The Sweet By and By

Page turning, hard to put down book!

First off I have to say I was really skeptical when I saw that Sara Evans (yes..the country singer) wrote it with the help of another author. I automatically think "OK..how much of this did she actually write?" I don't know- but I do know it was a good book.


The story is of a woman named Jade, who had a not so ideallic childhood and clearly not coping with her abadonment issues. I have to say I hate characters, and people in general, who aren't able to move past things in their past. OK- so your dad left you. GET OVER IT. So this book really frustrated me because you just want to slap Jade up and let her know she's being an idiot. Get over yourself. But I did like how the book went back and forth from the present day to the past and how the story of her past unraveled as you went through the book. Jade is preparing to get married and her motto (and her fiance's) is "the past is the past" and neither has really talked about each other's pasts and so a lot of things are learned in the weeks/days leading up to the wedding.


I thought the relationship between Jade and her mother, Beryl, was relatable if not frustrating. I can definitely see a "part two" of this book happening because the ending left some loop holes (i.e- the relationship with the dad- what happens? What is it like for Beryl at the end? What happens with Willow? How does Jade and Max handle marriage? Are there more secrets to come out? etc)


Overall? It's a good story. It's a page turning, hard to put down book. It's a fast read and the story progress quickly and doesn't get lost in descriptions and plot set ups.

2 out of 2 people found this review helpful.

Not my cup of tea

I offered to review this book for Thomas Nelson Publishing. I must mention right away that I am not a huge fan of light "chick lit" so it didn't surprise me that I didn't love this book. It's probably not fair of me to even give a review.

I tend to read lots of non-fiction, deeper theological works, more literary fiction or fiction with intense drama and depth of character. (I hope that doesn't sound pompous, I just don't enjoy reading light books with predictable endings).

As I read the book, I was a little confused. I saw that Sara Evans along with Rachel Hauck wrote it. I know who Rachel Hauck is because I follow her on Twitter. I was not familiar with Sara Evans until my daughter came home from college. When she saw the book, she informed me that Sara is a country singer and was on a TV dance show. I'm not really hip on pop culture. Anyway, that would have been nice to know before I began the book. It seems the publisher assumed I knew this, although to their credit it does mention lightly across the top, "multi platinum recording artist."

Now that you know my frame of mind, I'm guessing that many readers of Christian fiction will enjoy this book. It's about Jade, a 20-something gal who is about to get married. The setting is in the deep south where tradition and charm rule. Jade is in a quandry about inviting her mother to the wedding. Her mom was not a good enough mother, divorcing her husband and raising her children during her selfish hippie days. This story is about the healing that must take place before one can move forward.

It reads a lot like a Kristin Hannah book. Lots of quaint scenes but not really a page-turner. At least not for me.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

A good read

Jade Freedom Fitzgerald is getting married. Marrying a young lawyer, Max Benson from Whisper Hollow TN. A match she feels very unworthy of, although Jade feels unworthy of nearly everything. She has major baggage she is carrying from her childhood. The daughter of a original flower child/hippie lawyer the actions of her parents have left huge scars in Jade. Scars she has tried to bury deep within her to never be dealt with.
As wedding preparations take place however, old wounds start to resurface, as her mother-in-law to be pushes Jade to invite her mother to the wedding, and Jade's mom shows up three weeks early. Pre-marital counseling reveals to Jade that there are things she is definitely holding on to. Will Max and Jade make it down the aisle, to be wed and to live happily ever after? This book is a story of a wild tale of seemingly bad luck. Poor Jade, if it is something bad that can possibly happen, it does happen. Three full weeks of scrambling around trying to make everything right that has appeared from her past and that is major wrong, has Jade stretched to the point of snapping.
Sara Evans and Rachel Hauk have brought us a modern day fairy tale, the princess meets her prince and longs to live happily ever after. However the monsters and dragons they face are the haunting hurts of a past. A book that will keep you reading into the wee hours of the morning (ask me how I know). 305 pages $19.99 US 4 stars

This book was provided for review purposes only, no cash or payment of any type was received for this review.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

A sweet debut novel

The Sweet By And By is a sweet debut novel. A lighthearted read that will leave you longing to spend more time with the characters you have grown to love. Sara Evans has a lyrical touch to her prose that sometimes read like a song-no surprise since she is a country singer and writes her own music! She uses flashbacks like a pro and the plot twists keep coming and coming and coming.
I don't know that I've ever read a character so wounded as Jade Fitzgerald. And Jade comes a long way, emotionally, in this novel. Sara has created complex, deep characters that take the reader to an emotional level with them. And the characters don't always do what you expect. I felt complete and satisfied when I finished this novel. Great read!

