Then Came Heaven

by LaVyrle Spencer

Book Overview

A grief-stricken widower learns to open his heart again in this touching and emotionally charged novel from New York Times bestselling author LaVyrle Spencer... A man of unshakable faith, Eddie Olczak... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0399143696
• ISBN13: 9780399143694
• Release Date: December 1997
• Publisher: Putnam Adult
• Length: 368 Pages
• Weight: 1.45 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.2" x 6.3" x 9.3"
• Age Range: 18 years and up
• Grade Range: Grade 12 and higher

Customer Reviews

Not my favorite of hers.

If you are into the Catholic Church, death, and hard decisions this is something you might enjoy. I didn't.

Just a wonderfully sweet love story

What does God plan for your life? Just when you think that everything is God-blessed and the way it should be, suddenly a tragedy occurs that might make you shake your faith in Him. The year is 1950 and Eddie Olzcak had a wonderful life with his beloved wife and two young daughters. Eddie is a devout Catholic who works as a janitor in the local Catholic school, who rings the bells in the church for all the Masses, and helps out the nuns in the convent. One afternoon, his wife's car is hit by a train and she is killed instantly, shattering the perfect life he had with her. He is sad, angry, confused, he misses his wife terribly, he is lonely, but he knows he must go on with his life, and he does....Sister Regina, one of the nuns in the convent, who teaches 3rd and 4th grade at the school Eddie works at, and has his two daughters in her class, has been unhappy for some time with her life, wondering if this is the life God really wanted for her. She is part of the Benedictan order of nuns that has strict codes and follows a Holy Rule that forbids, among other things, any type of secular interaction that involve emotions or feelings; her life is supposed to be directed at constant prayer. So when Eddie's wife dies, Sister Regina feels at a loss; she wants to hug the children, but she can't; she wants to counsel Eddie, but she can't, and during this time, she realizes that being a nun isn't her calling. If she's not a nun, does that make her any less holy than Eddie's wife, Krystyna, who was a wonderful woman, who helped out in the community, who loved her husband and children dearly? Something also happens to Sister Regina during these next few months: she's getting feelings for Eddie, and he senses it, and Eddie discovers that he's starting to feel the same way about her. Both have guilt...Eddie wonders if it's too soon to love again after his wife dies, and Sister Regina wonders if it's a sin to fall in love with a man just because she's a nun. This is just a wonderful story about how love can be found again after a tragic circumstance and Lavyrle Spencer handles it beautifully. Isn't love between a man and a woman a gift from God? Eddie and Sister Regina find out that it is. I really enjoyed this story and it was a great final book for LaVyrle Spencer to write before she retired. I will miss her writing.

A time not so long ago..

As a woman who grew up in the 50's I was taken back to the ideas, mores and habits of that time through the words in this book. While I did not grow up Catholic, a close friend of mine did and this book echoes many of the memories she has shared with me about her Catholic girlhood and that of a relative who became a Catholic nun. I think this book will be a step back in time for many "over 50 year olds" who grew up Catholic.

INSPIRATIONAL

I thought it was very spiritual, but inspirational. I felt all of the emotions throughout the book. I'd recommend this book to my family and friends, and readers everywhere.

Love lost... Emotional for everyone, including the reader

Best love story I have read. Can't keep my eyes dry during the whole time reading it. I cried for the love that was lost when Krystyne died, and I cried again for the joy of Sister Regina's sacrify to leave the covent, to be a mother, a lover and a wife.

Stunningly beautiful!!!

This is one of the most beautiful books I've ever had the privilege to read. When at first I heard the news LaVyrle Spencer was retiring, I wasn't really disappointed because several of her later books had fallen flat for me. Now, I'm suddenly struck by the sadness of never, ever being able to read a new book of hers again. The setting is 1950 in a small Polish community in Browerville, MN - Spencer's hometown. Perhaps it's her familiarity with the setting that makes this book come alive. The book opens as the community is stunned by the death of a young wife and mother, Krystyna. No one is more grief-stricken than her husband, Eddie, who is the janitor and bellringer for the local Catholic church and school. Their two daughters, Anne and Lucy are 4th and 3rd graders taught by Sister Regina. Sister Regina has been questioning her vows and now that she is prevented from physically comforting the girls, she questions them even more. As the book progresses, Sr. Regina and Eddie begin to have feelings for each other but are frustrated by not being able to act on these feelings. I'm hesitant to reveal more for fear of spoiling this very wonderful, touching book. Please do yourself a favor this Holiday season and treat yourself to this book!