A review by michaela002
You're the One That I Want by Susan May Warren

5.0

Summary:
This book follows the life of the youngest Christiansen, Owen. Owen is a former hockey player who, after a freak accident, walked away from everything, including his family. His life has been in a downward spiral since. He ends up on a fishing boat (think Deadliest Catch), where he meets Scotty. Scotty, a police officer with a rough past, is the daughter of the captain of the boat and tough as nails. Her mom died when she was young and she doesn't really have a family. Both she and Owen have some bitterness towards God and some issues they need to work through. Owen, the prodigal son, is afraid to come and face his family. Scotty, an only child, desperately, yet unknowingly, wants to be part of a family. After falling overboard and almost dying, Owen's brother Darek comes to bring him back home, but some interesting things happen along the way.

Review:
I don't even know what to say. I LOVED this book. If I could have given it more than five starts, I would have. I have loved every one of the Christiansen family books, but this one may have been my favorite. I say "may," because I have loved all of them and it's hard to choose a favorite. This was the last book of the series, so it was incredibly bittersweet. I loved that Warren brought back all of the family members, even Amelia, for the final book. I think that's what made it my favorite. While this book is about Owen, there are many other deep storylines here, and I loved every one of them. The theme of redemption and grace is perfectly woven throughout this book and I ended up falling in love with characters I formerly hated. I love how Warren used certain people in this book to really speak God's truth into the lives of several characters. This book made me laugh and cry. In fact, I think I teared up about 3 times (I know, I know, crying over a book?!). Warren writes so well and I absolutely get lost in her books. While I don't want to give away any spoilers, this book included someone nearly dying and someone being accused of murder, so it was highly suspenseful and I couldn't put it down! At the same time, I didn't want it to end because I knew it would be over for good. I have fallen in love with each and every character in this series (okay, maybe not Monte), and I highly recommend this book and entire series to anyone who wants a good, clean, suspenseful, love story.