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angelwolf45's review
5.0
This book was definitely better than the first book in this series. I was really excited to see what would happen to the characters that I loved in the first book.
This book is about the character named Mary Catherine. We meet her in the first book but this time she is the main character. Its about her and her friends as they are setting up a youth center in the most dangerous area of LA. It is about how they deal with the gangs and so much more.
It was so awesome I had a hard time putting this book down. This is the only book so far that I have been able to get through the first 193 pages in a day. It was that good and I loved the characters and the angels that were a part of this book. They were all awesome and they grew a lot more within this book and I had a lot of fun to read.
Mary Catherine irritated me a little bit because she would not allow herself to fall in love, even though she did start to but kept telling herself not to, all because she has this heart condition. But in a way I kinda understood because she does not have a lot of time left and does not want to hurt the guy that she is falling in love with.
Everything that happened in this book made me really happy and enjoyed the book series more and made me so excited for the next book to see what happens to the characters but sad that I have to wait another year for the next book to come out.
This book is about the character named Mary Catherine. We meet her in the first book but this time she is the main character. Its about her and her friends as they are setting up a youth center in the most dangerous area of LA. It is about how they deal with the gangs and so much more.
It was so awesome I had a hard time putting this book down. This is the only book so far that I have been able to get through the first 193 pages in a day. It was that good and I loved the characters and the angels that were a part of this book. They were all awesome and they grew a lot more within this book and I had a lot of fun to read.
Mary Catherine irritated me a little bit because she would not allow herself to fall in love, even though she did start to but kept telling herself not to, all because she has this heart condition. But in a way I kinda understood because she does not have a lot of time left and does not want to hurt the guy that she is falling in love with.
Everything that happened in this book made me really happy and enjoyed the book series more and made me so excited for the next book to see what happens to the characters but sad that I have to wait another year for the next book to come out.
kapetatusekille's review
5.0
One reader had this to say about Karen Kingsburys books, "the stories are fiction; but their impact is real"
I couldn't agree more even if I tried. Chasing sunsets is the second installment in the 'Angels walking trilogy' and unlike Angels walking (the first book) this one did not leave us with a happy ending, atleast not in the way we expected it to. But the Angels walking team was very much present and miracles were happening all around in the book. As usual, I cried, I dare you to read a Karen Kingsbury novel and not have your eyes sting not even once! Impossible!
What I loved most about the book was when one character gave their life to Christ and the salvation prayer was included, typed in black and white for all of eternity. Whoever will pick up this book, regardless of their religous background will be exposed to it. Sometimes we forget that not everyone is saved and living a life for Jesus. There are a lot of broken people and ita not enough for us to do nothing, its time for us to do something. (Cue Matthew Wests do something) In whatever sphere of influence you are in, be the light of the world. Be the vesse l that God can use for His glory.
Here is a lyric from the Matthew West song Do something:
"I woke up this morning
Saw a world full of trouble now, thought
How'd we ever get so far down, and
How's it ever gonna turn around
So I turned my eyes to Heaven
I thought, "God, why don't You do something?"
He said, "I did, yeah, I created you"
If not us, then who
If not me and you
It's not enough to do nothing
It's time for us to do something
I couldn't agree more even if I tried. Chasing sunsets is the second installment in the 'Angels walking trilogy' and unlike Angels walking (the first book) this one did not leave us with a happy ending, atleast not in the way we expected it to. But the Angels walking team was very much present and miracles were happening all around in the book. As usual, I cried, I dare you to read a Karen Kingsbury novel and not have your eyes sting not even once! Impossible!
What I loved most about the book was when one character gave their life to Christ and the salvation prayer was included, typed in black and white for all of eternity. Whoever will pick up this book, regardless of their religous background will be exposed to it. Sometimes we forget that not everyone is saved and living a life for Jesus. There are a lot of broken people and ita not enough for us to do nothing, its time for us to do something. (Cue Matthew Wests do something) In whatever sphere of influence you are in, be the light of the world. Be the vesse l that God can use for His glory.
Here is a lyric from the Matthew West song Do something:
"I woke up this morning
Saw a world full of trouble now, thought
How'd we ever get so far down, and
How's it ever gonna turn around
So I turned my eyes to Heaven
I thought, "God, why don't You do something?"
He said, "I did, yeah, I created you"
If not us, then who
If not me and you
It's not enough to do nothing
It's time for us to do something
stuckbetweenthepages's review
You can find my official review on my website: https://stuckbetweenthepagesblog.wordpress.com/2016/07/06/review-chasing-sunsets-by-karen-kingsbury/
wraithofbooksandbones's review
4.0
I'm a sucker for slow burn romances. Of course, I'm a bit of an idiot for reading the second book before the first...but to be fair my friend let me take it once she saw me sneaking it from her pile of books and reading it.
Anyways I really love the writing of the story and how all of the narratives intersected, where you could see both sides of the situation (and be able to keep the POV straight, which in itself is an admirable feat). The growth of all characters was not just awesome, I found to be very realistic, over the course of the book. Sure, there were twists and other points where one could "know" what was going to happen next. Regardless, they really pulled at my heart-strings and then TORE THEM OUT AT THE END. Ugh.
