Right Where I Belong by Krista McGee

Right Where I Belong by Krista McGee ISBN-13: 9781401684907 Paperback: 320 pages Publisher: Thomas Nelson Released: December 11, 2012

Source: I received this ebook review copy free from the publisher through the BookSneeze®.com book review bloggers program.

Book Description from Booksneeze:
After watching her father jump from one marriage to the next, Natalia has completely written off love. And when her father divorces his third wife--the only one who has been a mother to her--Natalia is ready to write him off too. Natalia leaves her home in Spain and relocates with her stepmother to sun-soaked Florida.

But she didn’t realize just how far a new school, a new culture, and a new lifestyle would push her out of her comfort zone. One of her biggest surprises comes from Brian, a pastor’s son with an adorable smile who loves God with a sincerity that astounds Natalia. She doesn’t want to fall for him, but she can’t seem to avoid him long enough to get him out of her mind.


My Review:
Right Where I Belong is a young adult Christian romance that is loosely based on Ruth. Several characters from this author's previous two novels were in this one, but you don't need to read those novels to understand this one. This novel did "spoil" how her previous novels ended, though, so you might wish to read them in order.

The first third of this book was a fairly light story about Natalia trying to get used to all of the differences between her culture and American culture. While interesting, the last two-thirds of the book drew me into the story more as Natalia dealt with her step-mother's break-down, tried to figure out what she wanted to do with her life, and dealt with her issues about trusting men to not all treat women like her dad did.

The characters were engaging and interesting, especially in the second half as they became more developed. The romance was believable, and Natalia and Brian seemed well-suited to each other. There was a fair amount of discussion about Christian topics since Natalia wanted to learn more about her faith. They talked about how to best convince people that they need Christ, why God lets us go through hard times, is honoring God or honoring your parents more important when it comes to choosing your job, and so on.

I wasn't completely comfortable with the "God or parents" message since most teens don't have an accurate idea of God's "calling" for their life and could use this to justify ignoring their parent's guidance. How Natalia actually applied the advice was fine, though. There was no sex or bad language. Overall, I'd recommend this enjoyable novel.


If you've read this book, what do you think about it? I'd be honored if you wrote your own opinion of the book in the comments.


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