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Customer Reviews for WaterBrook Press The Pirate Queen
WaterBrook Press The Pirate Queen
Wealthy socialite Saphora Warren plans to run away from home after Southern Living's photo designers leave her palatial estate. But her husband, philanderer Dr. Bender Warren, surprises her by coming home in the middle of the day and telling her that he has a terminal illness. Bender asks her to care for him at their coastal home on the Outer Banks-her get-away destination. As her summer sanctuary becomes a landing pad for dysfunctional relatives, a sick neighbor child, and her daughter's next-door love interest, Saphora's escape to paradise is anything but the life she had imagined.
Average Customer Rating:
(27 Reviews) 27
Rating Snapshot (27 reviews)
5 stars
10
4 stars
10
3 stars
5
2 stars
1
1 star
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20 out of 2483%customers would recommend this product to a friend.
Customer Reviews for The Pirate Queen
Review 1 for The Pirate Queen
Overall Rating:
I really enjoyed this easy read
Date:June 4, 2012
Nancy
Location:Beverly, MA
Age:35-44
Gender:female
Quality:
5
out of
5
Value:
5
out of
5
Meets Expectations:
5
out of
5
Who hasn't thought about running away from it all? I really loved this book! The only thing I would say is do not read the questions at the end of the book until you're done- it ruins the very end. It's a great summer read with a happy ending. Enjoy!
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Review 2 for The Pirate Queen
Overall Rating:
Date:January 26, 2012
CaElRo
Age:35-44
Gender:female
Quality:
3
out of
5
Value:
3
out of
5
Meets Expectations:
3
out of
5
Initially, I had a hard time getting into this novel. At first, I couldn't get past the names of "Saphora" and "Bender." Really. Their uptight names mirrored their uptight personalities. Bender, a successful plastic surgeon was arrogant, flashy with his money and not obliged in keeping his marriage vows. Saphora, the dutiful wife, kept a smile on her face while keeping up with a wealthy lifestyle. We meet her during a photo shoot for Southern Living Magazine at her home. Saphora seemed to trade her dignity for the life of ease. There comes a time when enough is enough. After being confronted with smiles and kindness from one of Bender's mistresses, Saphora packed her bags and planned to leave her husband, escaping to their vacation home in coastal North Carolina. But Bender's uncharacteristic early arrival home thwarts Saphora's escape. And what he tells her turns her life upside down--he has cancer.
The beginning of the story seemed cold and clinical. Yet as I kept reading, I started to see warmth emerge. I'm not sure if it was the author's writing style or that I became so engrossed with the characters that as their hearts softened, I began to warm up to them.
The couple decided to spend time together at their vacation home amongst the comings and goings of their children, their grandchildren and a special neighbor boy. Through this time of Bender's treatment, and removal from their pretentious life, the couple explores their relationship, and as death becomes a reality, regrets are expressed. We see Saphora become more independent and sure of herself, a long way from the silent, dutiful wife we first met.
This is a Christian fiction novel where the couple is not Christian. It is not until the reality of death closes around does Bender consider the possibility of an afterlife. Hickman uses flawed characters expressing that anyone can come to Christ, no matter their past. This novel is non-preachy and the main focus is not of Christianity, but the characters. It is a nice step away from formalistic Christian novels and a pleasure to see. Unless you're completely turned off by anything Christian, I think anyone who enjoys women's fiction will enjoy this one.
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Review 3 for The Pirate Queen
Overall Rating:
A Story of Redemption
Date:November 23, 2011
Quality:
4
out of
5
Value:
4
out of
5
Meets Expectations:
4
out of
5
Saphora is a wife, mother and grandmother, married to Bender whose “life was summed up by the activity of ambitions rather than the depth of his character”. Her plan to leave the philandering plastic surgeon is disrupted when he announces (literally as she is leaving) that he has been diagnosed with brain cancer. They move to their holiday home in Oriental on the Outer Banks of South Carolina, where the children and grandchildren come to visit. Their grandson, Eddie, stays with them, and through him they meet Jamie and her son, Tobias, also summer residents in the small town. Through a series of events, large and small, Saphora begins to rediscover their relationship as she cares for Bender.
