True to You (2017) by Becky Wade is the first novel in her brand new series, Bradford Sisters Romance. This novel comes in all forms including eBook, and is roughly 368 pages in length. With a full-time job and a five-year old child, this novel took me ONE day to read because it is that amazing!!!! I give this novel 5+ STARS. It is a Contemporary Christian Romance.
Prior to this novel, I had never heard of Becky Wade before. Contemporary fiction isn’t really a genre I read much because these novels tend to be either too saccharine or too preachy for me. BUT, I could not help but check this book out simply because the cover is gorgeous and it totally compelled me to read! The dress is stunning, and I love the color scheme. The model is beautiful, and I had to know this character’s story.
I had ZERO expectations when I began this novel. If I am honest, I was ready to be disappointed because I have not really ever been a contemporary fiction fan. Oh my goodness, this novel is amazing, I can’t wait for the next book in this series, and I already filled my summer reading list with Becky Wade books.
The characters are the BEST part of this book. I fell in love with them by the end of chapter two. The main characters are Nora Bradford and John Lawson. What I loved so much about this book is the realism. These characters clearly love God, but also live in the world and act humanly. Problems are thrown at these characters and they react just like normal, Christian people would. I hate it when I read a Christian novel, or any novel really, where the main characters deal with problems perfectly. That’s not realistic, and it’s so frustrating.
Nora is my favorite part of this book; I related to her SO much. Nora is the second child in her beautiful family, and she kind of feels like the black sheep. When she was a young girl she realizes that her oldest sister is the “pretty” one, and her youngest sister is the “creative” (and pretty) one. Nora, who doesn’t feel pretty compared to her sisters, relegates herself to being the “smart” one. Her whole world-view is based on this one box she has put herself into. I can remember when I looked at my older sister, my mother, my brothers’ girlfriends and realized that I was never going to be in the “pretty” category. I, too, labeled myself the “smart” one and then amassed a ginormous book collection to hide in!
When she is 26, Nora experiences heartbreak and decides to shut herself off from the real romantic world, and submerges herself in novels and PBS-like Regency-era shows. This is actually one of the most realistic things I have ever seen a contemporary fictional character do. I think, perhaps, every woman on the planet has at one time or another, even briefly, locked herself in her home with the safety of Colin Firth in Pride and Prejudice. By the time Nora is 29 (at the start of this book) she has become a very lonely woman. This is when John Lawson enters the picture. John Lawson is a man’s man. He was a Navy SEAL. He owns his own company. He is a take-control kind of guy…exactly the type of man Nora needs (and wants). John is an awesome character. He has some exceptionally devastating news given to him in this novel…twice. My heart broke for this man. And, how he deals with the trauma dealt him is very realistic. One of the things I like about this book is that both the main characters deal with some issues in this novel, react, and then question why everything is going wrong. Then they realize they needed to go to GOD first. They ask God for forgiveness, pray hard, and then move forward. So realistic and so refreshing.
I can’t say enough good things about this novel. The only negative is that the book is done, and now I have to wait for book 2 to be released! I highly recommend setting a day aside for this novel, and then read it voraciously like I did. This book is sweet, seriously funny, devastating, and truly amazing. Read it with a box of tissue!
The Christian Fiction Girl 
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