Heavenly

by Jennifer Laurens

[Joni Reads]

I have been hearing so much about this book in the blogging world and I was very excited to read it. It did not disappoint! Immediately, I felt the tension in Zoe's household. Her little sister Abria has autism and it has put a strain on the entire family. Zoe notices her parents looking more and more work out, her younger brother, Luke, is losing himself in the world of drug abuse, and Zoe herself drowns her problems in the comfort of partying and alchohol. That is, until Zoe meets Matthias one day when she has taken her little sister to the park and she runs off. When Zoe finds Abria she is with Matthias. While she knows she should be creeped out by him, she is overcome with a sense of peace.
After the first sighting in the park, Zoe begins to see Matthias more and more and slowly she begins to realize that she is the only one that can see him, aside from Abria. After talking to him, she realizes that he is a guardian angel. She invitably falls in love with him. Heck, I found myself falling in love with him.
The second I finished this book, I had one regret. I didn't think ahead and check Penitence out of the library so I could go directly from one book to the other! I got myself lost in the story and when I saw that I only had a few more pages to go, I started to read slowly, wanting to savor the story for as long as possible.
This was the first book I ever read that had any character with autism and it was handled so well, which is not surprising because the author has a child with autism herself. I don't remember reading how old Abria is, that's the one things that I am very curious about. Though Abria's actions frustrate Zoe, you can tell from the first moment in the book, in the park when she realizes Abria has run away, that she loves and cares for her sister dearly.
The story is very fast paced, which I loved. I hated having to put it down and I read it at work and I was operating the copy machine in one hand and holding the book in other! Only one library in my area has a copy of Penitence and it is currently checked out, but I am on the waiting list and I can't wait to read it. Go out and buy this book, you won't regret it.