An unexpected and redemptive love story.

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I am completely unfamiliar with Francine Rivers and the books she has written, so I was not prepared for the heavy emphasis on religion. I am not a religious person; I practice spirituality (Buddhism and Hinduism.) I was drawn to this book for the subject of art. The artist, Roman Velasco, a main character, reminded me of Bansky in the beginning. During his developmental years, Roman started out painting graffiti with a few friends and learned parkour to escape capture by the police. He later becomes a famous painter while still painting graffiti, alone, in the dark of night. Roman is quite an interesting character. Grace Moore, a single mother, is hired as Roman’s personal assistant. Grace is committed to her religious faith and Roman’s is non-existent. The pair weave an interesting working relationship that naturally grows into them wanting to learn more about each other. Roman experiences a life changing event that has him evaluating the quality of his lifestyle. Both have pasts they are trying to escape and yet make sense of too. The latter part of the book is contains a lot of religious application (i.e., the Bible, church attendance, and prayer.) While I’m not able to relate to the religious aspects of this story, I definitely applaud Roman and Grace for the efforts they put forth to evaluate their personal decisions, responses to trauma, and willingness to forgive themselves and others. ( )

I don't read Christian fiction much anymore.....and I feel I have a good reason why. Most books marketed as "Christian fiction" feel like lipstick on a pig. The book aren't well written and any Christian message feels trite, Joel Osteen type of book. I sound harsh, but there are people who agree with me.

But then I read "The Masterpiece" and I was blown away.

Francine Rivers has always been an author that feels inspired by God. She doesn't shy away from the redemptive message. But it isn't the "everyone can be saved" message or the "turn back to Jesus and life is instantly better" message. Her characters are always written with depth. They are raw and vulnerable. They are human. The characters in "The Masterpiece", Grace and Roman have dark pasts. They are not squeaky clean. And yet, Christ's redemption doesn't automatically make them perfect. Their past defines them. They struggle to move on....all of it is realistic to my life.

The message of the book is about how we are Christ's masterpiece, how sometimes we cannot see what the canvas looks like until we embrace the past. I cried in Barnes and Noble as I read the story of thee two characters. The lives that they had lived.....and how they were moving past it. I really appreciated that both characters had to heal and grow separately from each other. Far too often, especially in Christian fiction, is it the "meet cute" scenario.

The writing of "The Masterpiece" is truly inspired. It is almost lyrical. Yet the depiction of Roman's visit to hell is awesome in its horror and ugliness. When I read a book, I want to read something well written and that can be hard to find these days. But not so with this book.

I highly recommend this story to others =) I'd be intrigued to do it for a book club. There would be some amazing discussions to be sure. ( )

There's something remarkable about Francine Rivers' novels - if this, my second listen, is anything to go by.

As much as I'm impatient with flashback, it does work here. We get fortunately fairly short flashbacks of both Grace and Roman's formative years. These flashbacks are full of drama and pathos and narrated beautifully by Susan Bennett.

This was published in audio in 2018. ( )