I have been a fan of Robin Jones Gunn for a long time, and read the "Todd and Christy" series in my teenage years. I was excited to see Todd and Christy featured so prominently in "Being Known." However, the main characters and the obstacles they faced felt like they hadn't been completely fleshed-out and the resolution felt too rushed. Overall, it was a good book, but a little too simplistic.

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC. All opinions are my own.

Jennalyn is juggling being a stay at home mum with supporting her husband running a new restaurant and her art career. Losing her mum puts her life into a spin. She meets an old boyfriend who brings back fond memories of her mum and eventually makes her doubt her marriage as well as some of her life choices.

Reading " Being Known" took me back to Summer Promise, the first book in the Christy Miller Series-basically like a big hug with a tinge of nostalgia. Gunn handles the issue of infidelity and grief with truth, grace and compassion and provides points of self-reflection for readers in romantic relationships without being preachy. The power of friendship and sisterhood shines through the characters and makes me want to form a Daughters of Eve (DOE) circle.

Though "Being Known" is the second book in the Haven Makers series, it can be read as a standalone. If you read the Christy Miller series while growing up and are wondering what the gang is getting up to as adults, then this is the series for you.

Being Known is a beautifully written novel. Great plot, and well crafted characters. A story of loss and friendship. I highly recommend this book. I received an arc from the publisher and Netgalley. This is my unbiased review.

Being Known is a poignant store of 5 women who call themselves Daughters of Eve. I love how they connect with each other and are honest with each other, even when the truth is hard to hear. I wanted to be in the room with them and be a part of their group! I’ve never chosen a word for the year like these women, but “know” might be a good one to start with.

I received a complimentary copy of this book through NetGalley. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

Another enjoyable book by Robin Jones Gunn. Well written and love the characters. 5 women coming together to encourage and support one another. Such a great example of Christian fellowship.
I received an advanced copy from the publisher and netgalley. This is my own opinion.

This is a beautifully written book that is full of emotions. It will touch your heart and soul. This would be a wonderful book for a book club or a women's church group. It is a fiction book but it is full of golden nuggets to remember.. This book was an absolute joy to read. 5 solid stars!! Thank you WaterBrook & Multnomah via NetGalley for the ARC copy of this wonderful book. All opinions expressed are my own.

Being Known, the latest novel from Robin Jones Gunn is a story that explores themes of true friendship, the significant loss that comes with a beloved mother's death, and the importance of full disclosure and trust within a marriage.

It was an enjoyable novel, and I particularly liked the depth of the friendship between Jennalyn and the other DOEs. "After all the ways you DOEs have influenced me, I now happen to believe that God can use anything or anyone to impress specific thoughts on us." It made me yearn for a group of friends that can speak truth into our lives just as this one did.

I recommend this novel - it's a bit of a primer on how true friendship in Christ looks. And that's just one aspect of the book! I received an advanced reader copy for this my honest review for which I thank NetGalley.

Robin Jones Gunn creates a beautiful story of mother going through the trials of raising a young family while her husband works hard to build and run a restaurant to support them. Even though both spouses are doing their part to take care of their family both are weighed down by their commitments which separates them even though they share the same house. The separation opens them both up to temptations and choices that can break a marriage. The five friends (the DOEs) play pivitol rolls in helping their each other be known and work through the struggles they face. Their camaraderie keeps the story positive even as individual characters are hurting. I enjoyed this story and thank NetGalley for allowing me to read an ARC edition.

Jennalyn loves her husband, and he loves her. But he’s a chef, and is at work all the time. She’s lonely and missing her mother, who could give her excellent advice.
Having four close friends who provide a safe haven of encouragement and vulnerability is a godsend when life gets messy. It’s easier for Jennalyn to tell her best friend rather than her husband that their daughter’s ballet friend is the daughter of her old high school sweetheart.
A heart-warming story. To have such close friends is a blessing beyond compare.

I have to start right off by admitting I was utterly fascinated with this book! It was not at all what I expected, right from the start. "Being Known" was a beautifully written story about a true sense of sisterhood between 5 friends. They endured and worked thru many of life's challenges in a truly realistic way. I loved how Ms. Gunn presented so many personality types that were wonderfully explored as the characters related to one another and handled various situations within their lives. She touched on a sense of infidelity, although it was much more from the emotional standpoint than physical. This brought the very heart of how deeply ones responses to various circumstances can affect yourself and others around you (especially your spouse). I was also very moved by how the 5 friends held each other to a level of accountability, and how each of them (as a couple with their spouse) related to the other friends and their spouses.

This book was very well written, clearly researched from biblical standpoints, and simply remarkable in presentation. I found it very easy to give this book a solid 5 star review. Well done, Ms. Gunn!

