Skip to main content

Review: My Refuge - Follow in the Dark #1

My Refuge book cover on blue background

I admit that it's been a while since I've read a Christian YA book, but am I ever thankful that Ashley Al Saliby reached out and let me know about her most recent book, My Refuge: Four Girls from Around the World, Imprisoned by Circumstances but Pursued by Hope, the first in the Follow in the Dark series. Not only is the cover stunning, but I am so touched by the ministry possibilities behind this book.

Many thanks to the author for providing a complimentary copy of this book for review consideration. All opinions are my own.

Book Synopsis

Christian fiction for teen girls learning to follow Jesus in a broken world.

Four girls face the hardships of isolation in remote corners of the planet. Their journeys will be messy, of course. One of them will struggle with growing anger, and another with crippling anxiety. One will drift toward despair. Another will battle surprising temptation. While facing challenges they wouldn’t have chosen, what refuge can they seek? What hope can they cling to?

Not always at their best but also never abandoned, read along as Eden, Zahra, Mei and Katya discover that they are pursued and deeply loved by God. Their raw and relatable stories might point your heart to fresh hope, too.

Source: Amazon

Book Thoughts

This collection of four short stories of different young women around the world is excellent to share with young Christian women. It is clear that the author has a heart for ministering to this audience and that she is passionate about helping the next generation of Christians grow in their faith. Each story depicts a scenario of young women feeling confined or imprisoned, including an American in the hospital's ICU, a Syrian in a refuge camp, a Canadian in her apartment during the pandemic, and a Ukrainian in a bomb shelter. As the stories are quite current, it was illuminating to step into these shoes and see global conditions through their eyes.

This book brings the verse from Psalm 46:1 to life by showing how God is our rescuer and comforter when circumstances look bleak. Meant to be a discipleship resource in the form of these stories, I highly recommend it to anyone wanting to share God's message of hope and light in the darkness. My Refuge is the first in the Follow in the Dark series and I look forward to seeing more from Ashley Al Saliby as she shares the heart of Jesus with young women. This is a book that I could not only relate to now, particularly through the story of Mei, it is a book that I wish I had as a teenager!

Book Summary

  • Format of book: 📱
  • Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
  • Recommendation: 👍

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Review: Wes and Addie Had Their Chance - Adelaide Springs #3

After visiting Colorado, I can see why this series has won a Colorado Book Award in the romance category. It's a celebration of all things small-town and Americana with a charming cast of characters.  Wes and Addie Had Their Chance  by  Bethany Turner  is the third book in the Adelaide Springs series and it's helpful to read the first two books as they culminate in this story. This book releases July 15, 2025, so there's time to catch up on the previous titles if this clean book series is of interest to you. This is a disclaimer that although this book is published by a Christian publisher, this book falls along the lines of clean fiction, so expectations should be set accordingly. I shared the following when I reviewed  Brynn and Sebastian Hate Each Other  and Cole and Laila are Just Friends , and as this book follows those two, I'll adopt the same refrain again: This is more of a crossover title that fits the genre of what the author terms "pop culture-i...

Palate Cleansers

Partially inspired by summer and partially because I like eating, I was thinking about the role of palate cleansers between courses of food, notably sorbet. I really enjoy the reset that the palate cleansers provide, allowing for a richer sense of taste to come with the next dish. In terms of reading, I admit that I have had a lot of ARCs to read this year. I've read close to 30 ARCs so far and have another 20 or so to go. I'm by no means complaining as I really enjoy reading; however, I can attest to a bit of fatigue from trying to get in as much reading as possible to meet release deadlines. It doesn't quite feel like work yet, but I will admit that when the ARCs are back-to-back, it can be a little hard to continually be motivated. As a result, I've been looking forward to setting aside a month to take a break from ARC commitments and to just enjoy whatever titles come my way and to make more of a dent in my TBR pile. While I will continue to try to meet a few upcomi...

2025 Clearly Christian Readathon

Welcome to another year of the  2025 Clearly Christian Readathon ! Updated materials have now been shared with new graphics for this upcoming year. Christian Books and Coffee , Devoted to Hope , and I are so grateful to be able to continue this Readathon so that we can keep featuring Christian authors writing clearly Christian books. There are plenty of resources available in the Clearly Christian Readathon Goodreads Group if you'd like to check it out! Thanks for journeying with us for the second year of the Readathon. We can't wait to see what God has in store with such incredible stories to be told 😀