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Post by Bill C. on Aug 13, 2016 21:07:47 GMT -5
"This story contains graphic themes of Christianity, faith, salvation, redemption, and religious experience. If you object to such material, you have been warned."
Since I do object (at least to what happened to Crystal -- otherwise just not interested), is there much I'd be missing about the other characters in the area if I don't read it? Especially Tanisha, Jon and Jenlynn, but also Al, Karen, Scooter, etc.?
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Post by Boyd Percy on Aug 13, 2016 23:08:10 GMT -5
I decided to help you. I've read this book many times. I don't know what you mean about what happened to Crystal since this book is primarily about Nanci. Crystal and Noah (Preach) are secondary main characters. One of those three characters appear in every chapter. The other characters you mentioned are secondary characters though still important to the story. I think Wes might agree with those statements.
The following chapters have nothing to do with religion: 6, 21, 22, 30, 33 and 34.
The following chapters have only minimal or insignificant references to religion: 15, 20, 27, 31, 32, 35 and 36.
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Post by Bill C. on Aug 14, 2016 10:28:04 GMT -5
By what happened to Crystal, I mean what her character turned into before Down By The Riverside. Her being religious is fine, but when Noah threw the handcuff key back into the bucket to teach her submission and she put up with it, that was the last straw that destroyed her character.
Thank you very much; I'll read those.
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Post by Boyd Percy on Aug 14, 2016 15:34:58 GMT -5
You probably ought to read chapter 2 also. You'll find that not everything is sweetness and light in their relationship. They need time to get used to one another. Crystal tends to be more impulsive while Preach is more reflective. . The two major threads in this book are about Nanci and Crystal and Preach growing up and deciding which direction their lives will go. It's much like in earlier Dawnwalker books in which characters like Randy Clark, Myleigh Harris, Jon and Tanisha Chladek and Duane and Michelle MacRae must also find their paths in life. But know this, if you don't read all the book, you will miss some great writing by Wes. I consider chapter 12 one of the most powerful chapters Wes has written and it is overtly religious. After you read that chapter, you'll know what a strong character Nanci really is.
Don't worry about Crystal, she isn't a submissive wimp and Preach isn't a dominant master. They're just newlyweds. Fortunately, they have Al and Karen as good role models.
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Post by Bill S. on Sept 1, 2016 17:18:09 GMT -5
Having read Nanci's story from the time she arrived till now. I believe Wes has done a wonderful job of putting together the secular and religious dimensions of real life. Religion as practiced by some folks can be a real downer. Nanci has the opportunity to put something positive in place in the practice of faithful living!
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Post by Autonomous on Sept 1, 2016 20:24:52 GMT -5
That disclaimer set my expectations pretty low, too, along with the fact that Canyon Fires is the one story on the site that I don't like at least a little. One problem is that I liked the Crystal from the earlier stories, and here she is just completely a different person. I'd also had my fill of stories about rafting down the Canyon by that point. And I got my fill of trite, superficial tales of being Saved by Jesus a long time ago. Canyon Fires also seemed to suffer from being filled out with bits of story that updated characters from other stories but didn't really fit here. But this story, Down By The River, is actually better on all points (except Crystal is still a Pod Person). Nanci, in spite of her slightly goofy spiritual beliefs, turns out to be quite aware that along with the good, quite a bit of bad goes on in and around churches, and some devout churchgoers are also real jerks. Although Nanci thinks God is giving her hints about what she might do with her life, she isn't just waiting around for Him to lay it all out for her.
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