"Always Watching"
by Brandilyn and Amberly Collins
reviewed by Josh Meares
The Story
Always Watching is the first book of the new Christian mystery series called The Rayne Tour. The Rayne Tour books relate the adventures of 16-year-old Shaley O'Connor as she travels on tour with her rock star mom, Rayne. In Always Watching, Shaley stumbles upon the dead body of her best friend, Tom, backstage during a concert. It was clearly murder, but there are no clues to the killer's identity. Then.Shaley receives a frightening message. Is Tom's killer coming after her?The Verdict
The Rayne Tour is the cool Christian version of the Nancy Drew series. Like the Nancy Drew books, no character is really important except Shaley. We learn so little about them, that you can almost replace their names with their actions: The Killer, The Bodyguard, Mom, Best Friend #1, etc. That's okay because it allows us to concentrate on what's important in this book: they mystery. The Collins (a mother and daughter team) do a good job of writing a suspenseful book, filled with action and emotion. Unfortunately, unlike in the Nancy Drew series, Shaley is not a detective, even a young one, and does not actually do anything to solve the crime. She just walks around and things sort of happen to her. That is the biggest problem with the book, there are no reasons for anything and reasons are the reason people read mysteries. There is one conversation about Jesus, and maybe two other mentions in Always Watching, but it looks like there will be more discussion of spirituality in the books to come. There is no cursing or sexuality, but there are mild descriptive scenes with dead bodies. Some people may find the idea of a person who gets “hunches” that are always right objectionable.Worldview
The nice thing about writing a review of a Christian book is that you don't have to search very hard to find the worldview. The authors are very clear when they write this: “But here's the good news. Someone is always watching. That someone is Jesus. He's watching when things are good and when things are terrible. I should know; I've been through both.” (p.117) We find that truth in the Bible as well. “Nothing in all creation is hidden from God's sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of him to whom we must give account.” - Hebrews 4:13 A lot of people struggle with the idea that Jesus see and cares about all our struggles. They wonder why Jesus allows bad things to happen (If you are struggling with that issue, check out our review of The Shack). The point in this book is that Jesus sees us when we are in trouble and he see us when times are good. This implies that Jesus also sees our actions, not just our situation. He sees us when we are acting good and when we are not acting so good. Jesus is kind of like Santa Claus in the song “Santa Claus is Coming To Town”: “You better watch out. You better not cry. You better not shout I'm telling you why, Santa Claus is coming to town. He knows when you are sleeping. He knows when you're awake. He knows when you've been bad or good, so be good for goodness' sake.” But Jesus doesn't only see what we do, he see why we do what we do. Wait till the Lord comes. He will bring to light what is hidden in darkness and will expose the motives of men's hearts. 1 Corinthians 4:5 Is there something happening to you that you feel that God doesn't care about? He does. Is there something you've been doing that you think that God doesn't see? He does. That's the thing about God: He is always watching. But God is not only always watching, He is also always loving. He is always forgiving those who ask for it. Our God is an “always” kind of God. That's what so amazing about Him. This is a great time to look over your own life. Try to see your actions through God's eyes; What do you think that He thinks about your actions? Does God see through the excuses you give other people, maybe even the excuses you tell yourself? Are you in trouble? Have you gone to God for help? Have you gone to His people, the church? If not, today is the day. Today is always the day to seek God. Because whether or not Santa Claus is coming to town, Jesus Christ sure is! “Men of Galilee”, the angels said, “Why do you stand here looking into the sky? This same Jesus who has been taken from you into heven, will come back in the same way you have seen him go into heaven.” - Acts 1:11Questions
Your opinions are important to us. We would love to hear your answers to our questions in the Comments!- 1.What did you think of the book? Likes? Dislikes?
- 2. Is there anything that you have done that you wish that you could hide from God? Why?
- 3. Do you think God really will forgive you for everything if you ask him?
- 4. If God were to look at your life right now and give you some advice, what would it be?
- 5. Do you ever feel like God doesn't care? How do these biblical truths affect your beliefs?
Comments
Helen on Dec 01, 2009 said...
I haven’t read this book. actually I downloaded it by http://www.picktorrent.com , but was thinking should I read it or not… now, after reading this grear review and the proceding comjment I’m eager to do it as soon as I can! promise to comment afterwards!
singingservant09 on Nov 25, 2009 said...
I’ve read this book and the second book and a 1 week period. They were really good! I liked the fact that it was a christian book and had some biblical insights. There was nothing I didn’t like. Except the fact that it almost made me cry due to what you quoted above. There has been so many things I’ve done that I’ve wanted to hide from God with, but I knew that Whatever it was, if I repented, God would forgive me. I honestly have no idea what advice God would give me because he sees everything in my life and I cant remember half of it! But I want God to give me some great advice on just life itself.
sometimes, I feel like God doesnt care. It got so bad that I almost went into depression because my life was a wreck and I didn’t think I could trust God. But after finnally talking to a very close friend (who is very close with Christ) I felt a lot better and knew that I could trust God with everything. Even the big stuff that seems impossible to be dealt with, God can still handle it!
God Bless,
Tina H.