Kept

Synopsis: Miska is a woman with a past, and a present. Dillon is a man with a ministry. When they become neighbors, they are not on the same page about much, except morning jogs. But God is not tame, not absent, and not finished, and He works all things together for good for those who love Him and are called according to His purposes - even if they don't know Him, yet.Pace: Not slow, but not quick.Lots of side characters, with much variety and not all happy side stories.Mostly romance, with quite a bit of theology and a bit of peril.Some scenarios and conversations were a little unrealistic for my taste, but God is full of variety in His creation, so maybe there are really people who regularly breathe each other's names before kissing.good Christian romance is hard to write, but i think this was pretty well done. Clean, while realistically alluding to the not so clean aspects. Not rushed, especially considering the characters proclivities. Lots of other things going on, so it reads like a believable story. Quite a bit of verisimilitude, though I'm not familiar with the area, so i can't speak to its accuracy.Thanks, Mrs. Bradley!

Am I the only one who thought Dillan was a jerk? Seriously. For a pastor in training, he was far too rude and judgemental for my tastes. I kept reading, hoping HE would seek God's and Miska's forgiveness for how he treated her. This book was well paced, and for the most part, I enjoyed reading it, but I was so disgusted and disappointed in this Christian man's treatment of one of God's daughters, I have to leave a review.~Potential SPOILER Warning~This book starts strong, with a great premise and an intriguing story. Mark is clearly a jerk, and poor Miska is being strung along for reasons that are relatable, yet frustrating to bystanders (me). She meets Dillan and his brother and quickly becomes friends with both. When she learns they are Christian, she is quick to judge and isn't quiet about her disgust for their lifestyles. As a Christian myself, I have met people who don't understand, and because of that, often say things that aren't the nicest. However, as a Christian, I also know that how I react to their confusion (for lack of a better word) surrounding my religious beliefs and choices immediately SHOWS them everything they need to know (and remember) about people of faith.Dillan was a jerk and continued to judge Miska for her lifestyle choices, ignore her for reasons that he was just as guilty of, tell her how he would never consider dating someone like her (while I understand this one, I felt it was never specified that it wasn't about her, it was about her lifestyle), and never once invite her to church or church activities. He immediately saw her as a lost cause, and even after she started showing interest in his religion and his God, he was still slow to welcome her to the faith. The amount of times Dillan avoided Miska in this book almost became laughable. Thank goodness Tracie saw a woman in need of a friend and shared her love of God with Miska. Dillan was too busy judging to even consider treating Miska how Christ would have treated her. He even continued to judge his brother, Garrett, never fully believing he was changed.I'm sorry, but anyone who takes so much pride in following God, should likewise be the first to treat a "sinner" as God would have treated her. With kindness and no judgment. He wanted Miska to read the "woman at the well" story, but he's the one who needed the lesson on not judging others.I will admit that Dillan did discuss religion with Miska and helped her understand things throughout the book, but answering questions when put on the spot is not the same as seeking out a person who is clearly alone and in pain.His disgust and judgy attitude toward Miska was a great theme in the book and certainly kept the story moving forward (even if it was rehashed and rehashed and rehashed) but my biggest gripe comes with the fact that it was never (I felt) fully resolved. Miska becomes Christian and accepts God into her life and her heart, and suddenly Dillan has all the time in the world for Miska. He never once apologizes to her for his treatment of her. He never talks about his imperfections (beyond being mean to his brother?) and worldly struggles. How could he be so judgemental toward her, yet win her over so easily? I'm sorry, but if I were Miska, I would have called him on how clearly unchristian he had been for the entire length of the book!I loved Miska's story. I loved how she learned of His love for her and how she recognized the error in her ways. But I don't feel like her story ever completely resolved. Unless I missed it? (I was reading the last few chapters fairly quickly so I could (finally) put an end to the constant "will they, won't they.") What happened to Mark? Did he go to jail? What happened to Miska? How was her name dragged through the mud? She kept saying it would happen. Did it? Where are the reporters looking for her to tell her story? Yeah, Adrienne brought a potential book/blog deal for her, but shouldn't other reporters (especially after her blog went viral) have been clamoring for her story? I graduated with a degree in journalism, and I know that we do everything we can do talk to sources. Where were the reporters wanting to talk to her?And what happened to her Dad? We never got resolution with him, either. Was he really only talking to Miska because he wanted to write a book and make money? She kicks him out of her apartment and never lets him explain. He was so kind to her, I was never convinced he was only using her for money. Maybe I am just too naive, but why else would he take the time trying to convince her to end things with Mark? And what about Adrienne? She got angry at Miska for having a relationship with their father, and she's never seen or heard from again? If Dad only wanted money like Adrienne warned, why didn't Miska mend their sister relationship after she ended her relationship with her father?This book was long and continued to hash and rehash the same things for its entire length, but when it got to the end, everything was suddenly resolved in a few pages. It was disappointing to go into so much detail for the entirety of the book, only to be left with loose ends and an (I felt) rushed conclusion. Not only did I look past an infuriatingly rude and judgemental main character (who never recognizes his pride and unfair judgment toward others), I never got the fully fleshed HAE a book of this length and depth deserves.Maybe the author is leaving the ending open for a sequel? I plan on reading Taken (a companion novel to this book) in the hopes my problems with the book get resolved there. But, as Taken is about a different (and minor) character, I have very little hope the unresolved story lines will ever be wrapped up.This book was clean and kept my interest. However, I only recommend this book if you can overlook Christian characters who are clearly not very Christlike.

