The Prayer Box

The Prayer Box (Carolina Heirlooms #1). Lisa Wingate. Tyndale House Publishing. September 2013. 400 pages. Source: Audio library book.

First sentence: When trouble blows in, my mind always reaches for a single, perfect day in Rodanthe.

Plot: When Iola Anne Poole, an old-timer on Hatteras Island, passes away in her bed at ninety-one, the struggling young mother in her rental cottage, Tandi Jo Reese, finds herself charged with the task of cleaning out Iola's rambling Victorian house.Running from a messy, dangerous past, Tandi never expects to find more than a temporary hiding place within Iola's walls, but everything changes with the discovery of eighty-one carefully decorated prayer boxes, one for each year, spanning from Iola's youth to her last days. Hidden in the boxes is the story of a lifetime, written on random bits of paper--the hopes and wishes, fears and thoughts of an unassuming but complex woman passing through the seasons of an extraordinary, unsung life filled with journeys of faith, observations on love, and one final lesson that could change everything for Tandi. (Goodreads)

My thoughts:  This story was a mixture of Tandi's story and Iola's story.  In learning about Iola, Tandi discovers who she is.  She is a mother who had a rough start in lift and most of her live decisions haven't been the best.  Learning to trust those who really care about her is hard to do.   I loved how Iola's story unfolded along side Tandi's.  It was really like reading two different books at the same time.  I'm really looking forward to the sequel!