Since it has been a few months since I read this I can't say that I had anything bad to say about the book. Maybe a couple cliches happened (but, and maybe I'm in the minority for this, isn't that the point of cliches? They are loved because they work but they also need to be new in order to stay both relevant and loved in today's reading culture; which thankfully happens in "Chasing Sunsets").
Now I need to get the first and second books. TO THE LIBRARY!!!
Anyways I really love the writing of the story and how all of the narratives intersected, where you could see both sides of the situation (and be able to keep the POV straight, which in itself is an admirable feat). The growth of all characters was not just awesome, I found to be very realistic, over the course of the book. Sure, there were twists and other points where one could "know" what was going to happen next. Regardless, they really pulled at my heart-strings and then TORE THEM OUT AT THE END. Ugh.
Since it has been a few months since I read this I can't say that I had anything bad to say about the book. Maybe a couple cliches happened (but, and maybe I'm in the minority for this, isn't that the point of cliches? They are loved because they work but they also need to be new in order to stay both relevant and loved in today's reading culture; which thankfully happens in "Chasing Sunsets").
Now I need to get the first and second books. TO THE LIBRARY!!!
hermione617's review against another edition
5.0
I've wanted to try Christian fiction out. This was such a hard-hitter. The guy who the main character is trying to avoid is a baseball player. lol
Rating PG-13.. just because the content was intense. There is no cursing.
At first, I thought, gangs... uhh. what? You're trying too hard. Then I remembered that I visited the LA Dream Center for the past 2 years on a mission trip, and I realized this stuff is definitely happening: Gang violence & teenagers falling into this 'fame' death trap on the streets. It's sickening. I related to the main character, Mary Catherine, pretty often. She avoided this guy thinking "nope, he's too cool & handsome. He's got tons of other ladies he'd rather be around." She also serves with youth/ teenagers. She had a lot of similar thoughts that I do when around an attractive guy. lol. I related to her spirit of doing things, not caring what other people would possibly say.
I don't have a medical ailment (to my knowledge) that may cause a real issue if I get in a serious relationship, but sometimes I feel like there could be. It's weird, but anyway.
Back to the story, I found myself really enjoying it. I hate the violence in it, but it wasn't exorbitant or anything. It all made the story believable and helped get the desparateness and ruthlessness that is happening in LA & other cities. It stresses how important prayers are, how each person makes a difference, and puts this idea of God assigning angels that appear as humans. That was really cool. It reminded me of "Touched By an Angel" (tv show in the '90s).
I liked having the guy perspective, too. How much will they really do when they're intrigued by a lady & from the Christian PoV? It's really cool to hear/read.
Rating PG-13.. just because the content was intense. There is no cursing.
At first, I thought, gangs... uhh. what? You're trying too hard. Then I remembered that I visited the LA Dream Center for the past 2 years on a mission trip, and I realized this stuff is definitely happening: Gang violence & teenagers falling into this 'fame' death trap on the streets. It's sickening. I related to the main character, Mary Catherine, pretty often. She avoided this guy thinking "nope, he's too cool & handsome. He's got tons of other ladies he'd rather be around." She also serves with youth/ teenagers. She had a lot of similar thoughts that I do when around an attractive guy. lol. I related to her spirit of doing things, not caring what other people would possibly say.
I don't have a medical ailment (to my knowledge) that may cause a real issue if I get in a serious relationship, but sometimes I feel like there could be. It's weird, but anyway.
Back to the story, I found myself really enjoying it. I hate the violence in it, but it wasn't exorbitant or anything. It all made the story believable and helped get the desparateness and ruthlessness that is happening in LA & other cities. It stresses how important prayers are, how each person makes a difference, and puts this idea of God assigning angels that appear as humans. That was really cool. It reminded me of "Touched By an Angel" (tv show in the '90s).
I liked having the guy perspective, too. How much will they really do when they're intrigued by a lady & from the Christian PoV? It's really cool to hear/read.
bookworm_mommy's review
4.0
I received this book as an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.
As an avid Karen Kingsbury fan from the start, I thought I had read every book she’s written. However, I somehow missed book 1 in the Angels Walking series. Perhaps because of that, Chasing Sunsets seems to jump right into the middle of an in progress story. While that was disconcerting for the first few chapters, Kingsbury does a great job filling in any gaps for readers like me who didn’t read the first book.
I do believe the description of the book is a bit misleading. This book is as much about Marcus as it is about Mary Catherine. It is the story of their individual journeys in relationship with Christ and to find purpose as well as the story of where their journeys intersect with one another. It is also a story of reaching out to help those in need of hope. Intermingled is a look at the story from a spiritual perspective – what is going on behind the scenes that the human characters are unaware of.
There is a good balance of dialogue between characters as well as introspection of the characters themselves. There is not a lot of description of setting or appearance, but I didn’t feel anything was missing as a result. As usual with Kingsbury’s books, there was a long list of characters involved in the story telling. While that can be overwhelming initially, she does such a great job fleshing out each character, it doesn’t stay confusing for long.
