Book Review: A Step of Faith

I am continuing to listen to Richard Paul Evans' The Walk series. This book, A Step of Faith, is the fourth installment in the tale of Alan Christoffersen's journey from Seattle, Washington, to Key West, Florida. These books are part travelogue, part story. The food aspects of the travelogue get a bit tiresome, but the tidbits about the geography and towns are usually interesting enough. The characters Alan met in this book were a bit more eccentric and the story not quite as riveting, but it was still an enjoyable experience to listen to as he reflects on loss and life and the necessity of faith.

This installment of the journey begins with Alan going to surgery to have his brain tumor removed. In the midst of this trial, he seems to alienate everyone who loves him - his father, who wants him to remain in California with him after the surgery instead of resuming his intense walk, Falene, who loves him and recognizes that he doesn't return the sentiment, and Nicole, who is also in love with Alan. Must be tough to have two women clamoring for attention, right?

Alan meets some real winners in this book. He stumbles upon a divorced and remarried pastor who offers him shelter and a satisfying meal (of course, a meal). He encounters a savior-figure of a wild religious cult. Finally, when his energy is failing him and he is stuck in the Okefenokee swamp, he is picked up by a man who is preparing for the end of the world by securing an arsenal of protection for himself. With only one more book in the series, I hope the situation with his conflicted love life resolves and he ends his walk with an affirming feeling for his magnificent accomplishment.