Sally Bradley’s Kept

Life has taught Miska Tomlinson that there are no honorable men. Her womanizing brothers, her absentee father, and Mark, the married baseball player who claims to love her—all have proven undependable. But Miska has life under control. She runs her editing business from her luxury condo, stays fit with daily jogs along Chicago’s lakefront, and in her free time blogs anonymously about life as a kept woman.

Enter new neighbor Dillan Foster. Between his unexpected friendship and her father’s sudden reappearance, Miska loses control of her orderly life. Her relationship with Mark deteriorates, and Miska can’t help comparing him to Dillan. His religious views are so foreign, yet the way he treats her is something she’s longed for. But Dillan discovers exactly who she is and what she has done. Too late she finds herself longing for a man who is determined to never look her way again.

When her blog receives unexpected national press, Miska realizes that her anonymity was an illusion. Caught in a scandal about to break across the nation, Miska wonders if the God Dillan talks about would bother with a woman like her—a woman who’s gone too far and done too much.

Review

This is another book that I put off reading because of the hype (I know, so strange, you want to know what’s good, but don’t want to read what everyone is gushing about) and because I thought it would be a more modern telling of Francine Rivers’ Redeeming Love. Here’s what I ended up thinking:

What I liked:

That it wasn’t like Redeeming Love. I love that even though Miska is in a relationship (if you can call it that), it is she who wants to pursue Dillan and Dillan who is running away. It was such a nice twist.

Dillan. I really liked Dillan because he was a character I could totally relate to. He has been raised a certain way and is a bit uptight and yet loves God and is trying to navigate the murky waters of avoiding temptation and showing the love of Christ. While some people might find him judgmental (and he does have his moments), I found him to be realistic. It’s not easy to be in this world and not of it without coming across as judgmental.

The romance. I thought it developed realistically. You could see Dillan and Miska slowly becoming friends and then that friendship slowly turning into something more. Well done!

Secondary characters. My goodness, I was so invested in Dillan’s brother and Tracy. I kind of want them to get their own story.

Spiritually, I loved the theme of grace and forgiveness that really permeates this book. What does grace look like really? This book will show you.

What I didn’t like:

Someone in this book really turns all villian-y and I didn’t really see quite how their personality progressed that way.

Also, I did want to note that I personally don’t think you’re being judgmental if you don’t want to marry a person who has sexual baggage (or any kind of baggage for that matter). Sometimes, I felt like the author was trying to make me feel bad about Dillan’s hesitation, but I don’t care how saved you are, when you get married, that person’s baggage becomes yours and it’s okay if you don’t want to walk that road.

Romantic scale: 9.5

Overall, I really enjoyed this book. It’s definitely worth the hype!