The Baxters — Karen Kingsbury

The #1 New York Times bestselling author of life-changing fiction takes fans back to the beginning of the Baxter family saga in this wise and redemptive novel about a wedding day that tests the bonds of love and hope for each family member.

A terrible storm builds in the early morning sky over Bloomington, Indiana, as Elizabeth Baxter prepares to celebrate her daughter Kari's wedding to Tim Jacobs. It's supposed to be the happiest of days, but Elizabeth can't shake a growing sense of dread. Is the storm a sign? Something bad is about to happen. Elizabeth knows it.

Indeed, there are dark currents of conflict and doubt coursing through the Baxter family. In the midst of them, Kari Baxter is starting to panic. Is marrying Tim a mistake? And what about her family? Her brother Luke is angry and resentful of their sister Ashley, who has recently returned from Paris, a single mom with a son she too often leaves with their parents. At the same time, Ashley and their sister Brooke have lost the faith that is the family's glue. Against all this, Kari sees Ashley rejecting her longtime love, Landon Blake, who clearly cares for her, no matter what happened in Paris.

When the storm reaches a terrifying crescendo, a shocking moment of danger brings important truths to light. At the end of the long day, can the Baxters remain a family, tested but stronger?

The Baxters illuminates an important truth -- that your best friends are quite often the people around your dinner table.