Rating: 
Summary: MY LOVE CAN CHANGE HIM....YEAH, RIGHT.
Review: 400 pages of boo-hoo-ing between 2 one-dimensional sisters and a weak, manipulative male love interest. Yuck. Jamie really does love Leana. He just doesn't know it. So he abuses her with cold behavior and verbal abuse for 300 pages! But wait, he is able to climb into the marital bed and impregnate her within 7 days! And poor, poor, Leana. She just loves Jamie with all her heart and is willing to endure all manner of humiliation. Her love is enough to change him and the world! When Jamie realizes she's carrying her son, well, he will finally realize how much he loves her. Oh Please! This is a harlequin romance dressed up in a fancy cover and hardback binding. There are no surprises in this one at all. As romance novels go, I suppose this one is fine. But wait for paperback, please.
Rating: 
Summary: LCH Raises the bar of Christian fiction
Review: As a writer, I appreciate LCH's technique and style. She makes her characters believable. And proved that you don't have to be the pretty one to win the guy you love.As a reader she made a familiar story feel vibrant and new. She made TIMH such an enjoyable read that I wouldn't mind picking it up again. My only issue came with flipping to the back to read the glossary. I liked her finding the authentic words, but would have preferred the translation mixed in somehow.
Rating: 
Summary: Thorn in my side
Review: Here's the story: Jamie and Rose are in love and plan to marry. On their wedding night, Roses's sister Leanna sneaks into Jamie's bed and spends the night with him, betraying her sister, her sister's soulmate, and breaking both their hearts. Now, Leanna supposedly was coerced into the trickery and is really a sweet girl, so we're supposed to feel sorry for her when Jamie treats her coldly because of her trickery. We feel sorry for all three of them: Leanna, the unwanted wife; Jamie, the one stuck in the middle; and Rose, whose soulmate is married to her sister. The story has us hoping that Jamie and Rose will find a way to be together and will please forgive Leanna and treat her nicely. What happens? Oh, all of a sudden Jamie is overcome with guilt, begs Leanna's forgiveness, and dumps Rose like last year's trash. Leanna's the angel, but Rose and Jamie are villains because God forbid they wanted to be together. Supposedly, he and Leanna were married in the eyes of God and Jamie dishonored her. So God views a marriage valid even if it was built on trickery and heartbreak? This piece of trash was one of the biggest insults of love I've ever read. It's also an insult to the true story: Rachel was the love of Jacob's life and was perfectly deserving of his love. There is no evidence that he mistreated or even neglected Leah. The love between Jacob and Rachel was beautiful and Sacred; Higgs has done nothing but twist it and befoul it. This book was not true to the Bible story and Higgs made a first class fool of herself by twisting the story when the whole point was to portray it truthfully like the rest of her adaptations. Her other books were very good and truthful, which made this one all the more disappionting. DO NOT WASTE YOUR TIME. Want a story about real love? Watch Titanic, read "The Notebook", or read the real story of Jacob and Rachel. DO NOT READ THIS!
Rating:
Summary: Thorn in my side
Review: Here's the story: Jamie and Rose are in love and plan to marry. On their wedding night, Roses's sister Leanna takes her place as bride at the altar, sneaks into Jamie's bed, and spends the night with him, betraying her sister, her sister's soulmate, and breaking both their hearts. Now, Leanna supposedly was coerced into the trickery and is really a sweet girl, so we're supposed to feel sorry for her when Jamie treats her coldly because of her trickery. We feel sorry for all three of them: Leanna, the unwanted wife; Jamie, the one stuck in the middle; and Rose, whose soulmate is married to her sister. The story has us hoping that Jamie and Rose will find a way to be together and will please forgive Leanna and treat her nicely. What happens? Oh, all of a sudden Jamie is overcome with guilt, begs Leanna's forgiveness, and dumps Rose like last year's trash. Leanna's the angel, but Rose and Jamie are villains because God forbid they wanted to be together. Supposedly, he and Leanna were married in the eyes of God and Jamie dishonored her. So God views a marriage valid even if it was built on trickery and heartbreak? This shameful work was one of the biggest insults of love I've ever read. It's also an insult to the true story: Rachel was the love of Jacob's life and was perfectly deserving of his love. There is no evidence that he mistreated or even neglected Leah. The love between Jacob and Rachel was beautiful and Sacred; Higgs has done nothing but twist it and befoul it. This book was not true to the Bible story and Higgs made a first class fool of herself by twisting the story when the whole point was to portray it truthfully like the rest of her adaptations. Her other books were very good and truthful, which made this one all the more disappionting. DO NOT WASTE YOUR TIME. Want a story about real love? Watch Titanic, read "The Notebook", or read the real story of Jacob and Rachel. DO NOT READ THIS!
