Book Review: Resurrection in May by Lisa Samson

"May turned to the officer, knowing she'd rather be dead than disloyal.

'Nobody would ever think less of you for escaping,' Father Isaac said. 'You've done so much learned so much. You've grown. What good will your death be?'

She thought of going home, running into her relieved parents' arms, but inside her, a grief and a shame at even entertaining such a thought flared painfully.

'I can't leave. Go on. I'm staying.'

The soldier smirked. 'Lady, you're a crazy person,' he said, Belgain accent thick. 'Do you have any idea what's going on?'

'A little.'

'You'll die.'

'We have faith,' Father Isaac said.

'Hope it does you more good than it did the others.' The officer nodded to the driver, and they pulled away to the frightened shrieks of people whose bones seemed to melt inside them." Resurrection in May, pg 53.

May Seymour wanted nothing more than to be a journalist with a popular magazine, but her dream internship didn't come through. No job offer, no real plan for the future. Than an unexpected opportunity opened up, and May stepped through the door. She packed her bags and headed to Rwanda. The experience changed her life. She felt more alive than ever before, until the war came and killed everyone in the village - everyone but her. The scars that she carries cut deeper than the machete marks on her arms. Can she learn to forgive? Can she ever move on? What will it take to make her live again?

Resurrection in May is an amazing story of forgiveness and a journey to conquer fear. Samson does an amazing job crafting characters that come alive. I walked through the war with May, I cried with her. Though I've never been through anything as dramatic and heart breaking as what May did, I could still identify with her fears and her scars. I knew about Rwanda, but reading this book really brought it to light and made me think beyond my own boarders and into the rest of the world. This isn't a book for the weak at heart. This isn't your typical feel good book. Resurrection in May will cause you to think, and leave you realizing the awesome depth of God's own forgiveness.

I received a complimentary copy of this book for the purpose of review.