constructed novel with slow plot development, Although the author presented an interesting concept, the execution was weak, The book was way too long at nearlypages! Several typos were present, including in the very first sentence of the book, A few thoughtprovoking questions were raised concerning emotional pain and memory implantation, which was interesting, Other than that, this book had little to offer, I have read other books by this author and they were REALLY good, I didn't feel this one was up to "her" par,
Sarah was born with TreacherCollins syndromebasically she didn't have a face, Swept away at birth, after being orphaned, to a facility operated by the CIA, she never left the facility she came to know as home,
Meanwhile, her unknownaunt Renee, while going through her mother's belongings, reads some documents suggesting that Renee's brother's baby was NOT stillborn, but is alive, Renee sets out to find her, behind the walls of the CIA, and befriend her,
Unusual plot
I would say this was a fairly good read, Not my favorite by any means but I was intrigued, I would suggest buying it when its in sale amp see for yourself, I find that Angela Hunt's books fall into two categories: first, the typical Christian fiction book with a heavy spiritual message or a wellresearched contemporary book with a twist like "The Face".
Very engaging, believable, lots of things to think about afterwards, . . just some of the great things I can say about this story, I hope Hunt writes more along this vein, I liked this story a lot, It was well written, suspenseful, interesting and the characters were all very well developed, I would have given this aexc for the fact that I predicted a big part of the ending just a little over halfway through the book which toned down the suspense and I didn't like how I knew it would end.
the ending was too "clean" and "cliche" after such a great story full of suspense and intrigue, I enjoyed this book the second time around, thanks to my low expectations prior to the reread, Hunt managed the dual narrative with aplomb, Both Renee and Sarah spoke with clear, distinct voices, Even if each chapter had not begun with the name of the character from whose perspective the narrative flowed, the distinct voice of each protagonist would inform the reader.
Some things introduced were not satisfactorily resolved, in my opinion, However, the narrative wraps the narrative up suitably well,
This book survived round two of the purge from my personal collection, A good thought provoking book, Who are we and how much of it has to do with how we look, Sarah was born without a "face", Her only identify is as a CIA agent, She works and lives in a world of secrecy, It's not until a long lost aunt finds her and introduces her to her potential as a wonderful lovable human being that she blossoms, but the reality of pain comes with knowing love.
Okay, I just did a mini book talk, The writing is great and don't be afraid if you see this in the Christian section of your library, There is no preaching in this book just a great story, Good, but not a great book, Woman with facial deformity works for the FBI, Though the first few pages were confusing, the rest of the book was understandable and exciting, It doesn't make much mention of the Lordjust one brief mention of faith and prayerbut at least there is no cussing or sex, If you like spies, computers, and medicine, then you will probably like this, written in a fastpaced yet thoughtprovoking way, Sarah Sims was born with a severe form of Treacher Collins syndrome, Her mother died during childbirth and her father died shortly after and Sarah's remaining family believed she had died along with her mother, Fast forwardyears and Sarah's aunt discovers evidence that the baby might not have died after all but when she starts investigating she is stymied at all angles until she discovers her brother was a government agent.
She calls in favors, fills out a lengthy application and finds herself employed by the CIA, After some time she is able to meet her niece but no matter how much she was prepared for it, no one can prepare you for someone who was essentially born without a face.
Her aunt comes up with the idea of a face transplant, wanting her niece to have a life outside of the protective CIA cell, But things never go quite as planned, This was a good book, Told from a variety of points of view we see the pain that Sarah goes through, a brilliant mind trapped in a body that is unacceptable to most people.
And we see her aunt who fell in love with her niece regardless of her appearance and wanting her to have the life her brother would have wished for her, no matter the cost.
I am not certain how realistic the story was, but it was entertaining, Orphaned and severely deformed, from her earliest moments Sarah Sims has been kept hidden away in a secret CIA facilityuntil an unexpected discovery gives her an opportunity to make a life for herself at last.