The Pirate Queen focuses on the minutiae of detail in everyday life. While there are a couple of ‘big drama’ moments, the beauty of the writing is in the details and the everyday interactions. The story is not preachy (although Saphora does show a curiosity about or a desire for God that her husband does not share - she refers to him as someone whose “interest in religion was piqued only when he breathed a prayer” on the last hole of a round of golf). Yet it is Bender that develops the relationship with Rev John Mims, and who begins to read the Bible and ask questions.
As seems to be the trend for this genre, The Pirate Queen was all written from Saphora’s point of view. It would have been nice to have a little variation, as although we clearly see Saphora’s responses to different situations, by the end of the novel I felt that my view of some situations might have been clouded by her preconceptions. As Bender was sometimes portrayed as the villain of the piece, it would have been nice to have his point of view too.
The novel was not perfect. Character’s names often annoy me, and Bender (apparently his mother’s maiden name) is a name that has unappealing connotations that took me out of the story until I learned to read over it. At one point Saphora finds Bender’s journal and begins to read it, but this is put down, forgotten and not referred to again, which I found strange. I also object to the analogy of Saphora’s son as being ‘as emotional as a woman’. That phrase implies that emotions are somehow inferior to being unemotional, which is something I cannot agree with.
Overall, this is an intriguing story with nuggets of wisdom interspersed throughout, in both the quotations at the beginning of each chapter, and in the story itself. The quotations are both pithy and relevant, and could be the subject of a whole discussion on their own. I suspect this is one of those books that can be read on many levels, with subsequent re-readings revealing different aspects of the story and the characters. Like many modern novels, this has a Reading Group guide at the end. The questions, like the book, will inspire a lot of discussion (and probably yet more questions…). I did enjoy The Pirate Queen, and will certainly look out for more titles by Patricia Hickman.
Thanks to Waterbrook Multnomah for providing a free ebook for review.
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Review 4 for The Pirate Queen
Overall Rating:
So sad when it ended!
Date:October 27, 2011
Laury
Location:Waynesville, IL
Age:45-54
Gender:female
Quality:
5
out of
5
Value:
5
out of
5
Meets Expectations:
5
out of
5
The Pirate Queen, by Patricia Hickman, is one of the best books I've read in awhile. It's published by Waterbrook Press and I read it on the Nook Color.
This book hits on many topics such as: love, marriage, adultery and forgiveness. It also includes: coming to know Jesus in an intimate way, standing up for those who are unable to, and relationships with family and friends.
This would make an awesome Hallmark movie. I wouldn't be surprised to see it there one of these days. Just watch and see!
The main character in The Pirate Queen, Saphora, had her bags packed, ready to leave her husband, when her husband came home and uttered the words, "I'm dying." All their lives changed at that point - for the better.
The book is about love and forgiveness and is beautifully written. It's real. Not watered down fluff. Awesome, awesome, awesome! I was sad when the book ended.
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Review 5 for The Pirate Queen
Overall Rating:
Wasn't for me
Date:May 5, 2011
plainolme
Location:WI
Age:35-44
Gender:female
Quality:
2
out of
5
Value:
1
out of
5
Meets Expectations:
1
out of
5
This book started out with a socialite who doesn't think she loves her husband and finds out that he has a terminal disease. He wants her to care for him. I didn't care for the book. I couldn't relate to the characters. I didn't feel there was much of a spiritual emphasis to the book. In other books where one dies, I have some emotion...not the case for me with this one. It took me over a month to read this. I received this book for free from WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group for my review.
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Review 6 for The Pirate Queen
Overall Rating:
This book is not a predictable novel.
