Saturday Morning

By Lauraine Snelling

Broken by life’s disappointments, four women forge a friendship that leads in unexpected directions.

Hope Benson is determined to do all she can for the broken souls who come to Casa de Jesus, a women’s shelter in the heart of San Francisco. When a difficult pregnancy forces her to relinquish control, she draws support and strength from an unlikely group of women, each struggling with her own heartbreak.

Andy Taylor, a reluctant transplant to California, was compelled to leave behind her lavender-growing business and her home of twenty-some years to support her workaholic husband’s pursuit of career success. Attorney Julia Collins is searching for her teenage granddaughter, believed to be living on the streets. And Clarice Van Dam’s life has been shattered by the disappearance of her husband, who appears to have relieved her of all earthly possessions except a fur coat and her overnight bag.

Drawn together at the weekend market held in the shelter’s parking lot, the women pool their resources to fend off an unscrupulous conglomerate that threatens to replace the facility with a commercial development. As they fight to retain this haven for women in need, they find their own longings for home answered by the solace of faith and friendship.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Random House Publishing Group
• Release date: Apr 21, 2010
• ISBN: 9780307551108

Lauraine Snelling

Lauraine Snelling is the award-winning author of more than one hundred books, fiction and nonfiction, for adults and young adults. Her books have sold more than five million copies. She makes her home in Tehachapi, California. Learn more at LauraineSnelling.com.

Reviews for Saturday Morning

[michellesutton · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I couldn't seem to get into this story even though I started it several times. Maybe because there were so many players. I'm not sure. I just didn't think there was enough conflict to keep me hooked. I guess I also didn't get the difficulty some of the women had regarding their situations, like the woman who didn't want to move to San Francisco. I dunno. Just didn't work for me. Sorry. I did give it 2 1/2 stars because it kept my interest initially, but then fizzled when the new characters were added into the mix.

[bookaholicmom · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I read Lauraine Snelling's Red River of the North series many years ago. Those books were a historical christian fiction series where this book is set in more recent times. This book did not disappoint. All four women in the book are all very different from one another. They are thrown together and then find that with God they can overcome anything by working together. I love the fact that all the women were so different but still managed to become good, close friends. The story kept my attention. The story moves along at a nice pace and kept my attention. If you are a fan of light, contemporary christian fiction you will probably enjoy this book

[punxsygal · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

When I started to book I wasn't to happy with the plot line of a woman being asked to give up her home and business to follow her husband's job. I think it hit too close to my life. So the book sat for several weeks before i picked it up again. And as I read the characters drew me into the story: Andy reluctant to follow her husband, Clarice who lost all her possessions to her younger husband, and Julia searching for her granddaughter who is out on the streets of San Francisco. And the glue that held them all together, Hope, who runs a women's shelter called Casa de Jesus. Each woman finds a place and purpose in her relation with J House. And Saturday mornings, a community market is held in the parking lot of J House and I wanted to be there eating elephant ears and admiring the vegetables and knitting that were for sale and getting to know these strong women.

[tinasbookreviews · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

What a sweet, compassionate story of four gals living life. Through friendship, grief, marriage problems, crumbling businesses and baby on the way these girls will bring everything front and center over a bond that links them to a women’s shelter and the God of their faith. Together they encourage, lift up and lean on each other as the storm crashs into them.Beautifully written and told though an inspirational voice that doesn’t come across pushy or preachy. Overall the message leaves you feeling hopeful and knowing someone ( A BIG someone) is out there looking out for us.

[amaryann21 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This book tells the story of four women brought together by circumstances they could not have predicted and finding strength, faith, and answers with each other and their belief in God. This is Christian fiction that inspires instead of preaches. I wouldn't normally recommend Christian fiction to just anyone, but this story is heartwarming without beating you over the head with the "message".

