Volition

Title: Volition
Author: Chautona Havig
Major Themes: Marriage, Time Travel, Christian Fiction, Romance, Science Fiction, Books for Women
Synopsis: When she is suddenly taken to the future by mistake, Andi must choose between two impossible options.

Emma’s review:

I was scrolling through Facebook a few days ago, and saw a post from my favorite author, Chautona Havig. She had suddenly decided to pull out a manuscript from many years ago, rewrite it, and get it published—in three days! I offered to help her with proofreading. I had absolutely no idea what the book was about, and was quite startled when I started reading Volition (What kind of a title is that, anyway? It gives no clues about the content!). This was a sci-fi, time travel book! I don’t read that kind of book; sci-fi doesn’t interest me at all, and time travel is so unbelievable I have quit reading those books, too. Well, I had offered to help proofread, so I kept on…and on…and on. I couldn’t put this book down, and I loved it!

Andi has enough drama in her life to suit anyone, with a suicidal roommate. She also has a wonderful, loving family and is looking forward to her wedding in six months. Then, she wakes up in something that looks like an airplane and discovers that she has been abducted by people from the future to be somebody’s wife. (They intended to rescue her roommate.) What will she do now—especially when she sees what will happen to her friend after she’s out of the picture? If she goes back, an innocent person will be doomed to death; if she stays, she will never see her family again.

Volition will really make you think. There are several important themes that are touched on. Andi has to grapple with her faith and who God is. She also has to work through what God says about divorce, and about marriage—and how to do marriage! I really appreciated the study of marriage and divorce that is worked into this story. Even though this is the kind of story that I don’t believe is possible, it’s quite the engrossing story and a great vehicle for conveying truths about God and life. If you read this book, you won’t soon forget it!

I received a free copy of this book from the author, and these are my honest thoughts about it.

Esther’s review:

I read some books because I love the cover, or know I enjoy the author’s books, or the synopsis is intriguing. I read Volition solely based on the fact that I knew I’d love it because I love the author. When I found out, right after Christmas, that Havig was planning to edit and publish a book in the last four days before the new year, I thought she was crazy—and, well, I still think she was. One way those of us on her launch team can help her is to go through and help with editing, so while she did her editing, the rest of us read as quickly as we could to try to help, too. I still only managed to read 50% before the deadline, but I’m sure I would have read that far anyway even without the deadline—the story is gripping.

After Andi’s roommate tries to commit suicide but is caught before she dies, Andi feels like her life is spinning out of control. The next morning, however, she knows it is—when she wakes up on an airship of some kind and is told that she’s just been transported to the future. 2185, to be exact, and although her abductors intended to take her roommate, they got her instead. When she finds out her roommate has a chance at meeting the Lord with her gone, she has a difficult decision to make. What does the Lord want her to do? How is she supposed to deal with the relationship she’s been put into in this new year in the future?

Volition is all about one woman coming to grips with the life she’s been given—and trying to follow Jesus in the process. Of course, it’s fully in the science fiction realm, but some fascinating lessons can be learned from a story like this.

One of the most striking was her trying to decide what God would have her do in her marriage—something she had no say over in the beginning, and according to the laws of the land, she doesn’t have to legally stay in the marriage past the first year. Is it alright for her to divorce this man she doesn’t know, and doesn’t really care to get to know either?

Then there are questions raised about how a godly wife should act…should we try to use tips from godly Jane up the street, or should we try to figure out how to put the Bible into practice? How can we honor those around us, even if we don’t agree with them?

Volition was a fascinating read, and I’m thankful it got to be my first “Christian fiction” book of the year. It’s gripping, thought-provoking, and inspiring. Even though I’m not married, I want to learn to show honor to those around me, and this book provided some great thoughts on that topic for me. Recommended if you like good Christian fiction, and even if you don’t normally enjoy time travel or science fiction, you might just find out you’d enjoy this. Mom does not enjoy the sci-fi genre, but she did love this one!

I was given a free review copy of this book, and this is my honest opinion of it.

WARNING: In ch. 1 and 2, there are multiple mentions of a woman who tried to commit suicide, and also how she tried to do it. This is referenced now and then throughout the book. “Women’s things” are mentioned a couple of different times (ch. 16, 18, and 30), and marital relations are mentioned or hinted at a couple of times (ch. 11, 30, and 31)—always very clean. I’m afraid I (Esther) didn’t take many good notes because I was reading so fast, but this book is a very clean read.

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