In celebration of my good friend and author Emerald Barnes’ re-release of her Christian YA novel Entertaining Angels, I am hosting a stop on her blog tour! This is a fabulous read for anyone who enjoys YA fiction with a Christian message. Read all about Entertaining Angels along with my review below.

ABOUT Entertaining Angels

Madison Andrews can’t face her reflection in the mirror. All she sees is a big, fat nobody. Yet, deep inside she longs for something more, something that’s not skin deep.

Along comes Zach, the new guy in high school. He’s smoking hot and totally out of her league. She somehow catches his eye, and he makes her feel beautiful for once. But just as she gets close to Zach, her nerdy best friend, Chase, won’t let Madison doubt her true beauty, no matter how many meals she skips.

Dark forces are at work, darker than the lies and mocking from her peers, stopping her from amounting to her full potential. With her newfound Christian fith, can Madison find true happiness in her own skin amidst the battle of angels and demons?

My Review:

I absolutely love feel-good stories, and Emerald Barnes has created a real winner. The heroine of the story, lovely sixteen-year-old Madison, is so relatable I feel as though I know her. Well, I am her. We all are. We’ve all faced those tormented moments of self-doubt and self-loathing that do nothing but drag down our spirits, and so relating to Madison’s struggles is impossible not to do. The ridicule she faces pales in comparison to the disdain with which she looks at herself, and so witnessing her transformation from beginning to end was beautiful and inspiring. With the help of her adorably nerdy best friend Chase and a very special person on a mission to help her, Madison blossoms and grows in both herself and in her faith.

This story is a fabulous and greatly needed addition to the YA genre, with the benefit of having a Christian message that will warm your heart. I found myself laughing along with Madison’s witty commentary and tearing up during her intense moments of self-discovery. I couldn’t wait to get to the end and see if she got her happy ending. I won’t spoil it, but I will say that I left this book feeling better than before I picked it up. It charmed me in every way imaginable. I can’t wait to see what beautiful stories of faith Ms. Barnes writes next!

Excerpt from Entertaining Angels:

I’m the girl that my friends would throw into a pack of zombies if it meant they could stay alive longer. Well, they really wouldn’t have to throw me to the zombies; I’d probably lag so far behind I’d become zombie food. See, I’m not too thin, and I’m not too pretty. I’m just me, Madison Andrews, a fat sixteen-year-old girl from Nowheresville, Mississippi.

I sifted through my clothes, looking for something to wear for the first day of my junior year of high school. Standing in front of the mirror, looking at myself, I pinched the fat on my belly, disgusted that I had let myself gain so much weight over the summer.

I hated that mirror. I hated that it showed me for what I really was. A fat nobody. I could see the lumps, rolls, and fat. The fat did nothing but damage my soul. My blue eyes stared back at me, but they were empty, void of happiness. I wanted to feel beautiful, but I couldn’t. The mirror wouldn’t let me be beautiful.

I had really wanted to lose weight, but my best friend, Chase Sanders, and I decided to veg out on the couch and watch marathons of our favorite science fiction shows instead of going to the gym. Yeah, that was my best friend for you. A big ole nerd, and he was certainly proud of it.

I, on the other hand, wanted to fit in this year. I was tired of being a nobody, but since I was still fat and ugly, fitting in wasn’t gonna happen. I’d have to settle for my old life, being someone that everyone was nice to but didn’t bother getting to know. Even my so-called-friends didn’t bother. I continued looking through my clothes, sure that I had something my mom insisted on buying me that would cover this hideous belly. I was wrong.

About Emerald Barnes:

Emerald Barnes graduated with a B.A. in English with an emphasis on Creative Writing at Mississippi University for Women. She resides in a small town in Mississippi and has the accent to prove it. She’s an auntie to three beautiful nieces and two handsome nephews. She’s a Whovian, a little bit of a nerd, a reader, a writer, and a family-oriented person. God is number one in her life, and she thanks Him continuously for His love and favor.