Rating:
Summary: Thought-provoking and beautiful!
Review: Heroines: varied
On the misty moors of eighteenth century Scotland a family saga unfolds. The highest hope of any daughter born in that day was to marry and marry well. But what is to be done when two sisters each long for the same man? How can happiness be found in such a bitter situation which threatens to drive a wedge between the most loving of sisters, forcing them to act in ways they never expected they could? Can any man be worthy of such attention? What worked for me:
I don't usually mention them, but I have to say I was very drawn to the cover of this novel both for its beautiful appearance and lovely feel. This is a quality publication in every sense of the phrase. Each chapter was headed by highly apt quotes. I found myself referring back to them at the end of each chapter to see just what the author might have been hinting at when she chose those proverbs. What texture the deftly interwoven archaic Scottish words added to the dialogue! And though the novel was of a heavy note overall, there were several snippets of speech which were quite amusing and lightened things up a bit. (However, as a hearing impaired person I don't think I could have managed the audio book version of this story. The Scottish dialect and words would have skittered off my ears and never even have entered my brain for examination.) I also greatly appreciated the fact that this novel didn't appear to be whitewashed. There were healthy doses of the old superstitions that even the staunchest Christians of the day were likely to believe in. Inspirational or otherwise, I'm not a fan of novels where I can feel the author standing on a soapbox with a bullhorn inside the story. However, despite the fact that this plot was plucked straight from the Bible (though altered somewhat to fit its new setting of 18th C. Scotland) with the exception of perhaps two pages out of the entire novel I felt that all the sentiments which came from the characters felt appropriate for them. In other words, I was hearing the characters and not the author. Size-wise sisters Leana and Rose sounded to be a nicely-rounded average. But there was a real struggle over appearances as Leana was plain and Rose was the village beauty. What didn't work for me:
For all the fighting done over him, I just wasn't a fan of Jamie. To me he seemed terribly shallow and immature. I had a good sense of where the story was going but that still didn't alleviate the tension that built up as I cruised along through the novel. And the ending didn't really resolve all of it either because I was left wondering what happened to the other sister. I've mentioned this in other reviews, but I'll say it again. I am not entirely comfortable with first cousin romances despite their appropriateness to the day and age of the setting. (I don't have anything against folks who have paired off with their cousins, mind you. I just can't see myself doing it is all.)
Overall:
A must-read for fans of Scottish Historical or Christian novels, though one need not be Christian to savor this wonderful story. Warning: While it is clearly a Christian novel and does not go graphically into detail, the author does not shy from the physical aspects of marriage as they occur in the story. If you liked "Thorn in My Heart" you might also enjoy "The Red Tent" and "The Bluebird and the Sparrow".
Rating:
Summary: Language on CD Too Hard to Understand
Review: I couldn't understand what the reader was saying on the CD. Her accent made her speech nearly indiscernible to me. I had to start over again and again. When I did understand the basic plot and recognized it as a version of the Bible's story, I thought the story was slow. It gained momentum about a third of the way through when the protagonist sought a wife. It didn't match the second Biblical story, however, that the author started to portray (Jacob hoping to have Rachel for a wife and getting Leah). It was impossible for it to match since men could not take two wives in the culture of the author's setting. So the author just "fixed" it and ended the story.
