Prayer Ambassadors Shirley, Goodness, and Mercy are back for their latest earthly adventure. Each one has her own assignment to complete for Christmas.

Elderly Harry Alderwood is dying and prays that his wife Rosalie will be taken care of once he's gone. Mercy has been given the job of helping him.

Young Carter Jackson prays for his fondest wish - to have his very own dog for Christmas but his family is too poor to afford to care for one. Enter Shirley to the rescue.

Beth Fischer's mother prays that her divorcee daughter will stop escaping into the game World of Warcraft and find a new life, and new love, for herself. Goodness has the job of showing Beth it's OK to take another chance on love.

What a delightful Christmas story from a master, Debbie Macomber! I may have read Where Angels Go after the heat had found us for a Texas summer, but this is a story to be savored any time of year. We have three prayers, all completely different form one another and this time each one of our beloved angels has her own mission, rather than working together as is the norm. This adds an extra level to the novel as we experience the angels’ doubts as to whether or not they can complete their mission before Christmas. Additionally we see Gabriel’s reasons for assigning these missions and what he hopes his charming troublemakers will learn from them.

Each of the three sub-stories in Where Angels Go is magical in its own way. We have young Carter whose fondest wish is to have his very own dog and wouldn’t you know a stray appears that is everything he’s ever hoped for in a dog. Seeing Carter go through the agonies of trying so hard to care for the dog in opposition to his parents wishes adds tenderness. Harry knows he is dying and desperately wants his wife to be cared for though she refuses to accept the possibility of entering a retirement community without Harry. His hopes and prayers Rosalie will come around brings poignancy to the book as we imagine what their lives were like as they grew old together. Beth is caught up in her cyber world and misses all the wonderful things surrounding her. There is a lovely little twist to this story that charms readers, even though some of us suspected this little surprise would occur.

I know my Mom loves the Shirley, Goodness, and Mercy books (especially since I have about four of her hard covers in my spare room that she sent me to read) as do many other folks. However, this was my first encounter with the well-meaning but sometimes interfering angels. Who can resist them? Sweet, funny, charming, and thrilled with their jobs to help the Earthbound, hat’s not to love? I like them and will have to get around to reading those books of Mom's soon! A special shout out goes to my Mom who without her constantly handing Debbie’s books off to me, I may never have gotten around to trying them and I would have missed such an incredibly talented author who has fast become a beloved favorite of mine.

© Kelley A. Hartsell, July 2008. All rights reserved.