I'm onto volume 2 of the Sierra Jensen series, books 4-6. I'm enjoying this series so far.
Book 4: Close Your Eyes
Book Synopsis:
Sierra Jensen has prayed and prayed for the unattainable Paul, but no answers have arrived yet. She hopes a visit with her classmates to a homeless shelter will take her mind off Paul, but guess what? He s working there! Finally they talk, and before Sierra knows it, Paul agrees to come over for dinner. Their evening together is perfect until Randy shows up on Sierra s doorstep! Can things get any more confusing?
My Review:
4.25/5 stars. The description of this one is a little misleading. It makes it seem like it's all about Paul coming to dinner. That is part of it, but that's only one chapter at the very end. There's a lot more to this book that I enjoyed. The stuff with Paul was actually my least favorite part of it.
It annoyed me that Sierra was still so obsessed with Paul. He's not even that great of a guy and he's 3 years older than her. I thought that Sierra and Randy were so cute in this book and think they would make a much better couple.
Another relationship I liked was Sierra and Tawni. After becoming a little closer in the last book, Sierra was trying to figure out her feelings about her sister moving away. I really liked the storyline with Tawni moving out, for some reason. It was very realistic and I'm interested to see what happens with Tawni in the later books.
The best part of this book was every time Sierra was volunteering at the homeless shelter. Seeing her play with the kids and form a relationship with them was nice. It's very realistic that those kids would want attention from an older role model. I hope Sierra continues to volunteer there in later books.
The message at the end was great. Sierra finally gave up on anything romantic with Paul. I loved that she realized that God had put Paul in her life so she could learn the power of prayer. Sierra prayed for Paul constantly, and it worked. She accepted that Paul wasn't who she was supposed to be with and that she would wait for the right guy.
This book was hard to rate because there were a lot of things I liked about it, but also a lot of things that annoyed me.
Book 5: Without a Doubt
Book Synopsis:
What could be more fun than a backpacking expedition? Sierra can't wait to go, especially since things in her life have gotten so complicated. Paul has moved to Scotland, and Randy is moving into Sierra's heart. But just when things start to make sense, Sierra is asked out by Drake, the gorgeous guy her best friend, Amy, likes. How can Sierra even think about Drake when she knows doing so will hurt Amy and Randy? When a freak snowstorm hits, Sierra suddenly realizes what really matters most - but is it too late?
My Review:
3.75/5 stars. This is probably my least favorite of the series so far. There was just too much shallow drama and miscommunication that was irritating to read about. I liked the messages in it at the end, but the main conflicts annoyed me.
One moment from the beginning of the book I really liked was Sierra comforting Amy. Soon after, there's all this drama and miscommunication, but it was a sweet moment that showed Sierra trying to be a good friend, even when she wasn't sure what advice to give Amy. She also defended Amy to another friend, which I liked.
Another detail that was kind of weird was Amy's "crush" on Wes. There's a 7 year age gap there. Nothing romantic ever even happened, and Wes clearly wasn't interested in her, which was good, but the fact that it was even an idea didn't sit right with me.
The ending was good. I liked that Sierra decided she needed to figure out her intentions in relationships and how to stay pure and godly before she rushed into a relationship. I liked that she realized that romantic relationships should be a commitment, and not just a short fling.
Book 6: With This Ring
Book Synopsis:
Sierra is on her way to Southern California for the very best reason of all: a wedding! Tracy and Doug's long-awaited I dos are about to happen, and Sierra is eager to join Christy Miller and the rest of their friends. As soon as she arrives, Sierra discovers that everyone seems to be in love except for her. That's okay, she has what she needs: a gold purity ring from her dad and a vow of her own: to save herself for marriage. But when Sierra returns home, she wonders if her best friend, Amy, has settled for less than God's best. Can Sierra convince her that purity is worth celebrating?
My Review:
4.75/5 stars. Of the books in the second volume, this one was my favorite, and my second favorite overall so far. I wasn't sure if I should rate it a full five stars. I enjoyed this book a lot, but it just didn't have that five-star book feel to it.
I was definitely excited to read this one based off of the description - it's always great to read about Christy and her friends again, plus it was about Doug and Tracy's wedding. Those elements delivered. Despite it being a Sierra book, we still got some new developments in Christy's life.
I was surprised by how "mature" this one was. It's about purity and a wedding, so it talked about more mature topics, but it was the first time I'd ever seen the word sex or virgin/virginity in any of the Christy Miller or Sierra Jensen books. They weren't used in an inappropriate context, the opposite actually, but it just caught me off-guard a little bit because I wasn't expecting it.
With the purity stuff, I agree with saving yourself until marriage, but I don't really like the metaphor of being a gift to your future that's still wrapped and not wanting the wrong person to unwrap it. It's the same metaphor that was used in one of the Christy books, and I don't know how I feel about it. I think there are better ways of explaining purity.
The wedding, the main event of the book, was sweet. Them finally kissing for the first time was cute. Reading about wholesome love just gives me warm and fuzzy feelings.
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