Every once in a while, it’s nice to have some hope.

by ggeurs

This is a review of the book Dangerous Love by Dr. Ray Norman.

Because of time commitments and the general hustle of life, I do not get as much time to read as I used to. On top of that I also do not have as many opportunities to try and read a book from start to finish in one afternoon. I sat down with Dr. Ray Norman’s Dangerous Love and not only finished it in one afternoon, but I walked away from the book feeling like it was an afternoon well spent.

Dangerous Love is the story of a man whose life is blown apart by a senseless act of violence enacted on him and his ten-year-old daughter in the middle of the Islamic Republic of Mauratania after 9/11 and all the events that happen in the wake of the tragic event. The book opens with what could almost be called a prologue where Norman describes the moment when the attacker tries to kill him and his daughter, ending the short introduction painting a vivid image of his critically wounded daughter.

From there, Norman describes the process of physical, emotional, and spiritual healing he, his daughter, and his wife must all go through. Norman is very transparent about his thoughts, and about many of the unspoken issues he and his wife had to work through during this time period. All along the way though is a remarkable story of hope in times of suffering and radical grace that had me choked up a few times while reading it. Norman brings the story to life in an easily relatable way that leaves the reader feeling like he now knows the author intimately well.

I am not usually the guy who picks up these kind of “hope in adversity” books because I find them kitsch and cliche; this book is immune from any of that sort of glibness. The book resonated with me because Ray Norman comes from a place of (temporary) spiritual abandonment, which is something that all Christians will experience at some point.

Overall, I cannot endorse Dangerous Love enough. It is worth the read. Consider getting ahold of a copy and finding out just how on the money my thoughts on this book are.

I received my copy of this book for free through the BookLook Bloggers program in exchange for publishing a review of it. I was not obligated to publish a positive review; the opinions expressed are mine.