Books like The Scarlet Thread

The Scarlet Thread by Francine Rivers is NOT my favorite book. It probably never will be, no matter how many times I read it. I can't even say I like Sierra, the main character of the novel, or what she does, or Alex, the other main character. Why not? Because reading this book is like holding up a mirror and looking at myself, square in the face. Never did I feel I was inside Sierra's mind, but often I felt she had invaded mine. This novel actually is a story within a story, telling the story of Sierra along side the story of Mary Katherine. Both left their comfortable life among family to follow their husbands, and did this unwillingly. Though many years separated them, the two stories (Mary Katherine's narrative told through her journal which survived all those centuries) are closer than is comfortable. This clearly shows that humans through the ages have battled the same enemy. Ms. Rivers does not hesitate to write about the hard issues, and does not gloss over the repercussions that might arise from them. This is truly a romantic story, not so much between husband and wife, though that is definitely there, but between God and His crowning creation. How He pursues us, and uses our choices and decisions to call us to Him. How He is always there, waiting for us to turn to Him at our lowest point, when we feel the most insignificant and always loving us, even when our determination is to have nothing to do with Him.So even though this is not my favorite book by Francine Rivers, this is one that has a permanent and prominent spot on my bookselves.