As mentioned earlier, this is as much Marcus’s story as Mary Catherine’s. And I found myself rooting for him more. While Mary Catherine seemed a bit more self-focused, Marcus was just an all-around likeable guy. I found Mary Catherine’s quick emotional changes and waffling a bit indulgent. One moment she’s secure in truly living her life and giddy with love. Then a few paragraphs later she’s forgotten all of that and is scared and lonely.
The budding romance between the two seemed to blossom quickly. I’m not a very sentimental person, so at times their interactions seemed over the top. But overall I think that most readers will enjoy that aspect of the story.
The parallel stories of what was happening with the people alongside what was happening in the spiritual realm with the angels were fascinating to me. While I have not ever thought much about angels among us or what they are like personality-wise, I think the picture that Kingsbury painted could be an accurate one. Jag and Aspen, the two angels assigned to the mission, were both believable. In the days since I finished reading, I have found myself pondering the spiritual realm occurring in conjunction with my own life.
The book does deal with gangs, gang violence, and prison. However, none of these topics are handled lightly or offensivly in any way. They give dimension and movement to other aspects of the story.
The ending left me with my mouth hanging open. I couldn’t believe it was the end. There was so much still to be resolved. How could it be the last page?! I guess that means I’ll be anxiously awaiting the third installment…and going back to read the first book while I wait.
My major complaint about the book is that the text is full of little inconsistencies (i.e. for Jag’s past failed mission is it Tom or Terrance Williams?). They don’t disrupt the overall flow for the story but could be annoying to a discerning reader.
This book would appeal to teen girls and women who like sweet romances, character growth, and pondering the spiritual warfare going on around us. I think the spiritual realm would be off-putting to some secular readers. If you are a fan of Karen Kingsbury’s other works, this latest novel will be right up your alley.
Pros: fast-paced story; likeable characters; leaves the reader wanting more
Cons: inconsistencies
My Rating: 4 out of 5 (very good)
***This review will also post on The Christian Manifesto website 4.13.15
As an avid Karen Kingsbury fan from the start, I thought I had read every book she’s written. However, I somehow missed book 1 in the Angels Walking series. Perhaps because of that, Chasing Sunsets seems to jump right into the middle of an in progress story. While that was disconcerting for the first few chapters, Kingsbury does a great job filling in any gaps for readers like me who didn’t read the first book.
I do believe the description of the book is a bit misleading. This book is as much about Marcus as it is about Mary Catherine. It is the story of their individual journeys in relationship with Christ and to find purpose as well as the story of where their journeys intersect with one another. It is also a story of reaching out to help those in need of hope. Intermingled is a look at the story from a spiritual perspective – what is going on behind the scenes that the human characters are unaware of.
There is a good balance of dialogue between characters as well as introspection of the characters themselves. There is not a lot of description of setting or appearance, but I didn’t feel anything was missing as a result. As usual with Kingsbury’s books, there was a long list of characters involved in the story telling. While that can be overwhelming initially, she does such a great job fleshing out each character, it doesn’t stay confusing for long.
As mentioned earlier, this is as much Marcus’s story as Mary Catherine’s. And I found myself rooting for him more. While Mary Catherine seemed a bit more self-focused, Marcus was just an all-around likeable guy. I found Mary Catherine’s quick emotional changes and waffling a bit indulgent. One moment she’s secure in truly living her life and giddy with love. Then a few paragraphs later she’s forgotten all of that and is scared and lonely.
The budding romance between the two seemed to blossom quickly. I’m not a very sentimental person, so at times their interactions seemed over the top. But overall I think that most readers will enjoy that aspect of the story.
The parallel stories of what was happening with the people alongside what was happening in the spiritual realm with the angels were fascinating to me. While I have not ever thought much about angels among us or what they are like personality-wise, I think the picture that Kingsbury painted could be an accurate one. Jag and Aspen, the two angels assigned to the mission, were both believable. In the days since I finished reading, I have found myself pondering the spiritual realm occurring in conjunction with my own life.
The book does deal with gangs, gang violence, and prison. However, none of these topics are handled lightly or offensivly in any way. They give dimension and movement to other aspects of the story.
The ending left me with my mouth hanging open. I couldn’t believe it was the end. There was so much still to be resolved. How could it be the last page?! I guess that means I’ll be anxiously awaiting the third installment…and going back to read the first book while I wait.
My major complaint about the book is that the text is full of little inconsistencies (i.e. for Jag’s past failed mission is it Tom or Terrance Williams?). They don’t disrupt the overall flow for the story but could be annoying to a discerning reader.
This book would appeal to teen girls and women who like sweet romances, character growth, and pondering the spiritual warfare going on around us. I think the spiritual realm would be off-putting to some secular readers. If you are a fan of Karen Kingsbury’s other works, this latest novel will be right up your alley.
Pros: fast-paced story; likeable characters; leaves the reader wanting more
Cons: inconsistencies
My Rating: 4 out of 5 (very good)
***This review will also post on The Christian Manifesto website 4.13.15
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