The Good Father

Title: The Good Father
Author: Diane Chamberlain
Read: February 10, 2014

Summary: A beloved daughter. A devastating choice. And now there's no going back.

Four years ago, nineteen-year-old Travis Brown made a choice: to raise his newborn daughter on his own. While most of his friends were out partying and meeting girls, Travis was at home, changing diapers and worrying about keeping food on the table. But he's never regretted his decision. Bella is the light of his life. The reason behind every move he makes. And so far, she is fed. Cared for. Safe.

But when Travis loses his construction job and his home, the security he's worked so hard to create for Bella begins to crumble...….

Then a miracle. A job in Raleigh has the power to turn their fortunes around. It has to. But when Travis arrives in Raleigh, there is no job, only an offer to participate in a onetime criminal act that promises quick money and no repercussions.

With nowhere else to turn, Travis must make another choice for his daughter's sake.Even if it means he might lose her. goodreads

Review: I really enjoyed the way this book was told through three different narrators through various moments in time. It really allowed the characters to develop and helped the reader to understand why they did some of the things they did. I think it is only appropriate if the review for this book follows a similar format.

First off, Travis. Poor Travis. Literally and figuratively. His story makes it clear how easy it is to go from scraping by to being desperate and having no options. Travis had to make tough decision and he had to deal with some serious consequences as a result of his naivete. I mean, who didn't see where this sketchy job was actually going? Really?!?! But he did it to help his little family and while you might not make the same decision, you at least understand why he felt he had. I love how much he loved Bella and that was clear throughout the entire book.

Erin was a very interesting character. I really connected with her journey through the grief process because that is what I do for a living (I'm a therapist, remember?) So the way her brain was working and how she was reacting to various stressors at this time really made sense to me. Your heart broke for her and her loss but I loved how the author wrote in her healing process in this story. Erin found her path to handle her grief in a very unique way but hey, it worked for her and it wasn't too far fetched. And bless her heart for handling the situation Travis threw her into!

Now Robin. This girl was all over the place for me. I judged her to begin with and hated her. When she was so oblivious to her current surroundings and the horrible people that she was dealing with, I judged her for being naive and caught up in the "high society" of the South. I was judging hard people. But as the story continued and we got to know her back story, I started to understand her better. I didn't think anyone could justify the lack of feelings and remorse she had about giving up her daughter but when you find out that she was barely conscious during the birth and never had any contact with her baby, you can kind of understand that the connection wasn't made like it usually is. People give their children up for adoption all of the time and I always imagine there are so many feelings involved so to hear that Robin didn't have any surprised me until the author explained it more and I think that was her only saving grace for me. Her dad was another character I really didn't like but could understand the decisions he made. I think his heart was in the right place, but he didn't make very good decisions overall.

This book makes you consider how you would handle these very stressful situations and what you would choose in a no-win situation. You may not fully agree with the characters final decisions, but I think you can at least respect them and that is a nod to the author's ability to fully develop the characters.