We Are Starting Over Again. A New Chapter: Faking Grace

Day 28) Three, Four, Shut the Door: Doors symbolize new beginnings. Choose a novel where a character has to start over

Faking Grace by Tamara Leigh

So I’m not sure when I came across this novel. All I know was that I was going through my Goodreads to-read list,

picking a random page, random number, and clicked on this book. I then requested it from the library and looked the back over. At first I thought it was going to be bad. I mean the story is pretty cliché sounding, a girl pretending to be a Christian, in order to get a job; lying about who she is. I could se where this was going. I started reading a page, but then was completely shocked!

I thought it was unbelievaly good and couldn’t stop reading.

I hated having to stop for work or school.

May2015

It completely blew me away with the great characters, the writing, everything. I just loved it!

Maizy Grace Stewart is a twenty-six year old woman with a dog, Woofer, who has had to completely restart her career, relocate, and try to rediscover who she is after a horrible break up.

She has relocated from liberal Seattle, Washington to the buckle of the bible belt, Nashville Tennessee.

After a blow up at work; when her personal empathy got in the way of her investigative, undercover, reporting; causing her to be scooped and humiliated by her boyfriend (who quickly became an X in her life); the only place she could find work was working as a lifestyles columnist, secured by her college mentor and teacher.

Sadly, the job didn’t turn as quickly as she would have liked into more hours or more pay, and having to pay bills she has decided to take on another job. The job is a lowly editorial assistant and only part time; something she would have moved past except for her trainwreck in Seattle. The only problem? It is for the Christian magazine Side Steeple and Maizy isn’t a Christian.

Well that isn’t exactly true. Maizy’s Grandma Grace was a Christian and raised her son to be one, a walk that went aground when he married a non-Christian woman. The two didn’t raise their two girls as Christians, but when Maizy was twelve, her Grandma Grace sent her to a church camp. There she gave her life to the Lord, but since that experience, she hasn’t done anything with her faith; hasn’t read her bible, doesn’t really know anything about Christianity or “being a Christian,”

So how will she be able to score this interview without revealing her history of working for liberal newspapers and lack of knowledge?

Well, where is the best place to go when you need answers?

Or bookstore

To help her out, Maizy has picked up The Dumb Blonde’s Guide’s to Christianity to help her learn the ropes. All she has to do is read it…which she hasn’t done yet. Speaking of which, her plan?

Maizy Grace Stewart’s 5 Step Program to Authentic Christian Faith

• Name:
  • ✔ Grace
    • Nice upstanding Christian name–lucked out on that one. Must remember to answer it.
• Appearance:
  • ✔ Monochromatic Hair
    • I so miss my stripes. But under my present circumstances, it’s not as if I can afford to keep up the multiple-shade “do”.
  • ✔ Minimal Makeup
    • Do I feel naked!
  • ✔ Below-Knee Skirt
  • ✔ Button-Up Collar
  • ✔ One -Inch Heels
  • ✔ Cross Necklace and Earrings
  • ✔ WWJD Bracelet
    • I scrunch up my nose. WWJD? Where would Jesus…? Why would Jesus…? I tap the bracelet. Ah! What would Jesus do!
  • ✔ “Love Waits” Ring
• Accessories:
  • ✔ Bible
  • ✔ Bible Cover
  • ✔ Twist Pen with Seven Different Scriptures
    • One for every day of the week
  • ✔ “Footprints in the Sand” Bookmark
    • Touching poem. And a surprise ending too!
  • ✔ Fish Emblem
  • ✔ “Jesus is my co-pilot” bumper sticker
  • ✔ Crown of Thorns Air Freshener
    • Stinks, but nicely visible–practically screams, “This is one serious Christian.”
• Christian Speak:
  • ✔ Jesus is my Savior
  • ✔ Jesus died for my sins.
  • ✔ I’m praying for you.
  • ✔ I need to pray about that.
    • Otherwise known as “No way Jose!” Or, in these parts, as the Nashville no.”
  • ✔ Bless his/her heart.
  • ✔ My brother/sister in Christ.
  • ✔ God’s timing.
  • ✔ Have a blessed day.
  • ✔ Yours in Christ
• Miscellaneous:
  • ✔ Church
    • The one on West End should do–respectable looking and big enough to allow me to slip in and out undetected should I need to place myself in that setting.
  • ✔ Testimony
    • Testimony…guess I’ll have to think up a testimony on my way to the interview.

Maizy, going by Grace now, goes to the interview and gets the job, but discovers that she has no clue what Christians wear, do, act like, or say. She quickly cracks open her Dumb Blonde’s Guide’s to Christianity.

To further complicate things, Grace’s mentor that rents her her apartment and got her the job, had tried to do a story on Side Steeple in the past but it came to nothing. She is dead set that they are hiding all kinds of things abnd that there is a story of hypocrisy just waiting to be found. She gets the managiing editor to hire Grace on full time investigative reporter, but she has to investigate and write a story exposing Side Steeple.

Grace doresn’t feel too good about it, but with the added money and promise of advancement in her career, she takes it.

So know Grace has to keep both lives seperate and keep track of all the lies she has told and to who.

As she starts investigating she finds herself having a hard time airing the dirty laundry. Her boss’ son is a drug addict and she has changed her schedule to nor only support him in rehab, but ficus on her family. Instead of feeling good at this tip, she feels for the woman, espechially as even facing that her boss is always trying to help her.

One of her coworkers, Jem, is sweet and fun. A bit of a gossip, which Grace thought would help at first, but as she spends time with her really starts to care about her. When she discovers that Jem suffers from an eating disorder, instead of crowing over the fact that she can use it, she instead tries to help her.

To top off those feelings of uncertainty, Grace also has to contend with her warring grandma sudenly deciding to visit for two weeks; and a coworker, Jack, who has seen through her facade. Will everythhing fall apart, or will Grace get the story?

As Grace continues to read her guide on Christian kife, she starts to find herself unhappy with herself. Seeing that she is a “cultural Christian“, makes Grace uncomfortable as she doesn’t want to be labeled as such, but os she willing to take a step toward something more?

I LOVED this book and highly it as it is just hilarious and well written

The story was fantastic. I don’t mind when the same story is done again; as long as 1) it has its own twists, 2) isn’t a shot for shot/page for page remake, and 3) the characters are relatable and have a life of their own.

Just a fun book.