High school junior Beka Madison has seen a lot of changes throughout the year. Still adjusting to her mother's recent death, Beka struggles with her grief, finding good friends and becoming a Christian. In addition to the hard life lessons she learns along the way, Beka continues to wrestle with some old habits in this third installment of the Becoming Beka series.
Sarah Anne Sumpolec has a pulse on the heart of teens, and her brief, pithy conversational narratives keep the story moving along. Beka's father continues to spend time with Gabby, the kind-hearted woman who allows Beka's sister, Anna, to ride horses at her farm. While the rest of Beka's family relishes these afternoons together, Beka seethes inside. No one can replace her mom. (Except maybe Julie, Beka's counselor.)
In school, Beka's stress levels rise as her former friend turned enemy, Gretchen, gushes with kindness even though Beka turned her in for burning down the school's Snack Shack. Beka knows better than to believe that Gretchen has forgiven her. And then there's boy trouble. Which one to date? Beka can't decide between fellow student Mark, the one with the questionable past, and Josh, the homeschooled senior heading off to college in the fall.
With a potential romance brewing for her dad, the unresolved tension heightening with Gretchen, and being torn between Mark and Josh, Beka's mind is spinning. Through it all, she tries to trust God and discover His will; thankfully, she has the input of her good friend Lori to help challenge her thinking and actions at every juncture. Beka makes headway and then blunders, losing her dad's trust again. She resorts to lying, only to repent and confess before making even more serious mistakes.
By book's end, Beka realizes that being a Christian isn't at all easy and that developing a daily faith and trust in God is non-negotiable in the grand scheme of life.
--- Reviewed by Michele Howe
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