Maeve Omstead-Johnston Rereleases A GIFT OF LOVE Special Edition

Some novels you pick up and put down at your leisure. A chapter here, a chapter there, and you'll struggle through them in a month or so. Some novels, particularly those with fully developed characters, with an engrossing narrative and storyline, demand more of your page-turning time. Those are the books that you pick up on a lazy Sunday afternoon and next thing you know, it's nearly time for bed.

Maeve Omstead-Johnston has that special 'something' that won't allow you to put her books down. She's the author of the recently re-released A Gift of Love, a novel first published in 2006 and which, due to high reader demand, has recently returned to the bookshelves. This renewed book includes the Sequel to the original release.

A Gift of Love tells the story of a selfless woman named Maria, who somehow finds the courage and strength of will to make a remarkable sacrifice during her pregnancy. Her life circumstances in Italy force her into a corner. Within a day of learning she is pregnant, Maria is widowed by the sudden death of her husband Tony, the love of her life. She is the mother of six - in her mid 40s - threatened by significant problems with her sight. Grieving, feeling vulnerable and lost, she simply doesn't know if she has either the physical or mental capacity to properly raise yet another child. A few days after Tony's funeral, the opportune visit of a beloved Canadian cousin, helps her make a momentous decision. This enormous but bitter-sweet plan is a sacrifice for her, and a blessed, wonderful gift to another woman. As years pass her secret lingers deep within.

Maria 's story is deeply moving, enough to bring the reader to tears at times, because hers is the kind of story to which any loving, empathetic adult might relate. Her decision is simply this: To give up her unborn child, hopefully ensuring the infant's healthy and happy future, even though the pain of doing so tears at the fabric of Maria's soul. Her sacrifice is the ultimate gift of love, a gift to love and cherish forevermore.

What follows Maria's decision is truly heart-wrenching, made even more so because the narrative of A Gift of Love is actually drawn from several intertwining true-to-life stories. It is a touching tale that tugs at our heartstrings because, although Maria's issues are perhaps far from our normal life experience, they are nonetheless real and heartfelt. We can imagine ourselves in Maria's shoes, wondering what we might do if the difficult choices and decisions were ours to make.

A Gift of Love is a powerful story, one laden with joy, hope, optimism and tears. It is a story that speaks to the depth of family ties, one that deals with issues of love, responsibility and the legacy that we leave behind. A Gift of Love is a true page-turner, a beautiful story of heartbreak and pathos, faith and hope.

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