Charles Martin's Water From My Heart ~ Reviewed

Water From My Heart
Charles Martin

• Hardcover: 368 pages
• Publisher: Center Street (May 19, 2015)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1455554707

Description:

New York Times bestselling author Charles Martin's breathtaking novel of love and redemption.
Charlie Finn had to grow up fast, living alone by age sixteen. Highly intelligent, he earned a life-changing scholarship to Harvard, where he learned how to survive and thrive on the outskirts of privileged society. That skill served him well in the cutthroat business world, as it does in more lucrative but dangerous ventures he now operates off the coast of Miami. Charlie tries to separate relationships from work. But when his choices produce devastating consequences, he sets out to right wrongs, traveling to Central America where he will meet those who have paid for his actions, including a woman and her young daughter. Will their fated encounter present Charlie with a way to seek the redemption he thought was impossible--and free his heart to love one woman as he never knew he could?

Review:

I've enjoyed Charles Martin novels in the past, however, he poured some serious soul into Water From My Heart.

Charlie doesn't quite recognize exactly how lost he is as he sets out on a journey of self discovery. Actually, he’s on mission to find the son of his best friend after the son gets in the middle of a bad, bad situation. The bad, bad situation comes about because Charlie was careless. And Charlie feels responsible.

The trail of destruction leads to a place Charlie had been to years before, one that is full of shameful memories.

As Charlie immerses himself into the location where he thinks he might find his frightened, prideful “nephew”, Charlie sees the fruit of his past choices growing like a weed in a village of kind people who had rebounded emotionally but were the poorest of poor.

When Charlie begins to feel a love greater than his fears and his regret he begins to understand Water From My Heart and it changes everything.

Martin paints amazing scenes. There is a poignancy beating strong as a heartbeat throughout the whole book, too. The picture of lostness that paralyzes entangled people, the hopelessness that comes from carrying burdens that Christ died to release, the emptiness of working to recover self-respect that can never be recovered through trying to rewrite the past. Charlie finds the hope and restitution in letting go of everything he clutched onto.

Martin was deeply touched by this place as well and he shares a bit about his real life inspiration and the struggle of some amazing people. This is the best kind of fiction.

Reviewed by:Kelly Klepfer