Review: A Soldier Finds His Way by Irene Onorato

After a painful youth spent in foster homes, Special Forces soldier Edward Giordano has all but given up on love. Returning to New York from a dangerous mission in Costa Rica with no one to welcome him home, he knows he must find a way through his bitterness and embrace faith, or he’s destined for misery and loneliness. But he never expects that saving someone else’s life might help him save his own…

Audra Lorenzo is a first-year school teacher with a bright future. All she’s missing is a man to share her happiness. Her father wants her to rekindle her relationship with her ex-boyfriend, but she can’t stop thinking about the handsome, kind, and courageous soldier who rescued her from a near-deadly car accident…

Edward too, has not stopped not thinking of Audra. After making peace with God and with his difficult past, he’s ready to re-connect with her and reveal his feelings. Edward knows that opening his heart will mean risking pain, but he’s prepared for whatever comes—from a perilous deployment to Audra’s meddling father…

ebook, 200 pages

Expected publication: October 11th 2016 by Lyrical Shine

Terri's Thoughts

I received an advanced copy of this book from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.  The expected publication date is October 11th, 2016.

Disclaimer:  This book is in the Christian fiction genre which I was not aware before starting.  While I have read several stories in this genre, I do tend to struggle with this genre if it has too much religion, spirituality or religious references.  This book has it all so for others who feel as I do, this may not be a good choice.

This book started out strong for me.  I can't go in to details as it is not outlined in the synopsis but how Audra and Edward come to meet was exciting and somewhat original.  It is clear that this meeting will set Edward on an emotional journey that you want to be a part of.  The attraction is gradual and believable.

Where the story turned for me was after Audra and Edward cam e back to the real world.  This is where I found there was too much reference to God.  When Audra started her days reading the bible, I knew that the fine line between spirituality and preaching was being crossed.  I lean towards the side that it was preachy, as it seemed random compared to the beginning of the story.  Almost like it was making up for only fleeting references to faith prior to that.  The rest of the story continued this way for me.

As I do not want to knock this genre, I do feel I have to add my two cents.  In order to appeal to the masses, and not just the niche market of Christian fiction, I feel stories need to be very careful in how they balance the religious aspect.  Too many bible references can alienate the audience and distract from an otherwise good story.  This is how I felt when I read this story.

This leaves me in a predicament on how I should rate this story.  I do not want my personal opinion to negatively impact a story that was good without the religious references.  With that in mind, I will base my opinion on the story without taking this in to account.  Fans of Christian fiction should enjoy this story.

About the Author

Irene Onorato was born and raised in Bronx, New York. Her father, a first-generation American whose parents were born in Italy, was an Army veteran who had served with the 178th combat engineers during WWII. He told numerous stories of battles, hardships, tragedies and triumphs. The glimpses he gave into the hearts of many American warriors would later become the inspiration for much of Irene’s writings.

In 1972, a few months after graduating high school, Irene met James Onorato, a soldier who had just returned from Vietnam. After dating two weeks, they married, raised three children, and are still happily married today.

Irene and James, both radiation protection technicians, retired from the nuclear power industry in 2014 and now reside in Louisiana.

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