Date:April 13, 2011
Quality:
4
out of
5
Value:
4
out of
5
Meets Expectations:
3
out of
5
The Pirate Queen by Patricia Hickman is the story of a woman, who being quite wealthy feels very poor. She doesn’t believe her husband loves her and is in general very dissatisfied with her life. She decides to leave her husband and live in their vacation home. The day she has chosen to leave her husband tells her he is dying. She realizes she can’t leave him and so they both go to their vacation home.
The story is about their last summer together and how she cared for her husband and in the process realized he did love her and she still loved him.
If you are looking for a good story, that isn’t predictable, you will love this book!
The story is about their last summer together and how she cared for her husband and in the process realized he did love her and she still loved him.
If you are looking for a good story, that isn’t predictable, you will love this book!
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Review 7 for The Pirate Queen
Overall Rating:
Date:April 12, 2011
Recently I read The Pirate Queen by Patricia Hickman. I was given this book for free by Multnomah Publishing Group for the purpose of review. I really wanted to love this book, but I didn't. The premise was interesting. A southern socialite decides to leave her husband after 27 years of marriage because of his cheating. On the day she is planning to leave, he comes home and tells her he is dying.
The book deals with life and death, regret, forgiveness, redemption, and salvation. The writing is beautiful. Unfortunately, I just was never able to make a connection to the characters or the story. I expected to cry at the end, but I didn't. I didn't really feel anything for these people. I was also disappointed in the spiritual aspect of the story. It seemed a little wishy-washy, and lacked any real answers. I got the impression the characters were searching for God, but so little time was spent on the search that I didn't buy into any decisions that were made regarding salvation and eternity.
The Pirate Queen was a quick read, and the plot moved along nicely. Ms. Hickman has a lovely way with words. I just wish the characters and plot were a little more developed. I would give it a C-.
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Review 8 for The Pirate Queen
Overall Rating:
Sail Away with The Pirate Queen
Date:April 3, 2011
MaryBethWrites
Location:Placerville, CA
Age:55-65
Gender:female
Quality:
4
out of
5
Value:
4
out of
5
Meets Expectations:
4
out of
5
How does one go from a suburban matriarch to a pirate queen? Saphora Warren makes the transition in Patricia Hickman’s contemporary novel “The Pirate Queen.”
Saphora has what might be considered “it all” by some. Her husband Bender has a thriving plastic surgery practice. Her three children are grown and on their own. She lives in a magazine showplace of a house in an upscale lakefront community. Yet she plans to leave because there is one aspect of her life she can no longer tolerate: her husband is a philanderer and many of his women are in her own social circle.
Her careful scheme to escape unnoticed unravels when Bender comes home early with startling news. He’s been diagnosed with cancer and expects Saphora to provide him the same level of devoted care she’s always given. Her planned getaway to solitude becomes a journey to hospitals, tests and medical consultations.
Hickman takes us inside the heart of a woman caught in an emotional storm. She gives us insights into grief, friendship, gains and losses through a few months In the life of the woman who becomes a “pirate queen,” albeit without cutlass and jolly roger. The people who come into Saphora’s life include an artistic neighbor who digs holes by moonlight, a boy with AIDS and his adoptive mother, a disable pastor and a small seaside town filled with delightful, caring characters.
Set in the sailing community of Oriental, NC, “The Pirate Queen” explores the meaning of commitment and caring with many metaphors taken from the sea. As Hickman describes the changing view from Saphora’s vantage point near the Neuse River, we understand the internal changes as well. Saphora and Bender have many snarls to unravel as his illness progresses. Both of them must grow and lean on a strength greater than their own.
“The Pirate Queen” is a Christian novel, but not a preachy one. As the characters learn and grow, we grow with them. The book offers a rediscovery of the things that change a group of people into a family, whether through healing old wounds or touching new lives. I found it almost hypnotic in its depth of feeling.
