Reviewed by Rabia Tanveer for Readers' Favorite

Finding Grace: A Novel by Maren Cooper is an emotional story of a broken family. Charles “Charlie” Booker grew up in foster homes, and when he met Caroline Tate in college, he felt he finally had a home. Before they knew it, the couple fell in love and got married. While Charles was ready to start a family, Caroline wasn’t. However, Charlie tricked Caroline, and she became pregnant. Refusing to abort the baby, Caroline gave birth to their daughter Grace, and the couple came to an agreement: Charlie would take care of Grace, and Caroline would follow her career all over the world. However, as years went by and Grace grew older, things went awry very quickly. Growing up feeling abandoned by a parent took its toll on Grace’s mental health. When one day Charlie received a call claiming Grace needed help, he was ready to do whatever it took to save his daughter. Can a broken home mend the broken heart of a daughter?

Emotionally charged and written exceptionally well, author Maren Cooper created a perfect atmosphere and a solid plot. The multiple POVs were such a great addition to Finding Grace. It allowed readers to look deep into the minds of the characters and explore their development. I loved that this novel was filled with gray characters. None of them was perfect; they all had their flaws, and most of the time, none of them were ready to accept their flaws. Charlie was passionate about family; Caroline was passionate about her career whereas Grace was stuck in a situation where she was forced to make bad decisions to get attention from her mother. I loved how the author reversed the roles in this story. Instead of making the woman emotionally controlled, it was Charlie who was ruled by his emotions, and Caroline was the one with a cold persona. Grace was the result of the alienation and abandonment issues, a character that most young readers and millennials will connect with. I highly recommend this novel to anyone who loves emotionally charged stories with substance!