Cover of SAINTS IN LIMBO
courtesy of Waterbrook Press
SAINTS IN LIMBO by River Jordan

River Jordan is a unique voice in the world of fiction. Her stories are reminiscent of those of Flannery O’Connor with a dash of Stephen King added to the mix. Still her lyrical prose is hers alone and it creates a world where readers can enter and be transfixed. That is certainly true of her latest novel SAINTS IN LIMBO.

Velma True is the heroine of the story. She is a widow who still grieves for her late husband Joe. She misses him and she misses the life they had together. One day a stranger shows up at her door. He is so charismatic that she uncharacteristically invites him into her home. He stays with her for a while and then presents her with a rock.

Later she learns the rock possesses a type of magic. It can take her back in time at its pleasure. These episodes are joyful to her as they mostly involve her seeing Joe again, but they are also hurtful as they just increase her grief for him. Still the longer Velma has the rock the more control she gains over it.

Velma also learns there is a creature who wants to gain possession of the rock. This “thing” is always lurking about and eventually threatens her and the ones she loves. This is where the Stephen King aspect of the writing is the most prevalent.

The story is intriguing and engrossing but the real draw of SAINTS IN LIMBO is in the beauty of the passages. Jordan never met a person or an object she couldn’t describe, and do so beautifully. This also applies to emotions. She can create passages of longing and regret that will tear your heart out, but she can also create scenes of such happiness that you feel filled to overflowing.

SAINTS IN LIMBO is the kind of book that you read and reread. You leave your mundane world and enter the one created by Jordan, and there you stay even after you have finished the story. It is a spell-binding form of writing that will capture your mind for hours on end.

If you have never sampled the writing talent of River Jordan then SAINTS IN LIMBO is a good jumping off place. It is a different form of writing that will instantly make you a fan and a disciple of her talent.

SAINTS IN LIMBO is published by Waterbrook Press. It contains 352 pages and sells for $13.99.
 

 

 

 

 

©2009 Jackie K. Cooper

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