{"id":16545,"date":"2014-03-07T21:36:27","date_gmt":"2014-03-08T02:36:27","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.daysongreflections.com\/?p=16545"},"modified":"2014-03-07T21:36:27","modified_gmt":"2014-03-08T02:36:27","slug":"a-broken-kind-of-beautiful-by-katie-ganshert","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.daysongreflections.com\/?p=16545","title":{"rendered":"A Broken Kind of Beautiful by Katie Ganshert"},"content":{"rendered":"<hr \/>\n<hr \/>\n<p><strong>MY REVIEW:<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>&#8220;A Broken Kind of Beautiful&#8221; is a beautifully written and poignant story that is filled with such insight into the human spirit. It is overflowing with grace that brings healing and more into the lives of two very broken people.<\/p>\n<p>Ivy Clark, a very successful model since her mid-teens, has been manipulated and exploited for her entire career. She has experienced life in the fast lane when all she really desired was the love and acceptance of her father. Davis Knight, once an up-and-coming professional photographer has given up his profession to become a church caretaker. Ivy and Davis are brought together by Marilyn Olsen for a magazine spread featuring her line of wedding gowns. Davis immediately recognizes that there is more to Ivy than her flippant attitude and soon finds himself thinking about her constantly. Ivy resists his friendship initially but soon realizes how dependent on him she has become. With the help of Marilyn&#8217;s unconditional love and the Holy Spirit, Ivy and Davis manage to overcome their pasts and to anticipate a brighter future than either expected.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;A Broken Kind of Beautiful&#8221; was difficult to read at times because of the intense emotions experienced by the primary characters. I didn&#8217;t always like Ivy but nevertheless I could understand her actions because of her background. I did like Davis throughout the story although at times I wanted to tell him to &#8220;get over the guilt&#8221;. But despite the love interest between Ivy and Davis, I felt that Marilyn was the real star of this book. Her love for everyone, especially Ivy, was a beautiful and bright light that illuminated her faith in Christ.<\/p>\n<p>I am so thankful that I had the opportunity to read this wonderful book. I enjoyed both <em>Wildflowers From Winter<\/em> and <em>Wishing on Willows<\/em> but I think Katie has taken &#8220;A Broken Kind of Beautiful&#8221; a step further. I cannot wait to see what she has in store for her readers next.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.daysongreflections.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/02\/divider2.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-10857\" title=\"divider2\" alt=\"\" src=\"http:\/\/www.daysongreflections.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/02\/divider2.png\" width=\"317\" height=\"61\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.daysongreflections.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/02\/divider2.png 317w, https:\/\/www.daysongreflections.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/02\/divider2-150x28.png 150w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 317px) 100vw, 317px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong><em>An advance reader copy of this book was provided for review by the author.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<hr \/>\n<p><strong>ABOUT THE BOOK:<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><b><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignleft size-full wp-image-16551\" alt=\"A Broken Kind of Beautiful\" src=\"http:\/\/www.daysongreflections.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/03\/A-Broken-Kind-of-Beautiful.png\" width=\"260\" height=\"349\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.daysongreflections.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/03\/A-Broken-Kind-of-Beautiful.png 260w, https:\/\/www.daysongreflections.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/03\/A-Broken-Kind-of-Beautiful-111x150.png 111w, https:\/\/www.daysongreflections.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/03\/A-Broken-Kind-of-Beautiful-150x201.png 150w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 260px) 100vw, 260px\" \/>Sometimes everything you ever learned about yourself is wrong.<\/b><\/p>\n<p>Fashion is a fickle industry, a frightening fact for twenty-four year old model Ivy Clark. Ten years in and she\u2019s learned a sacred truth\u2014appearance is everything. Nobody cares about her broken past as long as she looks beautiful for the camera.\u00a0This is the only life Ivy knows\u2014so when it starts to unravel, she\u2019ll do anything to hold on. Even if that means moving to the quaint island town of Greenbrier, South Carolina, to be the new face of her stepmother\u2019s bridal wear line\u2014an irony too rich for words, since Ivy is far from the pure bride in white.<\/p>\n<p>If only her tenuous future didn\u2019t rest in the hands of Davis Knight, her mysterious new photographer.\u00a0Not only did\u00a0he walk away from the kind of success Ivy longs for\u00a0to work maintenance at a local church, he treats her differently than any man ever has. Somehow, Davis sees through the fa\u00e7ade she works so hard to maintain. He, along with a cast of other characters, challenges everything Ivy has come to believe about beauty and worth. Is it possible that God sees her\u2014a woman stained and broken by the world\u2014yet wants her still?<\/p>\n<p><b>Praise for <i>A Broken Kind of Beautiful<br \/>\n<\/i><\/b><\/p>\n<blockquote><p>\u201cBoth beautifully written and honestly told, <i>A Broken Kind of Beautiful<\/i> is captivating! Faith is the resounding heartbeat of this poignant story, but Ganshert also breathes to life a tender romantic tale and a powerful inner journey as soothing as sweet tea on a hot summer day.