dare I say braver? I try to insert myself into her courage as I write, but in doing so I also see her flaws, her questions, her doubts and her secret fears. The books are as much about the mysteries to be solved as they are about her own emotional and spiritual development. By the end of the story, a facet of her character has been exposed and polished for the better.

Without Faith, my newest release is the second book of the Sienna St. James series. Losing Hope was the first. The series is lighter than my novel, Secret Place, which addresses mental illness, but weightier than my first novel, Like Sheep Gone Astray, because of the issues it addresses. Sienna is not afraid to tackle difficult issues and challenges, so I had to step up my writing game to enter the action scenes along with her and allow myself to feel the wide scope of emotions she experiences. I am enjoying writing this series and watching my character grow along with the page-turning plotlines. My hope is that readers find as much joy delving into Sienna’s world as I did creating it – and also find hope, encouragement, faith and courage along the way!

 

Purchase the Book Online at:
Amazon.comBarnesandNoble.com

Visit the author online at:http://www.lesliejsherrod.com/

View the blog tour schedule at:
http://tywebbinvirtualevents.com/PZFpn