Rating: 
Summary: It Grabbed Me and Wouldn't Let Go!
Review: I have always known Liz Curtis Higgs as a humorist-having heard her on Christian radio a number of times. I had never read anything by her until now and what a fantastic read it was! Thorn in My Heart absolutely grabbed me and wouldn't let go. This story is so rich and layered with meaning. I understand why it took Liz so wrong to transfer this plot from her heart to ours. Her thorough research of the Old TEstament story as well as 18th Century Scotland makes this book real and believable. And not only is the historical setting accurate-it carries the reader into 18th century Scotland and the hearts and minds of these proud, but God-fearing people. You will laugh and cry at the characters on this stage. Liz brings out their real attributes every so slowly, not quick to make harsh judgments, but letting time and circumstance reveal them instead. And if you know the Biblical account, Thorn In My Heart provides more depth to the people you thought you knew. Deceit, when displayed in full color, casts a far blacker shadow. And yet, you're often examining your own heart and asking, "What Would I Have Done?" And the pithy quotes at the beginning of each chapter leave the mind wondering what is to come next. Thorn In My Heart doesn't shout the message-it allows for their subtle display in the good and bad choices of its human characters. There are no cookie-cutter heroes or villains, only sinners in need of God's redemptive grace. I salute Liz Curtis Higgs for writing an elegant literary classic that will be talked about for years. Add this book to the stack on your nightstand and you will not be disappointed.
Rating:
Summary: Liz hits a bases-loaded triple!
Review: I have enjoyed Liz Higgs's previous novels, and this one was a most engaging read, especially after I caught on to the Jacob-Leah-Rachel connection. The Scots dialect made for some difficult going at times, but the characterizations partook fully of the cultural flavor - stern, upright, demanding, principled - and echoed well their Old Testament analogues. I especially enjoyed the problems that loomed as the end of the story approached; after all, Jamie cannot marry both sisters - he's Presbyterian! The author's solution faces the problems squarely: The agonies and ecstasies of people in love, and the schemes that come back to plague the schemer, fill these pages. And the ending met my ultimate test: I found it satisfying and right. Higgs has set herself a daunting challenge and responded to it with style. For me, the novel was not quite a home run: Her amazing way with humor was not a real option for this story, so she rounded third and then had to hold up. But I've always found a triple more exciting than a home run anyway, and this book represents an impressive change of pace for her. Color me enthusiastic!
Rating:
Summary: What classics are made of.
Review: I have never written a review on a book before but I felt compelled to write one on this book. Because I think of lighthearted humor when I think of Higgs, I was surprised in the best sort of way as I got into Thorn in My Heart. Higgs really did her homework before attempting such a project as this story. Right down to the quotes of the old masters of literature at the beginning of each chapter, the story is rich in every way. I loved the book and hated to see it end. It's one of the best books I've read in a long time. It's got depth, is colorful, entertaining and heart wrenching. It was fun to realize early in the book, the takeoff that it was on Jacob and Esau...right down to the same first initial of the characters as those in the story from Genesis. I can't wait until her 'Fair is the Rose' comes out and the opportunity to revisit Leana, Rose and Jamie.
Rating:
Summary: Great read!
Review: I've enjoyed everything I've read by Liz Curtis Higgs, but her fiction is my favorite. Reading Thorn in My Heart gave me a whole new perspective on the characters in the familiar Bible story of Jacob, Leah, and Rachel. Her unique device of placing the saga in a different time frame and setting was entertaining, thought provoking, and informative. How surprising to enter another period of history and a foreign culture but to discover the characters struggling with many of the same choices we battle today. Liz has a way of weaving a story line (familiar, yet with twists) and painting multidimensional characters that haunt my thoughts. My only regret is that I have to wait for her next book!
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