I loved how Miska and Dillon were flawed and believable as characters. Miska didn’t have a linear, easy path towards faith in Christ. She backslid sometimes, which is so relatable to me. I also personally loved that Dillon was not the perfect Christian even as pastor — he was sometimes selfish and rude. Pastors are also human and have the same struggles as other people. The overall story arch of Miska coming to faith in Jesus, and Miska & Dillons relationship was beautiful to me BECAUSE of their imperfections.

I first saw Kept reviewed by Rel Mollet of Relz Reviews. Like me, Rel is tired of reading Christian novels which have the same feel as every other Christian novel. We’re looking for something real, something different, but something which still affirms our Christian faith. Rel raved about Kept, and while I bought it immediately, it’s taken me a while to get around to reading it. I kept (ha ha) hearing good things about it from people whose opinions I respected, and I started to wonder … could it really be that good? Or was I setting myself up for disappointment?Well, it really is that good.Kept isn’t perfect. There was one amusing typo (a segue is a change of topic in conversation; the two-wheeled ride-on has the same pronunciation, but it’s a Segway. Silly name, if you ask me). There was one scene from the point of view of a minor character that didn’t seem to add anything to the plot (and in hindsight, could have been eliminated), and there were a couple of minor plot points that didn’t make sense (maybe they’ll make more sense on the re-read). And there were times when I would have liked to better understand what was going on inside Dillan’s head. He plain didn’t make sense at times. Of course, he’s a man, so that could explain things.Those details aside, Kept clocks up a number of achievements that rate highly with me. She’s managed something completely original—a story about a kept woman, a euphemism for a high-class prostitute—yet it’s unashamedly a Christian novel, a story of forgiveness and redemption that reminded me of Redeeming Love by Francine Rivers. The writing is excellent, and manages to cover some gritty ground without ever spelling out the ugly details.Sally Bradley has created a cast of likeable characters who feel true to live, even in their failings. Dillan, at “six foot thirteen”, is a complete klutz, which perhaps forces him to cultivate a friendship with Miska even when he’d rather avoid her. His brother, Garrett, is a loveable lawyer with a past he’s still trying to get over.Miska is complex. At first she comes across as the sweet girl-next-door—until we begin to get to know a bit more about her, and realise she’s caught up in the oldest profession, and telling herself the biggest lie: that he’ll leave his wife for her. One day. It’s never exactly explained how she became a kept woman, but we see enough of her background to realise it’s a logical progression, and that she feels no qualms for taking the men in her life for everything she can get. After all, that’s all men have ever done to her.Miska’s scenes showed how good the writing was, because I was completely engaged in her character. She’s an intelligent woman who does dumb, DUMB, things when it comes to me, and there were times I wanted to give her a good shake. Dillan and Garrett were similar, and even at the end I was thinking that Dillan needs to get over himself, while Garrett just needs to get his head examined. They were frustrating, but in a good way—like a teenage daughter. Their actions might be annoying, but you love them anyway.Yes, that pretty much sums up Kept. Recommended for those who want something real in their Christian fiction.

