Book Review: Secrets and Lies by Rhonda McKnight

I must admit...

I'm not the biggest fan of Inspirational Christian fiction.

My guess is that this is because some of the earlier books in the genre were a bit lightweight and unrealistic.

People were too perfect.

I don't like to read stories of "perfect people".

And some Christians, well, I think of them as perfect people: saying all the right things, doing all the right things, having all the right things...

"Perfect People"

And yet somehow, I tend to think the Christian life is not a perfect life... and people are hiding things, or silently going through something...

Or struggling with deep rooted issues from the past.

That's exactly what was occuring in a book I read recently entitled Secrets and Lies by newcomer Rhonda McKnight. I came across Ms. McKnight on Facebook. She was a FB friend of one of my favorite Christian fiction novelist Sherri Lewis, so I decided to check her out.

And she's a fellow ATLien. I LOVE books that have my city as a backdrop. It makes the book more authentic when I know the hoods and streets involved.

I really enjoyed this book.

So much so that I tapped my cubicle mate Cowgirl Cre on the shoulder, held the book up high and yelled "Cre, this chick wrote the CHEESE outta this book!!!!"

(Uh, that means she wrote the book really well, lol).


This novel is the story of Jonah and Faith Morgan, a nice happy family. They're the perfect family, really. Jonah is a successful pediatric cardiologist, and his wife Faith is a stay-at-home Mom to their son and daughter. They have a nice home, nice cars. Faith also volunteers at church with the women's ministry.

Perfect family. Perfect people.

But Jonah is a workaholic. And he also likes to drink. He doesn't spend much time with the family.

And the first line of the book about these perfect people caught me totally offguard.

"He's cheating."

That's what Faith thinks when she starts getting a series of calls from an unknown number. The caller never identifies herself. And of course, Faith suspects the worse, as any woman would.

But all is not what it appears to be...

And secrets are revealed, and lies unravel. And it all happens from a stance that I just didn't expect.

Perfect people have problems. And it only proved what I've always thought: Nobody's perfect.

We pray to God about problems. Or we shake our fist at God because of our problems. Or we act out because of those problems. All of that is seen in this story.

This story is an illustration of how unforgiveness and hurts from the past can infect one's life, and in turn, infect the lives of all involved.

A very good read indeed. And it was very interesting that through all the mess, I could see God working in the background trying to bring correction to the situation.... only if He was allowed to, that is.

I consider a book a good read if I'm thinking about it long after I've finished reading it. And this one made me think, and still makes me think, about one thing in particular:

Deal with your problems, or your problems will deal with you. Period.

Lesson learned indeed.

So if you're looking for a great page turner, check out this book. You won't be disappointed, and you'll learn something about yourself in the process...

And you can't beat that, man!