Callie

The Women of Valley View, Book 1

By: Sharon Srock

Narrated by: Diane Marty

Length: 7 hrs and 33 mins

Publisher's Summary

A baby is dead and Callie Stillman blames herself. Haunted by memories of a tiny coffin, Callie can't understand how God could expect her to put her heart on the line a second time. But the evasive little girl attending her Sunday school class is so obviously in trouble that Callie finds her resolve cracking.

Iris and Samantha Evans are living on borrowed time. Deserted, orphaned, betrayed, and deceived, they need rescuing in the worst way.

Steve Evans had his life changed by God. A reformed drug addict, he's searching for the family he abandoned 10 years ago and praying for a miracle.

The road to healing is rocky. But as Callie confronts her worst fears by bringing father and daughters together in a risky bid for reconciliation, she realizes that the Evans family aren't the only ones God wants to rescue from a tortured past.

©2012, 2015 Sharon Srock (P)2015 Sharon Srock

A compelling heartwarming listen

Any additional comments?

This started off a little slow for me but it didn’t take me long to get into this story of broken hearts, sorrow, healing, forgiveness and the faith one women has in God as he leads her to find the answers for a small family who has lost everything in return finding forgiveness for herself. It is really hard to put yourself out there helping others and making the correct decisions never knowing if it will come back to haunt you. So many times we maybe should have stepped in but turn away not because we do not care but because of what the fall out might be. In this story one woman didn’t turn away but stepped up to the plate helping a young mother keep her child. The fall out was of the little boy losing his life and leaving Callie devastated knowing in some way she took part in killing an innocent child. It doesn’t matter that others step forward and help the family keep the child it is that she did. She can’t see beyond her own guilt. When another family comes along that needs her help she wants to step back but her belief in God and what he wants her to do will not let her. This is what the story is based around…the trial of pain, sorrow of two families finding their way and leading one to the word of God as he changes their life. It is one thing to say you are religious but totally different to walk the walk and talk the talk why putting your life in God’s hands as Callie did.

I thought the narrator did an outstanding job making the reader really feel the emotion that each character was going through. You could hear the pain of each one as things happened. I really enjoyed her character voices you always knew who was talking and what they were feeling. There are no repeating of words, no background noises, no volume changes and if any breaks were taken I could not tell. Ms. Marty put a lot of thought into how the story would play out giving her voice the correct tones for each scene. I had no trouble picturing what the narrator was reading. I thought her performance was outstanding and really pulled me in. The audio was very clear and clean giving you a performance you will not forget for a long time to come. She really pulled on your heartstrings in her very vivid account of story the author wrote.

I had no trouble relating to this story as I am sure most of us have had to deal with abuse of some kind. Now a day’s most of us have also dealt with divorce, a parent leaving and maybe even a drug issue. All of these issues can tear a family apart with no trouble at all. My heart went out to Callie but more so too this young girl Iris and Samantha as they deal with the road life has given them. I can’t think of anything more horrible then having no one there for you when you need them the most and to scared to reach out for help knowing your family might be torn apart at anytime. The author really put some thought into writing this as she pulls your heart one way and then another. She does add some humor lots of smiles and then breaking your heart all over again. It is a story of love of God, forgiving your self and learning to forgive others. There are some very good points here as to the reasoning of why we should forgive. I thought this was a very compelling vivid audio that really gives a punch in more ways than one. Just when you think things cannot get worse they do. The author gives you a few surprises that at first you do not know how to take it. It all does work out for the best leaving you with a smile on your face and peace in your heart. I thought this was a very uplifting and inspirational listen that I totally enjoyed. I hope others will give it a listen and really be pulled in to some outstanding narration and writing.

Delivers!

I don’t usually read many books from this genre, but I really enjoyed this one. The narration brought the story to life and held my interest throughout. The story was well thought out, complete and will keep you listening. I will be watching for this author in the future.

* I was provided a free copy of this book from AudioBookBlast for an honest review.

Loved this inspirational book!

I loved everything about this book! First of all, I loved it because of it's genre - inspirational fiction. I love clean, inspiring books about people who know and love God. But knowing and loving God do not prevent people from having problems. Sharon Srock does a beautiful job creating characters that are believable and torn in their walks of life. Diane Marty did a wonderful job narrating this book, giving voices to the characters. I can't wait to read and listen to more from both the author and narrator.
I was given a copy of this audio book by the author in exchange for an honest and unbiased review.

Great story, soft narrator

Callie, the first book of woman of Valley view, was kind of hard to get into at first- there was no connection between the first three chapters. However, the farther you get into the book the more invested you get in the characters. Each of the characters are trying to heal from their past in different ways; for Callie, it means trying to stay uninvolved in people's lives because of a perceived past mistake, for Iris and Samantha, it means staying one step ahead and being prepared to move if anything goes awry.. This book shows how we are all connected and meant to help each other on this journey called life. If there was one comment I could say about this audio production it was that some chapters were very quiet and hard to hear I had to turn up the volume. The narrator was kind of soft.

Amazing Series!

Truly inspirational series. Awesome stories of how to live life by putting God first. Amen

great

This book was well written, no smut. an easy listen, and has intrigue to keep a person interested start to finish

Beautiful Story

I really enjoyed listening to this story. the plot was well weaved throughout. Godly insight and real storyline that was resolved over time. looking forward to more by this author.

Forgiveness

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Yes. I loved the christian aspect and how real life was portrayed but not in a hopeless way.

What did you like best about this story?

Liked how patient Callie was with Samantha. She tried to understand how Samantha felt and didn't try to "hurry her up" to forgive.

Have you listened to any of Diane Marty’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

I haven't. But enjoyed her.

If you could rename Callie, what would you call it?

Forgiveness takes time and patience

A moving story

If you could sum up Callie in three words, what would they be?

Heartbreaking, heartwarming and emotional.

What does Diane Marty bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

I liked her voice and narration, she portrayed characters emotions well. Her accent was a bit distracting at times.

Who was the most memorable character of Callie and why?

Sam, because of her bravery in facing challenges which were too much for a person her age.

Any additional comments?

A heartbreaking and heartwarming story about guilt, forgiveness and faith.

Heartwarming

I enjoyed this book and I got a wonderful message. putting yourself out there and following Go0d's direction isn't always easy. But Callow did it with Grace and Love.