Naomi Dawn Musch

Once again, Patti Lacy writes a book that proves she is a writer's writer. She never takes on small challenges, and in her latest novel, Reclaiming Lily, she mines the rich veins of story involving a family whose foreign adoption involves intrigue and heart-wrenching drama.

The layers to this story come down one atop the other, turning this way and that until they're woven tighter than a grass tatami mat.There's the adoption from China seen both from the side of the woman whose heart has long ached for a child, and through the eyes of the child's older sister who hoped to reclaim her sibling from the orphanage and bring her back to her birth family. Finally, it's seen through the eyes of the teenager who remembers the loss, abandonment, fear, hatred, and displacement she struggled through being left at an orphanage during turbulent times, and then adjusting to growing up in a new country.

As writers, we know that effective layering creates an unforgettable story. With each layer and sub-theme a writer puts down, there's another reason for that character and story to weave into a reader's subconscious and stick there. But weaving those layers seamlessly is an art. I guess that's why we call it "craft". Crafting layers takes practice and a great deal of thought. This is where plotting is especially helpful. SOTP-only writers surely must have more difficulty with layering.

As writers of Christian fiction, we are challenged to write about realistic situations without using a preaching voice. Reclaiming Lily speaks to the tragedies of civil unrest, culture clashes, self-mutilation, teenage rebellion, and the devastating effects of genetic disease. Ultimately, it's a story that weaves the faith factor in so realistically, especially for Kai, Lily's unbelieving sister, I couldn't help but be moved. 

As writers, we know what Patti accomplishes is no small task. Her research seems to have been impeccable. Writing a story with such breadth and depth as this requires patience as well as skill. The urge to tell a story while skimping on the research is often a temptation. We want to get to the emotional stuff, the action, those scenes we hope will fill the reader with angst and titillation. But Patti must have taken a great deal of time to explore the many avenues of research this story required. Without it, the telling would have fallen flat and left us doubting.

As writers, we have to tie the knot. Ms. Lacy brings about a huge twist in the plot eventually providing a superb "Ah-ha!" moment, and the ending is both dramatic and satisfying. It's definitely women's fiction worth reading. It will stay with you. It will show you how all those thematic elements come together.

Write on!