Beneath the Night Tree

Beneath the Night Tree
Nicole Baart
(Tyndale)
ISBN: 978-1-4143-2323-7
February, 2011/400 pages/$12.99

I have thought about you every day for the past five and a half years. . .I'm sorry. . .Do I have a child?

Julia DeSmit knew she would face the question eventually, but she didn’t expect it now. At twenty-four, she is finally content with the way her life has unfolded. A single mother to her son and young brother, she works at the local grocery store while chipping away at a two-year degree. All her free time is spent with her unorthodox family—her boys, her grandmother, and her boyfriend of five years. It’s not perfect, but Julia is happier than ever.

So when she receives the cryptic e-mail from her son’s father, Julia’s world is turned upside down. She hasn’t heard from Parker since he left her in a college parking lot nearly six years ago. But one look at her son—the spitting image of his father—is enough to convince her that, for better or worse, Parker is a part of their story. Faced with this new reality and an unexpected tragedy, Julia begins a tightrope walk between what was and what is, what she hopes for and what will be.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Nicole Baart was born and raised in a small town in Iowa, where she and husband now live with their three young sons. After the adoption of their second son, Nicole discovered a deep passion for global issues and is a founding member of a nonprofit organization that works with a church and orphanage in Liberia.

Nicole is the critically acclaimed author of three novels. After the Leaves Fall was published in 2007 and was followed by a sequel, Summer Snow, which was a Christy Award finalist. That was followed by The Moment Between, Nicole's first stand-alone novel.

Visit her website at www.nicolebaart.com.


MY THOUGHTS:
I thoroughly enjoyed this book. Julia immediately worked her way into my heart, as did her son (Daniel), her brother (Simon), and her grandmother. Life has held plenty of heartache for the entire family, and just when Julia's "happily ever after" seems to be nearing, her life is upended once more when Daniel's father reappears and seeks a relationship with his son. Julia is determined that Parker's presence will not impact her personally as she juggles the needs of her patchwork family. What will she discover about herself and about life Beneath the Night Tree?


Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from TyndaleHouse Publishers as part of their Blogger Review 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.”