Book Review: Two Tickets to the Christmas Ball

I got Two Tickets to the Christmas Ball on Saturday in the mail and finished it Sunday morning, which should give you a good idea of how hard to put down this is. The book tells the story of Cora and Simon - two coworkers who have never really interacted until a chance meeting in a mysterious bookstore on a street neither of them can remember seeing before. Each finds a ticket to the Wizard's Ball in the book they bring home and catches a glimpse of the other through the Ball's website when they try to get more information. When Simon mentions the ball casually to Cora, she offers him her ticket so that he can take his sister as a special treat. This sets off a series of encounters that help them get to know one another and realize that perhaps what they've been looking for has been closer than they knew.

The characters themselves are delightfully depicted (primarily Cora, Simon and his sister, Sandy). You have Cora, who struggles with loving her toxic family in Christ without letting them continue to poison her, Simon whose focus and past rejection keeps him from branching out beyond his family and pastor, and Sandy who epitomizes the idea of child-like faith are such a great combination of flawed and real that they could easily step off the pages and live in your town. The varied cast of supporting characters are more whimsical and add fun and just enough drama to keep you on the edge of your seat. This is a delightfully woven modern fairy tale that gently drives home the message that, "No matter who your earthly family is or how they failed you, your heavenly Father will never deny you nor forsake you."

I received this book to review for free from the publisher WaterBrook Multnomah.