Review: The Gift by Richard Paul Evans

Title: The Gift

Author: Richard Paul Evans
Genre: Christmas, fiction
Published: 2007
Source: Library

Summary: Nathan Hurst has hated Christmas ever since a tragic accident occurred in his childhood for which he blames himself. Now, he lives a solitary life, working as security for a worldwide music store, and frequently traveling for his job. On one of his trips, he gets stranded at the airport due to a blizzard, and this is when he meets Addison and her two children, Lizzy and Collin. Soon, he discovers that Collin has a very powerful gift: he can heal others with a simple touch. However, Collin, just nine years old, has Leukemia, and with each healing he performs, he becomes sicker, yet people come to him, begging to be healed. Through his relationship with this very special family and young boy, Nathan learns what love is, and begins to let go of his past.

My Thoughts: After recently reading and reviewing Evans, Promise Me, and falling in love with it, I've been eager to get my hands on any and all of his books. This was another beautiful story that did not let me down! Evans is just magical with words and creates beautiful and heartwarming stories that are full of meaning and depth. This book was incredibly touching, sad, and hopeful. Collin is an incredible character, willing to sacrifice himself to help others. It is wonderful to be reminded that there are incredible and caring people in the world, even if this is fiction. This story pulled me in immediately and I was in awe of the incredible characters and the ideas of love, forgiveness, regret, and best of all, hope. Be warned that you will be sad, but it's worth the read anyways. While I didn't like it quite as much as Promise Me, I really did enjoy it a lot and recommend it highly. I am currently reading another one of his books and look forward to reading them all in time.

My Rating: 4/5