Readers who like Debbie Macomber will find a similar heart in “The Pirate Queen.” The inspiring story will appeal to fans of Nicholas Sparks. With its twists and turns, the story engages from the first page. I enjoyed “The Pirate Queen” and look forward to reading more of Hickman’s work.
This article is based on a review copy of the book provided by the publisher. There was no obligation for a positive review.
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Review 9 for The Pirate Queen
Overall Rating:
A great book
Date:February 18, 2011
Quality:
5
out of
5
Value:
5
out of
5
Patricia Hickman is not afraid to tackle the messy issues. This one is no exception. The type of life that one is accustomed to when one is able to associate with Southern Living people is beyond me. Patricia let me (the reader) step into that life and live it with the characters. This book is about living up to others expectations, reaching beyond oneself to help someone else and thus perhaps finding treasure where you didn't expect to find it. It is also about family life, and you follow the characters through their triumphs and sorrows. I also wonder "am i enough" and this is explored through this book. i would recommend this book to my friends. The title may discourage some from picking up this book, but in this case, don't judge the book by the title.
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Review 10 for The Pirate Queen
Overall Rating:
Sorta Kinda Liked...
Date:February 1, 2011
Jenn
Location:San Antonio, Texas
Age:35-44
Gender:female
Quality:
3
out of
5
Value:
3
out of
5
Meets Expectations:
2
out of
5
I really wanted to like this book. I had a hard time getting interested in it. I think I had to start it over three times. There were several characters that I really liked. I really liked the main character, Saphora. And I respected her in a lot of ways. I also liked the way the book ended, but at the same time I didn't. I felt that a lot was left out. I had hoped that her relationship with God would have grown deeper or more meaningful. I didn't see that. In the end, I did enjoy reading this book. Would I read it again? Don't think so.
I received this book for free from WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group for this review.
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Review 11 for The Pirate Queen
Overall Rating:
An unexpectated storyline
Date:January 25, 2011
Missy
Location:TX
Age:35-44
Gender:female
Quality:
5
out of
5
Value:
5
out of
5
Meets Expectations:
5
out of
5
Waterbrook Multnomah sent me another book to review. The title would have discouraged me from reading it, but it is not about pirates at all, I think the only thing I did not like about the book was the title. Patricia is an excellent authoress who does a great job bringing her readers into the story and making you a part of the family.
Saphora is the envy of all her friends and strangers. She has the perfect life: a handsome rich husband, the "perfect" family, a beautiful home that is being showcased in a magazine, and even a great vacation home. Outward appearances don't always tell the whole story though. Saphora is tired of it all. She's tired of always having to maintain an image for people by having the perfect hair, clothes and smile. She's tired of smiling and pretending like everything is fine while her husband is sleeping around with other women. She's lonely and ready to start a new life on her own so she packs her suitcase and is ready to move to the vacation home by herself to try to find her real self, wear comfortable clothes, relax and be lazy for a while. BUT, her husband comes home and announces he has brain cancer and wants to move to the vacation home while he is being treated.
The first day they are at the new home they meet a special boy who needs love and compassion. He was born with AIDS and people treat him like a leper. He's always smiling and trying to make other people at ease around him, but he is lonely too. These two lonely peole come together and find the love they have been looking for and bring a whole family back together.
This is a great book, very intense. It will make you cry so be sure to have your tissues ready. I believe this book is a must read for everyone!
Saphora is the envy of all her friends and strangers. She has the perfect life: a handsome rich husband, the "perfect" family, a beautiful home that is being showcased in a magazine, and even a great vacation home. Outward appearances don't always tell the whole story though. Saphora is tired of it all. She's tired of always having to maintain an image for people by having the perfect hair, clothes and smile. She's tired of smiling and pretending like everything is fine while her husband is sleeping around with other women. She's lonely and ready to start a new life on her own so she packs her suitcase and is ready to move to the vacation home by herself to try to find her real self, wear comfortable clothes, relax and be lazy for a while. BUT, her husband comes home and announces he has brain cancer and wants to move to the vacation home while he is being treated.
