The Book of Joy: A Christian Novel That Was Too Real for Christian Publishers to Publish by Monique and Robert Jesiolowski is the story of a woman’s journey towards rekindling her faith in God. Joy Dubois is a faithful Christian woman. She is young, attractive, successful and has a wonderful fiancé whom she loves a lot. However, when her fiancé breaks off their engagement, Joy is shocked beyond words. Lost and hopeless, she has no idea if God is still with her or not. Desperate for a distraction and to change the course of her life, she starts working as an advocate for rape survivors. Unbeknownst to her, this is a path that showed all the ways she was looking in the wrong direction all this time. Sooner than she anticipated, she realizes that God always had a plan for her and that it wasn’t what she wanted before. So Joy embarks a new journey with an open mind and an open heart where she listens to what God says.

This is a story that speaks to the reader on a very personal level. All of us have a moment in our lives where we think that God has abandoned us, that He doesn’t care about us, but time and time again, He shows us that He is always there. God has a plan for all of us; it is just that we don’t know what it is. Joy is a character in which you can easily see yourself. She is you when she loses hope, when she is fumbling for guidance or a place where she feels everything is all right. She works hard, she hardens her heart and, in the end, she realizes that she is where she is meant to be. The authors took the story very seriously, they crafted it with love and affection and it is apparent in the way it is written. I loved every aspect of this story, from start to finish!

The Book of Joy: A Christian Novel That Was Too Real for Christian Publishers to Publish by Monique and Robert Jesiolowski is an inspiring and beautifully written story with strong Christian themes, a story that follows Joy Dubois as she journeys from heartbreak to rebuilding her life. When Carson enters her life, she believes her world is complete. Then she finds out Carson loves another girl and the betrayal comes as a heavy blow in her life. She is haunted by memories of their first dance competition, their first date, and the moments spent with his grandmother, and even listening to “Wake Me Up.” Unable to understand why he could break her heart this way, she questions the God she’s always believed in, for how can He allow her to feel whole and then, for no reason, break her life apart? She leaves home to rebuild her life in a new city, working as an advocate for survivors. Can she find the path to healing and faith?

I loved this story and the way the authors handle character development. The character of Joy Dubois will speak strongly to readers, especially those who have loved and lost. The authors explore the themes of love, faith, and music, and I enjoyed how skillfully these themes are written. When Joy loses Carson, she is revisited by her old fear, the fear that she isn’t good enough for anyone and the authors do an impeccable job in demonstrating how betrayal can lead to low self-esteem and self-doubt. The use of music to set the mood and to explore the inner world of the protagonist is another unique element of this novel and music fans will have a lot to savor as they follow the story. The Book of Joy is written in gorgeous prose and filled with vivid descriptions and a stream of consciousness that plunges the reader into the depths of the protagonist’s mind. It is as engaging as it is inspiring.