\u201d<br \/>\n<b><i>\u2014Denise Hunter, best-selling author of Dancing with Fireflies<br \/>\n<\/i><\/b><br \/>\n\u201cIn <i>A<\/i> <i>Broken Kind of Beautiful,<\/i> Katie Ganshert writes her most compelling novel yet, where imaginary characters seem to step off the pages. Readers will embrace both Ivy and Davis as they struggle with who they are and who they want to be. The story lingers with you after you close the book, like a melody you want to listen to again and again.\u201d<br \/>\n<b><i>\u2014Beth K. Vogt, author of Catch a Falling Star and Somebody Like You<br \/>\n<\/i><\/b><br \/>\n\u201c<i>A Broken Kind of Beautiful<\/i> is beautifully written and populated with characters that tugged at my heart from the first page. This story is about <i>The Story<\/i>\u2014the best story of history\u2014that of God\u2019s redeeming grace and pursuing love. I found it moving, inspiring, and wholly satisfying. Another Katie Ganshert novel for my keeper shelf!\u201d<br \/>\n<b><i>\u2014Becky Wade, author of Meant to Be Mine<br \/>\n<\/i><\/b><br \/>\n\u201cGanshert\u2019s fresh, riveting novel of shattered dreams, second chances, and true love is one that will capture readers\u2019 hearts and refuse to let them go. This story reveals the deep truth that we can trust our fractured hearts to the God who specializes in mosaic tiles\u2014the One who formed the universe from words and man from dust, and who has no trouble figuring out how to bring beauty from the broken.\u201d<br \/>\n<b><i>\u2014Betsy St. Amant, author of All\u2019s Fair in Love and Cupcakes<br \/>\n<\/i><\/b><br \/>\n\u201cKatie Ganshert has created characters so real, my heart ached for them as I longed to know them more and soothe the hurts in their pasts. The truth threaded through the pages is one to savor, as is this story of a journey from brokenness to redeemed beauty.\u201d<br \/>\n<b><i>\u2014Cara Putman, award-winning author of Shadowed by Grace<br \/>\n<\/i><\/b><br \/>\n\u201cKatie Ganshert\u2019s <i>A Broken Kind of Beautiful<\/i> is poignant, heartfelt fiction at its finest\u2014a gentle story of hope and healing wrapped in the kind of romance that keeps the reader turning pages. I love the emotional depth, lyrical writing, and strong sense of place. Most of all, I love that days after closing the book, the characters are still alive in my head.\u201d<br \/>\n<b><i>\u2014Melissa Tagg, author of Made to Last and Here to Say<br \/>\n<\/i><\/b><br \/>\n\u201cWith a setting that becomes its own kind of character, a tender romance and soul-stirring symbolism, <i>A Broken Kind of Beautiful<\/i> is a shining example of how God\u2019s grace can restore the brokenness in our lives. Her gorgeous writing voice pulled me in from the first page and kept me thinking about her characters after the story ended. Katie\u2019s novels are to be savored and enjoyed again and again.\u201d<br \/>\n<b><i>\u2014Lisa Jordan, award-winning author of Lakeside Reunion and Lakeside Family<\/i><\/b><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><strong>ABOUT THE AUTHOR:<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><b><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignright size-full wp-image-14866\" alt=\"Katie Ganshert\" src=\"http:\/\/www.daysongreflections.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/05\/KatieGanshert.jpeg\" width=\"110\" height=\"135\" \/>Katie Ganshert<\/b> graduated from the University of Wisconsin in Madison with a degree in education, and worked as a fifth grade teacher for several years before staying home to write full-time. She was born and raised in the Midwest, where she lives with her husband and their young son. She is the author of <i>Wildflowers from Winter<\/i> and <em>Wishing on Willows<\/em>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>MY REVIEW: &#8220;A Broken Kind of Beautiful&#8221; is a beautifully written and poignant story that is filled with such insight into the human spirit. It is overflowing with grace that brings healing and more into the lives of two very broken people. Ivy Clark, a very successful model since her mid-teens, has been manipulated and [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[8,60,41],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-16545","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-books","category-contemporary-fiction","category-romance"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.daysongreflections.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16545"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.daysongreflections.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.daysongreflections.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.daysongreflections.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.daysongreflections.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=16545"}],"version-history":[{"count":8,"href":"https:\/\/www.daysongreflections.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16545\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":16555,"href":"https:\/\/www.daysongreflections.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16545\/revisions\/16555"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.daysongreflections.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=16545"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.daysongreflections.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=16545"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.daysongreflections.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=16545"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}