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Great read!

I was given a chance by Thomas Nelson to review 'The sweet by and by. 'This book was written by country singer Sara Evans. After I agreed to read and review this book and it showed up, I got kind of worried. It has all the look of a 'chick lit' book. And to a large extent it is.

This is the story of Jade and how her life comes crashing in right before her wedding. As the story unfolds we learn both about Jade and her mother and the various choices that they made and how they have affected their life since then. We see how worried Jade is that her past is 'catching up with her' and will ruin her perfect present with Max, her fiancée. What we find out is that Max isn't really perfect either and that everyone has sides to them that aren't always the prettiest.

My thoughts on this book are first off, this is a really great read. 'chick lit' or not, I really enjoyed this story. The realistic dialogue was especially refreshing. The way that the story is revealed a little at a time from both Jade and Beryl (the mother) is also a nice touch

But most of all I really liked how this story examined how we all have things in our lives that we wish others wouldn't know about. And that we will never get past or over them until we face them head-on and rather then blame others and circumstances realize our own responsibility.

This being a first novel, I am hopeful that there will be others from Sara Evans.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Caused me to Reflect...

I enjoyed this book because it caused me to reflect on my own childhood and my responsibility for my decisions and who I am. But, let me back up a moment. This story is about Jade Fitzgerald who owns a vintage shop in a small town and is about to get married. She has significant baggage but is about getting married. She and her fiancee had decided that they would let the past be the past and not dig into each other's baggage or dredge up the past. But, Jade isn't able to avoid this because of several circumstances in the weeks leading up to her wedding. The story flows smoothly and easily. It is interesting and I enjoyed the characters. There was only one major flaw for me but it has to do with how little attention her fiancee received and his baggage. It seemed very disproportionate.

I have noticed that in our society today we are reticent to take responsibility for our actions and it was such a refreshing and convicting part of this story for me as Jade does this. It caused me to think about my childhood and how my actions affect my own life.

There is a good quote in a conversation between Jade's sister and her mother early in the book at the end of one of the chapters about the 60s generation and the wars they started--I thought it was very well put.

Christian fiction today is much like this book. It fits well within its genre. It isn't the best book I've read, but it is an enjoyable read and it's one you could sit down with a cup of tea and a blanket with and settle in to read.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

A Compelling, Thought Provoking and Pain filled Love of Family

I am not a Sara Evans fan as far as her music goes, but after reading The Sweet By and By, I can see that her calling should have been in writing! I was so moved by this story! I am a mother of a daughter so this story really takes a special place in my heart. It is an emotional, twisty story. It's about faith, letting the past be the past, and hope and forgiveness. It is about life being the most important thing above all. Truly something that I, as a mother and grandmother, hold dear to me now, after reading this heart wrenching, moving story. This book deserves to be at the top of the best sellers lists! This book is 5 stars and highly recommended by me!

~A Copy of this book was provided for review by Thomas Nelson Publishers.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

The Sweet By and By

Jade is about to get married but there's a sticking point--she has to decide whether to invite her mother to the wedding. She's been estranged from her mother (Beryl) for years, and she isn't sure whether it's worth the drama to have her there. Beryl used to be a hippie and spent much of her three kids' childhoods on the road with one musician boyfriend (or husband) or another.

You should know that this is Christian fiction, although that wasn't too noticeable until the end. So if that would bug you, this probably isn't a book you'd enjoy. (Although you'd probably like it until the end.)

I liked the pacing of the book a great deal. The details of Jade and Beryl's relationship was revealed in a timely fashion and there was a decent twist that kept changing everything.

1 out of 2 people found this review helpful.