What an absolutely incredible book this was! I've just finished reading Kept and had to write a review straight away. Watching Miska's journey from a really messed up, broken life to her gradually understanding that there was redemption, hope and a different life with God was incredible. Miska's life experience and situation were completely outside the realms of mine, but Sally Bradley brought such a realistic story with such human, complex characters, that it came across as totally believable. It was very hard to put the book down! I loved Dillan, and could appreciate the struggles he had with his feelings for Miska and for doing what was right both for himself and for her. And then there was Tracy. Every woman needs a friend like Tracy.The faith of the characters was very real, solid and affected every area of their lives. I loved how Mrs Bradley brought the Bible passages that Miska was reading into the story, and how she could relate them to her situation. The author also didn't shy away from the realities of life and the real world, as many Christian authors seem prone to do. This again made the book more believable and gave it so much more depth.And last, but not least, the book was very well written and was typo-free, which is a real rarity these days.I can highly recommend Kept to anyone who enjoys faith-based stories of redemption and I can't wait to read more from Sally Bradley.

Kept was a fantastic Christian novel. One of the best I've read. I could not put it down and I don't say that lightly, I've read quite a number of books but very few have I been unable or unwilling to put down, this one, however, got me longing to get back in even when busy.I would definitely recommend this book to anyone looking for an untypical Christian novel, it's a real life story, not flowery, in no way cliché, but real.Miska, our protagonist, is so relatable and and so flawed as a person you can't help but love her and as you watch her develop you see the real challenge there. Dillon, the main male lead, is flawed too, a very 'Christian' character, who comes from a Christian home and his character can painfully portray this at time, especially in his way of thinking. These two really show the 'he who is forgiven much loves much'.The only thing that would subtract anything from this book for me would be the ending, a good ending, but to be honest I'd have liked another chapter or 2 maybe with a time-skip to see how it all rounded off. However, there is a website provided with a little extra on this time, so I'm satisfied.

This book was like a modern version of Francine Rivers' Redeeming Love. ALL the characters were so real and engaging they pulled me into their world but really it wasn't difficult because their world is one I recognize because it is society today. I could see myself in some of the character and many of them represented people I know. This story gets a grip on you and doesn't let go, it makes you think well into the night and reevaluate where you stand, how you treat people and demonstrate God's love. The only sad thing for me was that this was Sally's first novel, I was so ready to dig into another masterpiece so I hope she brings out the next one soon.

This was a thoroughly enjoyable read for me. The characters were very real, well drawn, with a story that kept moving. The author is deeply knowledgable about and sensitive to serious worldliness as well as serious Christianity, and the human-ness of us all. The writing was a pleasure to read, and I confess to having read for more hours a day than I should have, lol! I look forward to reading more from this anointed author. (Received free via BookBub.)

I got this book from 'BookBub' for free.Once I started reading it,I just could not put it away. I read from 23:30 hours until the next day at 7:30 am. That's how interesting and captivating the story was. I'm on the verge of buying the next book on Cam as soon as I finish typing my review.Thanks Ms Bradley for a great story.