The first day they are at the new home they meet a special boy who needs love and compassion. He was born with AIDS and people treat him like a leper. He's always smiling and trying to make other people at ease around him, but he is lonely too. These two lonely peole come together and find the love they have been looking for and bring a whole family back together.
This is a great book, very intense. It will make you cry so be sure to have your tissues ready. I believe this book is a must read for everyone!
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Review 12 for The Pirate Queen
Overall Rating:
Not what I expected
Date:January 23, 2011
notdenise
Location:Northern Indiana
Age:35-44
Gender:female
Quality:
3
out of
5
Value:
3
out of
5
Meets Expectations:
2
out of
5
I just finished reading The Pirate Queen by Patricia Hickman. I wish I could recommend that you read it. I tried to like this book - I really did. But I didn't. Saphora Warren is the wife of a successful plastic surgeon, and it seems that she has everything she could ever need. But she is deeply unhappy and is preparing to leave her husband, until he comes home and tells her he has inoperable brain cancer. He wants to go to their summer home on the Outer Banks to live out the rest of his days.
Thus begins a story of children, grandchildren and many others coming and going, meeting some townspeople, getting involved in the life and issues of a young boy with AIDS, and Bender, the husband and his continued decline, tends to become a side story. I was hoping for more deep conversations between Saphora and Bender as they deal with past issues. Instead it seems like they rarely talk. Saphora goes from wanting to end her marriage to commitment to her marriage and love for her husband with no real explanation.
I received this book for free from WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group for this review
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Review 13 for The Pirate Queen
Overall Rating:
Good Book...Great Quotes
Date:January 18, 2011
Lori Lynn Lydell
Location:Newport, PA
Age:35-44
Gender:female
Quality:
3
out of
5
Value:
3
out of
5
Meets Expectations:
3
out of
5
When the book opens, you meet Saphora who to all outward appearances had everything. And yet, Saphora is unhappy and ready to leave her marriage. On the day she plans to leave, her husband of more than 20 years comes home to tell her that she's dying. Instead of escaping to their beach home to leave her husband, she takes him there to try and fight his cancer.
The Pirate Queen begins each chapter with a quote from another book, often the book "Gift from the Sea" by Anne Morrow Lindbergh, but also from other sources. In addition to terrific quotes within the text of the book, these quotes at the beginning of the chapters were treasures.
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Review 14 for The Pirate Queen
Overall Rating:
Wanting more...
Date:January 7, 2011
Quality:
3
out of
5
Value:
5
out of
5
Meets Expectations:
3
out of
5
The one thing I did love was how it kept me wondering until the end how it would end up, as most books you can get a feel for what is going to happen. Enjoyed the way it showed forgiveness and love through the worst of circumstances and some great quotes at the beginning of each chapter.
The only thing was that I had a hard time getting into the book and wished there were less vague references to God and salvation.
I received this book for free from WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group for this review.
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Review 15 for The Pirate Queen
Overall Rating:
Loving and Living
Date:January 6, 2011
Quality:
5
out of
5
Value:
5
out of
5
Meets Expectations:
5
out of
5
Patricia Hickman has written a wonderful book of life and loving published with the name of “The Pirate Queen.” The main character is Saphora, who has decided to leave her husband of many years and spend some respite time in their summer home. As she is preparing to leave the house, her husband comes home early and tells her that he has been diagnosed with a terminal brain cancer. He wants to go to the very place that she was planning to escape to. She reluctantly agrees but knows this is the best option for her family. Through her experience of caring for her husband and meeting a young boy with a chronic illness, she learns to love all over again and discovers the important things in life. Dealing with these illnesses and her family, she goes through a life transformation. I thought the author captured the importance of loving and living our lives with those we love. I really enjoyed reading this book and following Saphora on her journey. The characters in the book were endearing and it was interesting to see the changes occurring in their lives.