The Sweet By and By is a beautiful story and a must read.

The Sweet By and By written by Sara Evans and Rachel Hauck is a beautiful story that touched my heart deeply and will stick with me for a long time.

The authors practically bring these characters to life. After reading the book, the characters seem more like real people that I know and I find myself wondering how they are doing and what happened to them after this story. Jade Fitzgerald, the story's heroine, has been through so much in her lifetime that she has tried to run away and close off her past and pretend it never existed. I felt myself relating to her on so many different levels and rooting for her.

The story gives a beautiful picture of God's love and mercy. From the very beginning of the book I was drawn in by the dynamic relationships between these characters and the drama of a wounded family. No matter how wonderful our family is, we all have relationship problems at times, and the issues in this book just felt so true to life for me. It's a story about people who are more "real" and I truly enjoyed this book. I would highly recommend this book to anyone. In fact, I would say that this book is at the top of my list of books from 2009 that I would consider a must read!

Rachel Hauck has been a favorite of mine for awhile, and I am hoping these two ladies will collaborate again in the future. They very obviously write well together!

1 out of 2 people found this review helpful.

Nice story

For the most part I enjoyed this book. It has a good story but there were times I found my mind wandering because the reading got a little slow. I think Jade is a strong woman and had to deal with some trying issues in her life but with Faith she became a stronger person. Things that happened in this book really do happen in real life. Good Characters in this series.

AMAZING

This is a must-read

Kritters Ramblings

A wonderful story that kept me reading until the very end and made me even more excited to know that there is book two already on my nook ready to start! You find yourself wrapped into a story where there are quite a few mysteries that you are trying to figure out throughout the book. I loved how the reader was kept just as much out of the loop as the characters and we learn about the history that makes these characters who they are as they share them with others in the story.

The mother/daughter strained relationship was wonderful to read because you were able to find out piece by piece why they were not in communication currently and what kept them at odds with each other. I couldn't believe all the history that this family had and all the drama their shaky foundation tried to withstand.

A wonderful piece of women's fiction that I am recommeding to all readers; no matter your age, this book is worth the read.

Excellent book!

Sara Evans is an awesome author! This book won't disappoint! Romance, twists and turns, emotion, drama and God's love for us all are all included in this excellent novel! I loved thus book, couldn't put it down and can't wait to read the next book continuing this story!

Very good book and story line

Very good first book by sara evans enjoyed the story so much had to buy softly and tenderly and start reading it as soon as i finished this book hard to put this book down. I really enjoyed it.

Sweet Writing!

I'm not usually a women's fiction fan, but I am a huge Rachel Hauck fan and her collaboration with Sara Evans did not let me down. Like her other stories, this book was filled with her signature multi-layered characters.

Beryl is an aging hippie trying to reconnect with her estranged daughter Jade. Unfortunately, Jade carries a lot of bitterness and anger toward her mother. As the authors deftly reveal her hurts to us one layer at a time, we ache over her past but cheer her on as she finally learns to release the pain.

This is ultimately a feel good story about a woman who discovers God's love for her runs deeper than the wounds on her soul. It had just enough romance mixed with the drama to satisfy this die hard romantic

Cute book

The plot of the book was good. The author really did a good job of building up each character. The book started off a little slow but then would pick up as you went through. The only thing I found negative was that I found the ending to be rushed through. The rest of the book was explained in great detail that you could really see what was going on, but the ending was confusing and left you confused. Other then that a cute easy afternoon read with a glass of wine!

Overly Dramatic

When I received this book from Thomas Nelson publishers, I was pretty excited. Sara Evans is a very talented singer and obviously a name I recognise. I was looking forward to reading this book and hoping that it wasn't overly preachy. The book started out very slowly, almost agonizingly so. It was very difficult to get into for a very long time. Then, once it did get rolling, it was a mess. It seemed like every disaster that could happen did, and all at one time. There was drama abound. Another reviewer used the term "estrogen angst." I think that's a very good term for what's going on in this book. I got through this book, and I won't say that I hated it, nor that I disliked it, just that it was okay. I wouldn't read it again, personally. But, if you are the type of person that loves sitting down to watch Lifetime Movies with a box of tissues and a pint of ice cream, this is definitely a book for you. I can see this being made into a Hallmark movie for sure. Also, it's very clean and wholesome, which you would expect if you knew who published it but if you didn't, it's probably very refreshing. There's no foul language, no graphic scenes. It tells the story without getting gritty. Also, while there is a Christian message in this book, it's not an overpowering one. So whether you are religious or not, this is a good choice for you.