Now Sarah has an ally, a longlost aunt who has discovered her true identity, Aided by this brave psychologist, twentyyearold Sarah must find the courage to confront the forces that have confined her for so long, And the strength to be reborn into a world she has never known, Orphaned at birth, Sarah Sims has been kept hidden away in a secret CIA facility due to the fact that her father was a covert CIA agent, She was born with TreacherCollins syndrome which resulted in her being born without a face, The CIA paid for surgeries for her so that she would be able to have basic functions of eating, hearing and speaking, But the surgeries stopped at a certain point so that she has a "freakish" appearance,
Sarah has developed keen computer skills that the CIA has put to use in their covert operations, This has been her life, . . until a long lost aunt discovers her and she has an opportunity to make a life for herself at last, When Sarah first learns that she has a family member she is excited and says "I have family, . . an aunt, a woman who knows who I am, " Isn't this part of why we have an interest in researching our own rootsbecause it will tell something about who we are
There are some interesting concepts presented in this novel: One of them is the use of propranolol to erase bad trauma memories.
And the idea of brain printing to introduce positive memories into the brain raises the questions of whether we or someone else should have the right to control what memories we retain.
There are other concepts in this novel such as CIA black sites, the advances in lie detetection and the whole idea of face transplants,
I thought that this story had some interesting twists and turns and the bad guy was not who I was expecting!
Great book for a book club as it has discussion questions at the end!
I've kind of been on an Angela Hunt streak.
This is typical of what I've read so far deeply troubled female needs to overcome personal obstacles to excel, A sprinkling of God here and there, I found this one quite engaging although still a light read, And I guessed the ending, but not all of it, I liked the story, wish there had been more of it, I liked the philosophical questions raised in this book, with regards to what it means to be human, And whether having a recognisably human face is required in order to be considered and treated as human, The plot did nothing for me though, Sticking with her theme, "Expect the unexpected," Angela Hunt has given us a fascinating concept within the spy community, and drawn us in with her excellent research and imagination.
With a completely satisfying ending, she gives us some shocking twists, and shows the love that can take place even within the most jaundiced heart, the most disfigured of faces.
This is a highly thoughtprovoking read, How much of our identity is tied up with how we look That is a question the reader will ponder while reading this novel about a young woman with a severe facial disfigurement.
To make things interesting the main character, Sarah Sims, lives in a secret CIA enclave where she works as a computer expert, This makes things difficult for her aunt, Renee, a pyschologist who always thought Sarah had died at birth but then stumbles upon evidence that her niece might still be alive.
Trying to find out the truth proves difficult for Renee, but her tenacity wins out and she obtains a top secret clearance so she can visit Sarah and offer her the family love she has never had.
But Sarah may not be ready to face life outside of the confines of her sheltered environment, especially with a face that elicits shock whever she goes, returnThis was a good solid suspense novel with a thought provoking premise, It explores not only themes of identity but also of overcoming personal fears to embrace the world, I recommend it for fans of suspense and Christian fiction, Great Book
Angela Hunt has the ability to tell a story so well I can see in my mind's eye everything she describes, This story was so good I didn't want to put it down, I was captivated by the characters, The medical and technical aspects were entirely new to me and very interesting,
Sarah was born cruelly disfigured by a disease called Treacher Collins syndrome, This causes all kinds of issues with the head, Sarah was one of the worst cases, it was as if someone had erased all her facial features, Both her parents died shortly after her birth and it was believed she had no other relatives, Because her father was employed by the CIA she was taken to a secret CIA facility that did high level electronic surveillance, It also housed a stateoftheart medical facility where undercover agents were treated when wounded and had their appearance altered when necessary, We join Sarah at age, I don't want to write anything that will spoil your read,
This book has one of the best unexpected twists toward the end of the story, I think I actually stopped reading I was so surprised and then I couldn't read fast enough to find out what happened, If you've never read Angela Hunt this would be a great place to start, The ebook on Amazon. com is only Definitely worth the price! I am now a fan of Angela Hunt, Her books are intriguing because of their unique, thought provoking plots, This one is of a psychologist aunt trying to help her newly discovered niece, who has a severe physical deformities, have a life away from her work, The girl has been locked up in a facility since her birth without normal contact with other children her age, all because of the fear she would be unkindly treated by the world.
