Daisy Chain: A Novel 1

by Mary E. DeMuth

Book Overview

The abrupt disappearance of young Daisy Chance from a small Texas town in 1973 spins three lives out of control--Jed, whose guilt over not protecting his friend Daisy strangles him; Emory Chance, who blames her own choices for her daughter's demise; and Ouisie Pepper, who is plagued by headaches while pierced by the shattered pieces of a family in crisis. In this first book in the Defiance, Texas Trilogy, fourteen-year-old Jed Pepper has a sickening...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0310278368
• ISBN13: 9780310278368
• Release Date: February 2009
• Publisher: Zondervan
• Length: 368 Pages
• Weight: 0.85 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.1" x 5.4" x 8.3"

Customer Reviews

In A League of Its Own!

Through the riveting novel "Daisy Chain," Mary E. Demuth has set a new standard for Christian fiction and few writers will ever come close to reaching it. Demuth doesn't want you to walk away from her books simply "reading a good story"... she wants you to "live" them and be transformed by their message. You may find your heart pounding as Jed Pepper runs to check on Daisy. You will find yourself filled with anger at Jed's father who portrays a heart for God as a preacher, yet is abusive behind closed doors. You'll want to sit down with Jed's mother and let her cry on your shoulder. You might wish you could go to Defiance and rescue Jed and his sister, help look for Daisy, and pray in hope for the brokenness that has consumed the town, but there's no need to. The author introduces you to God's grace in the form of Hixon and Muriel. Demuth leaves no stitch of the story loose or undone. She has weaved a perfect tapestry of the truth of tragedy, yet the assured triumph through God's mercy and grace. Each character is as mysterious and intriguing as our Creator who has made each of us. The author brilliantly keeps you on the edge of your seat while taking you through the realities of a fallen world. She doesn't beat around the bush; she doesn't try to sugar coat pain. "Daisy Chain" will open your heart and your eyes so that you will get a glimpse of what it's like to look at others as God does. Mary E. Demuth has a God-given talent to write that most could work towards their whole life and never even come close. Each word is carefully chosen and artfully written. You'll be up all night reading "Daisy Chain" and find yourself hoping there is no end to Mary's incredible story telling of Defiance, TX. Lucky for you, the second book in the Texas Trilogy is released and you don't have to wait to read it ("A Slow Burn"). My advice...buy them both together...you won't want to wait to go down to the book store or the time it will take for shipping!

Perfect marriage of sorrow and the healing power of faith

I was beyond pleasantly surprised by this book. I had never heard of this author, and was a little worried about reading a book under the category of "Religion" This book is amazing! It marries discovering faith with a real-world painful accident. From the very start you feel the characters and go through the emotions as they are going through them. You want to reach through the pages and hug, cry, laugh, surrender and believe right along with them. All the while bringing to light the power of faith and religion. Not one sentence in this book feels like a lecture. Instead, it uses an incident which happens in each American community at one point or another, and shows how by letting go of pre-judgements and conceptions, everything can be overcome and healed. One note I must add is that once you read this book, you have no choice but to continue with the series. Not because of obligation, but because you get so attached to the characters, that you want to be there for them when they continue their journey. Not one character you meet in this book is a throwaway. They are all written for a reason and are integral to making the story what it is. To do that is a rare gift this author has mastered. This first book in the Trilogy is a sure smash! The second book, "A Slow Burn" is sure to be just as enticing and well written. Please be sure to look out for it as it comes out October 1, 2009.

Dancing with Daisy

By Michelle Wegner I just finished reading Daisy Chain by Mary Demuth last night. I love a good story, one that grips me and keeps my attention the entire time. This story did that for me and more. It touched parts of me in a very deep way that I hadn't thought about for a long time, causing me to think and reflect deeply on where I am and how I got here. The way Mary tells this story set in Defiance, Texas in the 70's made me feel like I was there with each and every character she described. I could feel the Texas heat, smell the air, touch Daisy's matted hair, and see her dance and twirl in the wind. Her telling also made me feel Hap's rage and anger in a very real way. Something about the duplicity of his character, a small town preacher by day, and a wife demeaning, child abusing husband/father by night, made my skin crawl. For real! I loved this story. I can't wait for the 2nd and 3rd books come out so I can put my mind to rest and find out what happens in the end...

An Amazing Book

This is a fabulous and difficult book at the same time. It deals with several difficult concepts -- abduction, abuse, illness, and teenage hormones -- in a heart-rending way. Mary DeMuth has climbed inside the head of a teenage boy from a very dysfunctional family in a way that let's the reader really understand his personal pain. The cast of characters is amazing. Each is multi-dimensional and Mary lays them open to reveal their strengths, weaknesses, pains, and joys. She takes us beyond first impressions and preconceived notions so we can understand their true spirits and see how they have been impacted by life's trials. There are no stereotypical representations; Mary helps us see that each person has a story. This is a story that will stick with you. The writing is magnificent. Mary's words take on the melody of life, and they are compiled in such a way that I often went back to reread a sentence because it felt so good rolling around in my brain! The story line allows each of us to resonate with the emotions and reactions of characters even if we have not been in similar situations. I believe this book will be an award winner -- it's a must read. I honestly care about what happens to each person in future books. It's a shame that it takes so much longer to write a book than it does to read one!

Coming of Age, Dealing with Ugliness, but Woven with Threads of Hope

Mary DeMuth's Daisy Chain transported me to Defiance,Texas, dropped me into the mid '70's and immersed me in the home of a wounded family. Jed is fourteen and has just lost his best friend and future wife. It's his fault, because he's weak and selfish and he wouldn't walk the little spitfire home because if he did, his daddy would be upset. And when daddy is upset bad things happen. Daddy is a preacher. Jed can't quite bring himself to stand up to daddy to protect his precious sister and his sickly, broken mom -- a mom who writes messages of love, encouragement, and sorrow on flower petals and leaves them by Jed's bed. Jed's whole world is inside out and upside down. The town is holding its breath because Daisy is missing. And heaven is brass because God isn't listening to Jed, and apparently doesn't care to. If this little sliver of drama turns you inside out and upside down you may not want to read this book. But if you are one who claims To Kill a Mockingbird or Peace Like a River as one of your favorite novels, you really owe it to yourself to look further into Daisy Chain. Tom Morrisey, Lisa Samson, Claudia Mair Burney, Charles Martin and W.Dale Cramer fans need to look in Mary DeMuth's direction as well. This is a novel that will haunt me for weeks and months, probably landing on my 2009 favorite list. The characters are deep and rich, complex and challenging. The story is gut wrenching and awful, and beautiful and full of the power of love and faith and Jesus. I can't imagine anyone not being horrified and then blessed as this novel opens and blooms, bleeds, withers and fades. Technically, the only complaint I had was just a few moments of transition between the adult Jed and the younger versions of Jed, and a brief incident where a scene's timing didn't quite jive in my mind. And those issues are only because I read so many books for review and can't just get lost in pages and not look for flaws that might impede a reader's experience. I so appreciated the depth of truth and faith in this novel. Daisy Chain could be a very tough book for some readers. Child endangerment, abuse, anger, bigotry, religious bullying, drinking and hints of sexual scandal are not buried under a layer of pristine Sunday-best white gloves. I do recommend Daisy Chain to anyone who hungers for honest fiction that doesn't leave one weeping over the hopelessness of a story without redemption and grace.