The Joy of Falling Blog Tour

About the Book:

Book: The Joy of Falling

Author: Lindsay Harrel

Genre: Women’s Fiction

Release Date: April 14, 2020

Eva and Angela must learn to live again. One step at a time.

It has been fifteen months since Eva and Angela lost their thrill-seeking husbands in a scuba diving accident. Both women are trying to navigate their way through the grief, but neither one is making much progress. Angela is barely making ends meet, angry at her husband for leaving her to raise three children on her own. Meanwhile, Eva is stuck, unable to move forward after losing the love of her life and her source of inspiration.

But then Eva gets a life-changing phone call. Before Brent and Wes died, they had signed up for a race of a lifetime—an ultra-marathon in beautiful New Zealand. Eva begs Angela to run the race with her in their husbands’ place, and Angela finally agrees, hoping to finally understand her husband’s choices.

Training is exhausting, and the race is even more demanding. Their journey grows more complicated by the presence of two men—Marc is Brent’s best friend who is running the race with Eva and Angela, and Simon King is a writer who is covering their inspiring story. With every step, Eva and Angela must ask themselves questions that they haven’t had the courage to ask before. As the women literally put one foot in front of the other, they wonder: Is it possible to find their way forward in hope?

Click here to get your copy!

My Thoughts:

Absolutely beautiful! This is my second read by author Lindsay Harrel and I enjoyed this one more than the last. Don’t get me wrong, this story is an emotional roller-coaster. You will need a box of tissues close by before you begin reading, but it’s also a breath-taking story of healing and finding the joy in life amid sorrow and tragedy. At first it seemed predictable, but towards the end it made a couple of unexpected changes that added a depth and realness to the story. This story reminded me of the story of Ruth from the Bible. These two widows, also sisters-in-law, are facing their grief very differently. One is depressed and unable to find joy (or color) in life. The other is angry and working hard to survive but not really living. Each will have to go through a personal journey to find love again. I appreciated how the author did not make this journey unrealistically easy. The characters must work for it and face bumps and setbacks along the way.

You will love the physical journey as they race 155 miles across the gorgeous island of New Zealand. I was disappointed that the race itself took up only a small portion of the novel. The set-up and preparation stage dominated the book. One of the characters became pregnant in college, and after choosing to keep the baby instead of abortion, married the baby’s father. This plays a major part in that character’s emotional struggles. The phrase “knocked up” is used. There is also mention of thinking about a person in bed but is generic and not too sexual. Nothing more than chaste kissing ever takes place, on or off the page.

The love interest for each widow seemed one-sided and too perfect, as if they only existed to aid the women. I would have loved to see what went on inside their heads as well, especially the one with survivor’s guilt. This book may be triggering for those dealing with loss, but it could also bring healing for those ready to move forward.

The Joy of Falling is a clean read with a beautiful spiritual message. I recommend this book for anyone who loves emotional dramas, seeking healing after loss, or enjoys underdog sports stories.

About the Author:

Lindsay Harrel is a lifelong book nerd who lives in Arizona with her young family and two golden retrievers in serious need of training. She’s held a variety of writing and editing jobs over the years and now juggles stay-at-home mommyhood with writing novels. When she’s not writing or chasing after her children, Lindsay enjoys making a fool of herself at Zumba, curling up with anything by Jane Austen, and savoring sour candy one piece at a time. Connect with her at LindsayHarrel.com.