1. Bridge to Haven
    Francine Rivers
    Tyndale House / 2014 / Hardcover
    Our Price$23.39 Retail Price$25.99 Save 10% ($2.60)
    4.2 out of 5 stars for Bridge to Haven. View reviews of this product. 49 Reviews
    Availability: Expected to ship on or about 04/26/24.
    Stock No: WW368184
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Displaying items 11-15 of 49
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  1. Sufficient in Jesus
    Age: 18-24
    Gender: female
    5 Stars Out Of 5
    Ezekiel 16: 4-14. Read it first.
    July 12, 2014
    Sufficient in Jesus
    Age: 18-24
    Gender: female
    Quality: 5
    Value: 5
    Meets Expectations: 5
    Bridge to Haven is not a repacked Redeeming Love. First, because there will only ever be one book like that, and second because Abra's story is her own.

    Redeeming Love took us to the California gold rush days and introduced us to a woman who had been forced into prostitution as a child.

    Bridge to Haven takes us to a small California town in the 1950's, and we meet a girl who is much loved but doesn't know it yet. Human imperfections all around her and a lack of answers about her own past send her seeking a future far away from everyone who really knows her.

    There is a battle here for Abra's life, love, and loyalty.

    She's a girl who thinks nobody wants her.

    Her biological mother left her to die. Her first father, Pastor Ezekiel, gave her up to another family because he thought they would be able to offer her more. That couple already had a daughter, and the girls at 16 have grown to be rivals, not comrades.

    The only person she truly trusts is Pastor Ezekiel's son. And even Joshua, barely in his twenties and just back from the Korean war, can't seem to convince her that he cares anymore. The brotherly teasing and hiking trips and cheeseburgers that used to connect them when she was a child no longer work. She craves love, and she's not recognizing it right in front of her, wrapped as it is in plain packaging.

    Abra is a girl who is uncertain about her own value. And all it takes to steal her heart is a little attention, somebody who desires her company and who makes that desire known. She's too young to tell when a romance is tainted. And so Abra disappears from her home town.

    This is the story of her leaving and her return. Slowly, painfully, step by step, she loses everything including her own sense of identity. Hollywood made her promises that it could never keep, and there is nothing left that she recognizes as the real Abra.

    And she doesn't dare imagine that anybody is out there, longing for her to come home.

    Yet that is exactly the case. The God who formed her, the man who found her naked and newborn, the boy who grew up with her and wants her to come back. They are all calling/whispering/waiting/seeking and urging her to come Home. Grace itself is beckoning to her broken heart, but does she dare to trust it?

    Again, this is not Redeeming Love. Don't ever go into one book expecting it to be the same as the author's others. This is a fine story all by its self. The first moments to the final scene, even the dark times in the middle.... it all comes together eventually.

    Great storytelling reminds us why we need to be comfortable in our own stories, because our Author too knows just when to introduce a character, never wastes a scene, and knows how to carry us through a terrible chapter.

    (Item of note: I really appreciated Joshua's character. I liked the fact that he had been a brother/friend to her for years. It makes their deep bond and growing romance real. It was their foundation, built out of childhood purity and tested by fire. I admire his continual belief in Abra as a human being, and the way he constantly reminded her that she did not need to save herself. That work had already been done.

    Another element I really like is the quotes above each chapter. Some were from Scripture, some from poetry, others from great men and women of the past.)

