A Gathering of Angels

Rating:
Summary: A Great Sequel to A Miracle for St. Cecilia's
Review: A lot of books claim to provide the warm characters and small town comfort of The Mitford Series, but Katherine Valentine's new series truly does.

In her follow up to A Miracle for St. Cecilia's, Katherine Valentine brings us back to the charming New England town of Dorsetville, with her quirky yet lovable characters and a host of new adventures. As the community faces some unexpected turns they come together to get through the tragedies that are thrown their way. You'll get to know the local townsfolk a bit better and appreciate the sense of community as they help one another in trying situations.

Valentine has a very cozy writing style, so if you're looking for a book you can sit back and relax with, this book is for you. Full of small town charm and lovable people, you'll want to return to Dorsetville as soon as you can.

Rating:
Summary: Good for a rainy day
Review: I finished this book in one day. It was a nice, pleasant read. I feel, however, these series of stories come very close to copying Jan Karon's much better Mitford series. There are just too many of the same type of characters. If you haven't read the Mitford books,(you should!!) you probably would enjoy this series more. I kept comparing the two.

Rating:
Summary: Good for a rainy day
Review: I finished this book in one day. It was a nice, pleasant read. I feel, however, these series of stories come very close to copying Jan Karon's much better Mitford series. There are just too many of the same type of characters. If you haven't read the Mitford books,(you should!!) you probably would enjoy this series more. I kept comparing the two.

Rating:
Summary: It will have you believing in miracles...
Review: I loved "A Miracle for St. Cecilia's" and couldn't wait for this, her second book. If Katherine Valentine keeps writing so convincingly about miracles, I just might become a believer!

Rating:
Summary: Didn't want to put it down!
Review: I loved "A Miracle for St. Cecilia's" and couldn't wait for this, her second book. If Katherine Valentine keeps writing so convincingly about miracles, I just might become a believer!

Rating:
Summary: Another Midford Rip-Off
Review: I'm sorry to have to give another negative review to one of Katherine Valentine's books, but again, this is just a rip-off of the Mitford books. She even has a big, unruly dog....just like Jan Karon's books! The characters are such obvious copies of the characters in the Mitford books that it becomes a real annoyance.
And again, her version of Catholicism is a little skewed. She acknowledges several priest friends in the preface to her book....did she get them to read it carefully? For example, she refers to "The Sacred Heart of Mary". What?? It's the "Immaculate Heart of Mary"....we only refer to Jesus' Sacred Heart. These and other errors just jump off the page to an even moderately well-educated Catholic. "Rent A Nun"???? Give me a break.

Rating:
Summary: Didn't want to put it down!
Review: Katherine Valentine novels of faith and a small New England community make me want to pack my bags and go live there! In "A Gathering of Angels", Dorsetville folks confront a wide range of challenges. A businessman is left with a mountain of debt when his partner runs off with the money; a bag lady is wrongly accused of setting the fire that levels a church and Father James is recovering from a hit and run accident and learning to be the recipient instead of the giver of grace.

Unlike the Mitford series which is mostly fluff, the Dorsetville series digs into the questions that we all ask about the workings of God and faith..Where is God when tragedy strikes? How are we to find the faith that will help us to keep on believing when prayers go unanswered?

Besides being well written, the things that sets Dorsetville aside is that it leaves the ready with some deeply moving answers to some of the most difficult spiritual questions.