The Sweet By and By ~ Sara Evans / Rachel Hauck

I just want to start out by saying this was a WONDERFUL book !!
This book is Sara Evan's first book and I think she did an awesome job in bringing this book forward and putting this story with all it's messages and meanings together.

This is a story about Jade. Her life growing up being basically raised by her Grandma, a hippie mother who was never there for her, her wild ways and hasn't talked to for a while, a father who walked out of her life when she was a little girl,an older brother who turned to God, and a sister who in some ways reminds Jade of her mom.
Chasing love and acceptance,trying to move forward while trying to ignore past ghosts. How Jade handles situations that start to come back from the past as she is trying to move forward and will soon be married. Learning to accept responsibility for things she has done and to STOP blaming others, finding God and his love and foregivness, and mending a broken relationship with her ill mom.

** I recieved this book for free from Book Sneeze for being a book blogger **

The Sweet By and By by Sara Evans, Rachel Hauck

Is it easy to start a new life when you haven't faced your past? The Sweet By and By by Sara Evans and Rachel Hauck is an enlightening story of forgiveness, honesty and communication. Jade Fitzgerald is newly engaged and ready to marry the love of her life. But in planning for the wedding, Jade's past comes back to haunt her. She must learn to be honest with her fiancé, confront her mother Beryl, the aging hippy who made a lot of mistakes with Jade and come to grips with her past.

It's not until she is stranded at a small bed and breakfast with her mother, unable to leave, that she accepts Jesus Christ into her heart. This small act opens her eyes and allows her to see Beryl in a new light, freeing her to forgive her mother for the mistake of the past and opening her life to a new relationship with her.

Jade's story has much to teach us if we can open our hearts and minds and learn to forgive those who have hurt us. Though I wouldn't classify this as a religious or theological story, there is obviously a theme of forgiveness.

Not my typical genre, but I thought I would give Sara Evans a try and now I am hooked. Any more stories planned for the future, Sara? I'll be waiting.

A Wonderful Surprise to Read

This was a real surprise read for me. I've read several of Rachel's books before and enjoyed them but I wasn't sure how a book by her and a country singer would end up. Most times when there is a celebrity author fronting the book, you can tell obviously that they didn't really have a part in the writing and it's really the second author who has done most of the work. Also this sounds really sad but since I don't listen to country music I only knew about Sara due to her stint on Dancing With the Stars. Therefore I really had no idea how this book was going to end up.

I didn't have too much to worry. I was engrossed with the story as soon as I finished the first chapter. The characters are very engaging and the story draws you in almost immediately. I seem to not be able to avoid books with weddings so once again I enjoyed reading that aspect of the story. Also Jade's antique shop sounded extremely interesting and a place that I would like to shop around if I happened to be in the area. The book deals with characters who are flawed and realize that they hold these characteristics. I ached with Jade as she recalls her past and her feelings of being abandoned by everyone she loved. There were times when I wanted to shake sense into Beryl throughout the book and be like "Honestly? You can't understand why your daughter can't get along with you?"

I didn't have too many qualms with the story. The only thing was I felt that more could have been paid attention to the fact that both Jade and Max are keeping secrets from each other yet there doesn't seem to be heavy fallout when the truth comes out. It just felt that everyone accepted these "secret pasts" almost immediately just to get the plans with the wedding rolling on time. I would have liked a bit more realistic approach such as maybe extra counseling or something but otherwise I didn't really have any problems with the storyline. I really enjoyed reading this book. It was a quick read but very engaging and I didn't want to stop reading. Evans and Hauck make a fine writing pair and I am very eager to read the next book in the series. If you are looking for a book that's enjoyable yet will pull at your heartstrings, this is the perfect book for you.