    Thank you Tyndale Summer Reading Program for my review copy of this book.
  2. Jessica
    Michigan
    5 Stars Out Of 5
    Another great book by Francine Rivers!
    May 14, 2014
    Jessica
    Michigan
    Quality: 5
    Value: 5
    Meets Expectations: 5
    I am a recent fan of Francine Rivers and got hooked on her writing after the Marta's Legacy Series. This book was every bit as good as her others that I have read. I consider her to be one of christian fiction's best authors because of the quality and professionalism with with she writes. I loved the story, the characters and the time period that this book was set in. Francine Rivers writes with such depth of character and raw emotion that you can't help but be swept away with Abra as her story unfolds. I did not want this story to end, and for me, that is always a sign of a great book!
  3. Melissa
    5 Stars Out Of 5
    Gorgeous Story of Unfailing Love and Redemption
    April 22, 2014
    Melissa
    At age seventeen, Abra Matthews left the small town of Haven for Hollywood with a boy everyone told her was trouble. It didn't take long for her to realize her friends and family were right. But she had burned her bridges in Haven and was now determined to make it in the movie business as Lena Scott, an up and coming starlet. However, to become the person she wants to be, will she be able leave behind the person she was?

    Pastor Zeke found Abra as an abandoned infant and knows the emotional baggage she carries. He, along with many faithful Christians, also knows that Abra is not beyond God's reach or redemption. As Abra's star rises, her friends back home pray for the return of their prodigal daughter. With exceptional characters and fantastic storytelling, Bridge to Haven is a gorgeous story of unfailing love and redemption.

    I've read so many books, that at this point, not many will keep me up past midnight and on the surface, this book shouldn't have been one of them. But keep me up it did! Bridge to Haven has many features that tend to turn me off and cause me to gut out a book rather than enjoy it. However, instead of struggling to keep going, I couldn't put it down. The plot isn't particularly original, but the storytelling is phenomenal. The characters tugged at my heart so that I couldn't leave them in unresolved situations; thus my midnight reading sessions.

    The back cover synopsis pretty much sums up the plot of Bridge to Haven. The only question left is exactly how things play out–which really isn't surprising considering the genre. However, the writing is passionate and full of emotion and wisdom. I fell in love with the town of Haven and characters instantly. Rivers beautifully captures small town life with characters that are vibrant and easy to love. Abra is a little difficult to like at times, but she grabs the reader's heart with her vulnerability and broken spirit. Pastor Zeke and his son Joshua are impossible not to like. I've read other books with characters similar to Zeke and Joshua and normally the characters make me want to gag with their perfect Christian personalities. These two did not. What I saw instead were authentic struggles and genuine faith. Zeke's faithful prayer walks are particularly inspiring and helps to trust his decisions as the story progresses. On the other hand, Joshua's courage and faith while facing difficult situations helps to highlight God's unfailing and unrelenting love.

    Bridge to Haven has a healthy amount of spiritual content/commentary, which is usually a problem for me. However, because the characters are so well constructed, to reduce the spiritual content would essentially be leaving a character out of the story. God is ever present throughout this book, but He's there as an outpouring of the characters' faith. Few authors can successfully balance a significant amount of Christianity with a fictional story and it not feel like a sermon. Rivers' exceptional storytelling skills allow her to write this book in a way that feels natural rather than forced or loaded with platitudes.

    Even though there are several parts of Bridge to Haven that should have kept me from liking it, I loved this book. I can't praise the characters or the storytelling enough. Rivers takes a straightforward plot and turns it into an exceptional story of love, redemption, hope and grace that kept me reading long into the night.

    Review copy provided courtesy of Tyndale
  4. iluvmesumu
    Baltimore, MD
    Age: 25-34
    Gender: female
    5 Stars Out Of 5
    story reminds me of female version of prodigal son
    March 25, 2022
    iluvmesumu
    Baltimore, MD
    Age: 25-34
    Gender: female
    Quality: 5
    Value: 5
    Meets Expectations: 5
    This review was written for Bridge to Haven.
    i can relate to Abra, i think many women can, until they surrender their life to Jesus we will never have peace. i liked authors explanation for the story inspiration
  5. Shallario57
    5 Stars Out Of 5
    love her books
    March 30, 2018
    Shallario57
    Quality: 5
    Value: 5
    Meets Expectations: 5
    This review was written for Bridge to Haven.
    another great book by this author,
Displaying items 11-15 of 49
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