Serena Chase’s contemporary Young Adult inspirational romance novel Intermission releases today on Kindle. This book quickly became one of my favorite novels of the year!
Sixteen-year-old Faith Prescott eagerly awaits the day she will exchange her small Iowa hometown for the bright lights of Broadway, but her success-driven parents want her to pursue a more practical career, labeling “artsy” people—including their daughter—as foolish dreamers worthy of little more than disdain.
When Faith meets nineteen-year-old Noah Spencer she discovers someone who understands her musical theatre dreams . . . because he shares them.
Faith’s mother despises everything about Noah—his age, his upbringing . . . even his religious beliefs—and she grasps at every opportunity to belittle his plans to study theatre and pursue a stage career. When those criticisms shift further toward hostility, resulting in unjust suspicions and baseless accusations, an increasingly fearful stage is set for Faith at home, where severe restrictions and harsh penalties are put in place to remove Noah Spencer from her life.
But Faith has never connected with anyone like she has with Noah, and no matter how tight a stranglehold her mother enforces to keep them apart, Faith will not give him up. Behind the curtain, Faith’s love for Noah continues to grow . . . as does her determination to hold on to her dreams—and him—no matter how high the cost.
Here, in no particular order, are ten reasons you shouldn’t waste another second in getting a copy of this stellar book:
- Noah – Noah is irresistible. He’s handsome, sure, but that’s not his greatest appeal. Above all, he’s virtuous. He’s also hardworking, humble, respectful, honest, and courageous. He’s conscious of his flaws, and he loves selflessly. His passions are guided by strength of character. He’s the real deal.
- Showtunes – My knowledge of musical theater is limited to my four years of experience in high school stage crew, but even I appreciated the winks at musicals and showtunes. True theater geeks will lap this book up!
- Virtue – Virtue is treated with respect by the main characters. It’s admired, not mocked. Its worth is cherished, and the struggle to attain it is not diminished.
- A Tearjerker – Intermission is my favorite kind of book, the gut-wrenching kind of the highest caliber that rips my heart out. I had to fight back tears while reading in public. Some scenes left me bereft, some cheering, but none of them forced me to suspend my disbelief. This story rings true.
- Exposes abuse – Faith experiences real abuse at the hands of her mother. It’s mostly emotional abuse, and its effect is real and damaging to faith and to Noah. Physical abuse isn’t the only abuse that leaves a mark.
- Christianity – The characters’ faith isn’t flimsy; it’s authentic and multidimensional. Conversion is handled deftly and the struggle to do right is treated as the difficult thing that it often is. Sometimes the path to holiness is one step forward and two steps back.
- Beautiful prose – The writing is excellent with some beautiful quotes such as the one featured in the image above: “I want to live the life I’ve been called to live, in the way I’ve been called to live it. I want to use the gifts God has given me.”
- The Arts – The arts are valued, as are the real work and dedication required to excel at them. Creative ability isn’t a second class gift. It doesn’t have to be relegated to a hobby. It’s a vital part of life.
- God’s timing – God’s timing is a factor, and sometimes, from our point of view, it stinks. Sometimes God’s plans are different from ours, and it stinks. Sometimes we can’t even fathom what God’s plan is. That doesn’t mean we shouldn’t trust in Him all the same.
- Humor – Although Intermission addresses serious issues and provokes tears, it’s not maudlin. There’s enough levity (and sweet, young love) to keep the subject matter from bringing you down.
Bonus: Noah’s favorite gum is Big Red, the only gum worth chewing, in my opinion.
Sounds riveting! <3
As you can tell from my post and review, I just loved it!