[chutzpanit · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I received this book as an early review and it took awhile to get to me since I moved cross country. Being from Oregon, it was great to read a book about areas that I am familiar with. Additionally, the concept of a lavender farm was amazing. I love lavender and was very excited to have a book focused on lavender. I just wish it came with lavender or at least some of the recipes for the lavender things that Andy made!Overall I enjoyed the book. The book is about four women who come together in an odd circumstance but it all centers around a house for women in crisis called J House. While only one of the women actually starts out as a resident of J House, the women provide an amazingly unique bond with each other to make sure that the J House survives many troubles and in the process, these four women connect with each other and provide support for a variety of situations that come up in these women's lives. A great read and one that I recommend. It is a Christian fiction novel but as someone who isn't Christian, I enjoyed the book very much.

[dh515 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I love stories about strong women who help each other. In Saturday Morning their common thread is the shelter, each one of the four women find themselves drawn there. They find that by giving of themselves they get so much more in return. Each lady is broken in some way and through the girl squad they lean on each other and find strength that they never knew they had. An uplifting and spiritual book that leaves the reader with a sense of peace at the conclusion.

[julyso · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This is the story of four women who bond over a women's shelter and their belief in God. All four women have problems and somehow, together, they can make it through anything. Andy is struggling with starting her own business and her marriage. Hope is trying to save J House and make it through a complicated pregnancy. Clarice has been fleeced by her young, new husband. Julia is trying to find her runaway granddaughter. These four stories are woven together beautifully. I don't usually like religious themed books, but I really enjoyed Saturday Morning. It wasn't preachy, just full of sweetness. I really liked all the women, but especially enjoyed Andy's story. It does leave you with a great message...trust in the BIG GUY!

[drsyko_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This is definitely chick lit, and that was fine with me. It is also very religious, which I got tired of very quickly, but that's just me. It's about 4 women who become friends while spending time at a women's shelter for 4 different reasons. The characters are interesting and face realistic problems. The story was compelling enough to keep me reading into the night, and the author did a good job of making me care about what happened to these women. This story was the definition of heartwarming and although it deals with some serious themes it's ultimately a hopeful and uplifting tale. If you are a fan of Christian books you I would recommend this book to you. If, like me, you're not particularly religious, you might find some of the religious themes to be a bit tedious, but even so, it's still a book worth reading.

[floridamom1234 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I enjoyed reading this book. I liked the way the author intertwined the lives of the women, and they were a support system for each other. I think it is neat the way the power of prayer is shown. It did get a little slow (somewhat predictable) towards the end of the book, and I wish the author had given a little more detail on what happened with Clarice's runaway husband. I liked the conclusion though and how Andy's husband had a hand in saving J House. Thank you for the free book.

[delphimo_1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

This is a Christian book with much mention of God and His powers. The format reminded me a little of Francine Rivers, but Snelling does not utilize the use of Scriptures and religious history as Francine Rivers presents in her novels. Saturday Morning is set in San Francisco, and presents glimmers of that magnificent city, Snelling does not delve into the psyche of the city. The story centers on the misfortunes of Clarice, Julia, Clarice, Hope, and Andy, and the stories are all interesting, but not fully developed or exposing the inner struggle that each woman faces. Where is their anger and frustration. The hardships are like a little sandtrap or a pestering gnat, just aq minor disturbance in the course of a great life. Clarice loses her life savings and home to a new young husband, Julia must attempt to find a wayward granddaughter, Hope must struggle with J House and her unbelievable pregnancy, and Andy must work out problems with her husband. The story is interesting, but the hardships are too calm for real life.

[tanya2009_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I won this book on librarything. Great book about friendship. The book starts a little slow but once the character development is there it is very good. Everyone needs friends like these. Prayer plays a significant part in the book and gets the characters through some tough challenges.