She has had many surgeries to repair most of her deformities so she can hear and see,
Sarah is a computer genius with highly developed skills necessary for world security, Yet she has never had the opportunity of developing interaction with other people on a personal level, With her aunt's help, she learns to read other people's body language,
An immensely interesting book, How would I respond to someone who had Sarah's deformities if I saw them on the street
Note: Angela Hunt's books do not have swearing, crude language or the seemingly obligatory sex scenes in modern novels.
A big plus for this fussy reader, I haven't read a more intriguing novel than THE FACE which was released in, Subject matter cannot get more cutting edge pun unintended than this one, Hunt's meticulous research is apparent on each page, While carrying the reader along a spellbinding plot line, she plumbs the deepest well of human emotions spawned by unspeakable birth defects, She sweeps the reader to the heights of modern medical technology while maintaining unremitting suspense and intrigue, . . with a surprising twist or two, This story satisfies on many levels, What an interesting, well written book, This is not an overtly Christian book, but I think some of the themes in it could be used as a jumping off point for a very interesting discussion.
Certainly there is love and sacrifice, but there is also the idea of identity and how our inner and outer selves affect one another, There is also the idea of taking the risk to break out of the safe, but stunted place we are in to participate in a world full of beauty and danger and the richness of emotion and relationships.
In the book Renee's love for Sarah causes her to take Sarah's place and to make a sacrifice that allows Sarah to, in a sense, cover herself with Renee's identity and so become more fully all that Sarah was meant to be and to take that risk and move into life.
The Face by Angela Hunt is a suspenseful story part CIA thriller and part medical drama, Sarah, a severely deformed CIA agent, has been living a sheltered life in a CIA facility until her aunt discovers her existence and jumps through hoops to meet her.
They quickly develop a warm relationship until a CIA operation interrupts their reunion, Christy Award winner Angela Hunt writes for readers who have learned to expect the unexpected in novels from this versatile author, With over five million copies of her books sold worldwide, she is the best selling author of thanworks ranging from picture books The Tale of Three Trees to novels.
Now that her two children have reached their thirties, Angie and her husband live in Florida with Very Big Dogs a direct result of watching Turner and Hooch and Sandlot too many times.
This affinity for mastiffs has not been without its rewards one of their dogs was featured on Live with Regis and Kelly as the second largest canine in America.
Their dog received this dubious honor after an all expenses paid trip to Manhattan for the do Christy Award winner Angela Hunt writes for readers who have learned to expect the unexpected in novels from this versatile author.
With over five million copies of her books sold worldwide, she is the best selling author of thanworks ranging from picture books The Tale of Three Trees to novels.
Now that her two children have reached their thirties, Angie and her husband live in Florida with Very Big Dogs a direct result of watching Turner and Hooch and Sandlot too many times.
This affinity for mastiffs has not been without its rewards one of their dogs was featured on Live with Regis and Kelly as the second largest canine in America.
Their dog received this dubious honor after an all expenses paid trip to Manhattan for the dog and the Hunts, complete with VIP air travel and a stretch limo in which they toured New York City.
Afterward, the dog gave out pawtographs at the airport, Angela admits to being fascinated by animals, medicine, psychology, unexplained phenomena, and “just about everything” except sports, Books, she says, have always shaped her life in the fifth grade she learned how to flirt from reading Gone with the Wind, Her books have won the coveted Christy Award, several Angel Awards from Excellence in Media, and the Gold and Silver Medallions from Foreword Magazines Book of the Year Award.
In, her novel The Note was featured as a Christmas movie on the Hallmark channel, Romantic Times Book Club presented her with a Lifetime Achievement Award in, In, Angela completed her Master of Biblical Studies in Theology degree and completed her second doctorate in, When shes not home reading or writing, Angie often travels to teach writing workshops at schools and writers conferences, And to talk about her dogs, of course, sitelink.