An advanced reader's copy review of "River's Call" by Melody Carlson

Publisher: Abingdon Press
Publication Date: February 2012

Melody Carlson invites us to return to the banks of the Siuslaw River in this second installment of the Inn at Shining Waters series. Anna Larson is enjoying running her Inn together with her new husband, Clark. However, when her daughter Lauren phones her to report that she is sick, the discovery of what is truly going on changes everything for the family. Anna tries to support her as best as possible while dealing with old undercurrents of bitterness from Lauren's grandmother. River's Call follows the journey of the family as they grow older and Lauren starts a family of her own, until Lauren hits rock bottom and returns to the River to determine whether her shattered life can be pieced back together.

I enjoyed this second novel in the series, much as I did the first one, River's Song. Anna is a truly likeable character who continues to grow as she is confronted with new circumstances. Her Native American heritage adds a deeper flavor to the story as Anna is confronted by prejudices but is still able to celebrate her family's origins and what they have to teach her and others. The time period that the story is written in, that of the 1960's and 1970's, is a fascinating one to read about, especially as viewed through Anna and Clark's eyes. For instance, it was quite interesting to see their reaction to the use of television becoming more common., when the idea of watching violent news shows on television was considered to be "grotesque"! River's Call is written in an easy to read manner, and upholds faith in God as well as going back to nature and being silent and still, and finding God therein.

I highly recommend this book and give it 4.5 out of 5 stars.

This review is based on an electronic copy provided by the publisher via Netgalley for the purpose of completing this review.