[willowone_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Sometimes we need to just let go and let God. This is so much easier said than always done. Four ladies from very diverse backgrounds have been brought together for reasons they will eventually praise the heavenly Father for.Hope Benson and her husband Roger own and run a shelter for women in San Francisco. The future of Casa de Jesus or "J House" is up in the air. The building is not up to earthquake code and there is no money to do the work.Clarice Van Dam is an older lady who was scammed by the man she loved. She finds herself broke and alone in a city she doesn't know. A meeting on the street sends her to "J House's" door.Julia Collins is a successful family law attorney in Kansas. She is searching for her grand daughter who has gone to California looking for fame. Julia ends up at "J House" when her grand daughter is taken to "J House" after being picked up for prostitution.Andrea Taylor or "Andy" as most people call her is a business woman with a fledgling home based business that is growing by leaps and bounds. She own a lavender farm called "Lavender Meadows" in Oregon and makes many items that she sells to companies and also on the internet. Andy's husband has been a traveling salesman for many years and he has just been offered Vice President of Sales, which is an office job at headquarters in San Francisco. He wants to sell and move, but Andy doesn't want to give up her family home and the business. Neither wants to give up on their dreams and they must find a way to compromise and trust that God knows what it best. Andy ends up at "J House" one Saturday morning at their weekly farmer's market.These four women find that even though their backgrounds are very different and they range in age from late 30's to early 60's, that they need each other. They start calling themselves the "Girl Squad". They come together to pray, talk about problems and enjoy each others company. They learn to trust God and be thankful at all times, even when things are bad. They regularly mention the fact that when two or more people come together in the name of God, he can always be found in the center.When I began reading Saturday Morning I felt I was being spoken to. I, like these women, have a girl squad too. We also range in age from late 30's to mid 60's and we always have friendship and fellowship. We gather weekly and discuss the highs and the lows in our lives and just enjoy being together.The women in this book go through normal everyday things. I recommend this book to all women. If you are not religious but are able to read a Christian book without being put off or out, maybe you will see the lessons learned otherwise. And like the author stated at the beginning of this book and I agree 110%,"I wish everyone a "Girl Squad".

[reader247_1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Saturday Morning is a delightful story about a group of women all coming together from different walks of life and showing how the power of prayer can change your life and put you on the right path. When you think your life should be going one way and everything else seems against you then finding friends in unlikely places and finding answers to questions you didn't know you had are just part of everyday life if you turn yourself over to God. These ladies have a hard time and many problems to solve but together they can overcome almost everything. This is a lovely story and it really gives you hope if you let it.

[silenceiseverything · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

For some strange reason, a big chunk of the books that I win due to Goodreads or LibraryThing, tend to be Christian-Fiction. The weird thing about that is that I don't realize that they are actually Christian-Fiction. Now, if I were religious, I would be inclined to say that something like that is divine intervention. But since I'm not, I'm just going to say that I need start reading the descriptions of the books I sign up for much more thoroughly. Just to avoid reading a genre that I don't necessarily love. That way I won't feel like an idiot when I say that I didn't love a Christian-Fiction book because it was too preachy since being preachy is pretty much a staple in Christian-Fiction books. I've read about three, maybe four Inspirational books and I've only really liked Beaded Hope because it wasn't too preachy. Obviously, prayer was a big part of the characters' lives, but I didn't feel like the author was going overboard. In Saturday Morning, every other page was about God. Again, there's nothing wrong with that, but as someone who isn't religious, it did end up being a bit much. So, those parts were sort of skimmed over. The rest of Saturday Morning was pretty good. While I didn't truly connect with any of the characters, I did enjoy their storylines. I absolutely loved Andy's storyline with her husband. Every time he tried to get her to fit into his perfect mold, she would just dish out the "This is the way it's going to be" attitude and I just found the whole thing endlessly amusing before it turned all angsty. I also really liked the J House storyline. I was in awe at what all the women were doing to help out the less fortunate. All in all, I thought that Saturday Morning was an okay novel. I did think the resolution of everything was a bit out there, but that just might be because of my skepticism towards the notion that prayer solves everything. Saturday Morning was a mildly enjoyable and extremely quick read, so I can't complain. I'll just have to look a little closer next time I'm signing up for giveaways.