I was provided a free copy of this book from WaterBrook Multinoma publishers for review as part of their Blogger Review Program. I was not obligated to provide a positive review. The above opinions are strictly my own without any bias.
I was provided a free copy of this book from WaterBrook Multinoma publishers for review as part of their Blogger Review Program. I was not obligated to provide a positive review. The above opinions are strictly my own without any bias.
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Review 16 for The Pirate Queen
Overall Rating:
An emotional and challenging story.
Date:January 1, 2011
Ashley DeLen
Location:Rural Kansas
Age:25-34
Gender:female
Quality:
4
out of
5
Value:
4
out of
5
Meets Expectations:
4
out of
5
Saphora Warren is a middle aged women who has become tired of walking in the shadow of her husband, Bender. Her husband (plastic surgeon) kept Saphora in a very tidy clean little box of a life, showing her little affection requiring her to live, act and breath a certain way, while he lives a life of unfaithfulness to several other women. Saphora's children are all grown and she is ready to leave the facade behind and run to their beach home in Oriental to pick up the pieces of her life. With her suitcase packed and her heart bent to go, she comes face to face with Bender and the reality being dropped on her that he is terminally ill with brain cancer. Her life comes to a stand still as Bender and Saphora face the past and begin to seek the Lord as the process through the uncertain time together.
Patricia Hickman takes a lot of time building the details of her characters and their lives. She paints a vivid picture of the characters in the story and fills them full of honest emotions that help bring them to life. I found this story delightful as it takes on the reality of life (as in when it rains it pours). "The Pirate Queen" is a short novel at 329 pages. It took three days to read it during my daughters nap time. The story was full of twists and turns that kept me reading until I finished the book.
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Review 17 for The Pirate Queen
Overall Rating:
The Pirate Queen
Date:December 29, 2010
Quality:
4
out of
5
Value:
4
out of
5
Meets Expectations:
4
out of
5
Sophora is a very educated and rich woman, she is married to Bender who is a doctor and a very unfaithful husband. Fed up with life and feeling depressed she decides she is going to run off to their Orient home on the river. As she has her stuff packed and ready to walk out the door, Bender appears at home and tells her he is dying of brain cancer. He says he wants to die at the Orient home and they are moving there. Sophora and Bender move to Orient. Their children make several visits with the grandkids and try to keep Bender comfortable. The story has other characters: one neighbor that digs holes in his backyard every night after dark and the kid next door (who is HIV positive) starts to hang out at the cottage with the family. The story is about learning to forgive, pray for everything, be very humble in every situation and the biggest lesson is love everyone no matter what they do to you because God is always with you and has a purpose for everything that happens.
The title of this book, is the true meaning of the story as you will have to read it to understand what I mean. (I can't tell you everything and I don't want to spoil it for anyone.) I would recommend this book to everyone, as it has the true meaning of how to show your love, how to give unconditional love and how God is in control of everything. It makes you realize it all belongs to God.
Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the Waterbrook Multnomah book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”
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Review 18 for The Pirate Queen
Overall Rating:
Date:December 23, 2010
Quality:
4
out of
5
Value:
4
out of
5
Meets Expectations:
4
out of
5
Patricia has written quirky, lovable characters that you will identify with as they learn the meaning of love and forgiveness, even in loss. Characters seeking an answer to questions, the whys of what has happened and may be surprised to find where the answers lie. A tender story of family that will satisfy.
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Review 19 for The Pirate Queen
Overall Rating:
The End is Better than the Beginning
Date:December 22, 2010
AbigailMatthewsWrites
Gender:female
Quality:
3
out of
5
Value:
3
out of
5
Meets Expectations:
3
out of
5
Only two chapters in, I felt the book had a misleading title. Pirate Queen conjured up a swashbuckling adventure, not a Southern family drama. By the end of the story, however, I gained a better understanding of the title when Saphora, the main character, becomes a bit of a "pirate queen." As the book follows Saphora, it mimics her own life: a slow beginning, an uncertain middle (with flashes of brilliance) and finally comes into its own in the final chapters, giving the reader a sweeter rather than bitter aftertaste. Solomon's wisdom, "the end of the matter is better than the beginning" aptly applies to the book.
