Welcome to the first book review on this blog!
Yay for another first.
It’s been a while since I reviewed a book on my socials. This is primarily because I have been focused on being an author, and I didn’t want to mix the two up. But I’m not just one or the other. I’m both a reader and a writer, and one of the things I enjoyed before I published my books was creating graphics and reviewing books. So I’ll be heading back to that.
I’ll be sharing with you (both here and on my Instagram) the books I absolutely loved and enjoyed and think you should abandon every other book on your TBR to check out.
And this time around, it’s The Water Keeper by Charles Martin.
Backstory to How I Read The Water Keeper by Charles Martin
Backstory to this book. I feel like every book I pick up to read has a backstory. You can be the judge of that as time goes on. Sometime in 2024, a Christian fiction book club I’m a part of chose the Murphy Shepherd series to read, and I was excited because it’s on human trafficking, a topic that is dear to my heart. The prologue had a conversation that gripped my heart and made me know for certain this was going to be a great book.
As Fingers’ life drained out into the ocean, he pulled me toward him and forced out, “Tell me . . . what you know . . . about sheep.”
We had started this way. We would end this way. I tried to smile. “They tend to wander.”
He waited. All of these were lessons he’d taught me. Each a year or more in the learning.
“They get lost often.”
“Why?”
“Because they can.”
“Why?
“Because the grass is always greener . . .”
“And that’s called?”
“Murphy’s law.”
“Good.”
“They’re easy prey. The lion is never far.”
A nod.
“They seldom find their way home.”
He prompted me. “So they need . . .”
“A shepherd.”
“What kind?”
“The kind who will leave the warmth of the fire and the safety of the flock to risk the cold, the rain, and sleepless nights to . . .” I trailed off.
“To what?”
“Find the one.”
“Why?”
I was crying now. “Because . . . the needs of the one . . .” The words left me.
Unfortunately, the first chapter bored me with the description of the setting, and if you know me, you know I love action. I DNFed the book. While I was tempted to pick it up as my book club members lauded it, I couldn’t can. I don’t do lengthy descriptions.
Fast forward to March 2025, I saw the audiobook was on NetGalley, and I thought, What the heck. Perhaps I could live with a narration of the description of bays and sand bars and sea vessels.
I started the audiobook, and the narrator’s voice took a while to get used to. The descriptions were almost tear-inducing, but when I tell you the story picked up after I listened through that, it did. Immensely. The action and drama came in in droves.
My Review of The Water Keeper by Charles Martin
The Water Keeper is a Christian thriller novel centred around the life of a man everyone knows as Murphy Shepherd. He’s a covert government agent who specialises in finding the missing, especially those kidnapped and trafficked. He meets a striking teenage girl, Angel, who is on drugs and hanging out with questionable older men. He is concerned about her well-being and gives her his number to call him whenever she is in trouble. A few days after their meeting, Murphy meets Summer, Angel’s mother, and their interaction confirms that Angel is on a flesh ship, being trafficked, and the two of them have to work together to save her before she is sold off forever.
The story shows the horrors of human trafficking, how victims are scouted, kidnapped and lured. It also shows just how heart-wrenching it is to lose a loved one to trafficking and the pain of trying to find them. The Water Keeper also shows the heart of God as the one who never leaves the one behind.
It’s full of humour, heart, and grit. The action scenes will leave your heart racing and hoping the good guys remain safe. The near misses will leave you in tears. And the plot twists rival the twists and turns of a rollercoaster. There are two heart-stopping love stories in this, and there is a worldwide famous author who is basically living the dream of every author. I’ll leave you to experience those and find out what the author enjoys when you pick up this book.
In the spirit of not spoiling this book, I’ll end this review by saying it’s a must-read. It further encouraged me to create an awareness campaign against trafficking in persons, and I’ll be working on that to launch the campaign in July.
Comps I Think You'll Enjoy and A Music Rec
To add a personal touch to my reviews, I’ll be sharing comps and a song that embodies the message of this book. Sound of Freedom has the same tension as The Water Keeper, so if you enjoyed it, you’ll enjoy The Water Keeper. Whereas, if you loved the romantic subplot in Priceless, then you’ll also enjoy the romance in The Water Keeper. And if you have seen or read all three, drop whatever you’re doing and get to them.
Have you read The Water Keeper? What are your thoughts? Have you read or watched something similar? Share your recommendations in the comments.
Until my next book review, keep reading, and I love you, but God loves you more.
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