Forty-something Saphora Warren rides high on the social strata being married to a popular plastic surgeon. He's especially popular among the ladies, as Saphora uncovers numerous cases of infidelity on her husband's part throughout the tale. After a photo shoot with Southern Living, Saphora packs her bags ready to go stay at their second home on the Outer Banks, far away from Bender, her husband. There's something missing in her life and it's not just her husband's affection. Right as Saphora is leaving, Bender shows up with news. He has cancer and wants her to take him to their place on the Outer Banks.
The rest of the story is a coming of age saga for Saphora and many of the supporting characters, including her grown daughter, Gwennie, (a high power attorney who doesn't have time for love) and a mysterious young neighbor boy, Tobias, who brings joy into the life of each person he encounters. I do not usually enjoy Southern fiction, but the characters are realistic and well-drawn, and I did appreciate some of the unexpected elements the author, Patricia Hickman, wove into the story. Apart from the genre and it's rather slow beginning, Pirate Queen does showcase Hickman's development as a writer. Nearly fifteen years ago, I enjoyed reading Hickman's Australian series. Her writing in Pirate Queen is more nuanced, poetic and at times very poignant. I hope she takes her matured voice and applies it to settings outside of the South for those of us who liked her earlier adventure works.
I give Pirate Queen 3 stars out of 5. Recomended for fans of coastal or Southern fiction, Nicholas Sparks, and family dramas.
*Waterbrook Multnomah Publishers provided me with a complimentary copy of this book for review purposes. The opinions expressed are my own. I was under no obligation to give the book a positive review.
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Review 20 for The Pirate Queen
Overall Rating:
An Uplifting Women's Fiction Read
Date:December 14, 2010
Laurie Kingery
Location:central OHIO
Age:55-65
Gender:female
Quality:
5
out of
5
Value:
4
out of
5
Meets Expectations:
4
out of
5
Today I'm reviewing THE PIRATE QUEEN, by Patricia Hickman, published by Waterbrook. In the beginning of this story, Saphora Warren has a life many would envy. The wife of a prominent plastic surgeon, she is introduced giving an afternoon party covering by "Southern Living Magazine." She has it all--a fabulous house, successful grown children, a vacation home on the beach--but her husband is distant and she knows he's been unfaithful to her, even with some of her so-called "friends." She's about to ditch all of the previous, including her husband, and escape to her beach house when her husband comes home with the news that he's dying of a brain tumor.
Not only can she not leave at this point, but the husband, Bender, wants to go to the beach house with her so he can be nearby Duke University, his treatment center. And their hyperactive grandson will be coming along.
This novel has quite a cast of characters, including Tobias, an appealing young boy with HIV, Luke, the mysterious neighbor who digs in his garden by moonlight (I was sure he was a serial killer at first, but I was wrong), a friendly pastor, and all the family members who come to join them because Bender is dying.
This is the story of the spiritual journeys of Saphora and her husband, who manage to become closer than they have been in a long time. Not too surprisingly, Bender becomes interested in spiritual matters, and achieves peace at last, and Saphora becomes more of her own woman than she has ever been. No one is who they seem to be at first. Saphora becomes a woman I would treasure as a friend. There is no miraculous cure at the end, yet the end is uplifting.
The spiritual message is not too heavy or preachy here, and yet the book is deeply satisfying on a spiritual level. I'm going to be searching out Patricia Hickman's other books, PAINTED DRESSES and KATRINA'S WINGS.
This book was provided free for review by Waterbrook Press
Blessings, Laurie Kingery
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