I received a complimentary copy of this book from WaterBrook & Multnomah through NetGalley. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

I'd never read anything by Robin Jones Gunn before so I had no expectations as I started reading Being Known.

I enjoyed the book and I will look out for more by Robin Jones Gunn. With that said, I think this book had a lot of potential but it remained on the surface and solved problems a lot too quickly. It seemed like not one of the characters had to truly struggle as we do in real life, and the heartache we did hear about was treated very superficially. We were told about Jennalyn's and Tess's pain, but nothing in the story made me feel anything for them, while some characters, like Christy, just seemed too perfect to be real. I walk away knowing very little about the main characters and I don't have the need to find out how they got on, as I do after a novel that captured my heart, with characters that I cared for.

I recommend this as a light read for Christian women in their 30s, maybe 40s.

With thanks to WaterBrook & Multnomah and Netgalley for the ARC.

I have historically loved Robin Jones Gunn books... I always get excited about the new ones. I love the ideas in this book. Love the friendship between the characters. But it doesn’t seem like normal life. It seems like a dream life. I wish there was more normal life responses and interactions. I also wish there were more internal details for the characters. It feels rather surface. I also wondered why some details are covered and some aren’t? Like why are we talking about all the different roads they could take?
I also really struggled with the promoting of unhealthy essential oil habits of ingesting them.
I received a digital copy from netgalley. I was in no way required to write a positive review. All thoughts are my own.

I have been reading the stories of Christy and her friends since I was 15. Robin Jones Gunn has a way of writing relatable stories with characters that you can connect with. While this is a fictional story, I found myself examining my own heart with my marriage and my own friendships. Being Known made me laugh, I cried and can not wait to purchase to add to my own library. I will definitely be recommending my friends to read this.

BEING KNOWN is another delightful book by ROBIN JONES GUNN. I really enjoyed following the characters from Becoming Us, but Being Known can be read as a stand alone.
It is rhe story of five women who have made a commitment to each other as members of the Daughters of Eve, a really strong circle of friendship who meet from time to time, have a lot of fun, group text often, and generally do life together.
The author has an amazing way of describing the characters' emotions as they try to juggle their commitments to family and work, whilst longing to grow closer to the Lord. I like the way they each find a word from God that is meaningful for their situation, and follow through on it.
Jennalyn's struggle with the loss of her mother and the reappearance of an old boyfriend, emphasizes the importance of honesty and making the right choices.
It is a most enjoyable read and one I can highly recommend.
I was given a free copy of the book by NetGalley from Waterbrook & Multnomah. The opinions in this review are completely my own.

A long time fan of the author I had high hopes for this story. It beings with Jennalynn and her husband Joel along with her group of friends who call themselves the "DOES" daughters of Eve.
They are collectively the Havenmakers. Christian women, most of who are married mom's, along with one who is single. They are a delightful mixed group of women who care for each other, meeting often and trying to live rightly. Yes the Christian theme is an undercurrent throughout the book.
We meet Jenna our main character who still grieves the loss of her mother, a frustrated stay at home mom whose husband is mostly absent while he's both running a new restaurant and is the head chef there. Her two children are an almost 4 year old and an almost toddler. Jenna is not seen nor is she heard by her husband. I had a tough time liking Joel. Joel raised in a large Italian family, her in-laws are a wonderful support for her, I liked them very much. When she takes her daughter to ballet class she runs into her high school boyfriend, the man who broke her heart. His daughter and her's happen to be best friends in this class. While Garrett tries to engage Jennalynn, she's pretty standoffish, and shuts him out. He apologizes for the past. He is married, his wife busy with her work, so he's the one who brings her to class. Jenna doesn't share this meeting with her circle of friends, nor does she share the online contact that happens to develop with him after Jenna and Joel have yet another major disagreement. Jenna retreats to her cave that is a source of comfort for her. The two play a simple word game on social media and there is some conversation woven into that. She finds out that he too has lost his mother who was her mother's best friend. In that they share a common bond. She does recognize that she is married and nothing can ever happen, yet she doesn't share this with her friends. I enjoyed the support and caring for each other these women had and the often times guidance they provided for each other. Pivot point in the plot when Joel comes home saying they need a vacation and he's taking her to Hawaii. She's over the moon with that, thinking she'll finally recharge both herself and her marriage. She misses her husband. When he tells her it's a marriage retreat, suggested by her friends husband, she's a little less than happy. Add that he's already made the plans for them to go without talking with her about it, even less happy. Another point of contention in their already strained marriage. Again we see Jenna hold back with her group about this. Her closest friend knows the strain. Her husband is the one who talked to Joel about the retreat and they want to go also, so he's working extra jobs to pick up the much needed money to go.
The lack of communication between these two and Joel's anger issues were a problem for me. Along with some things with Jenna that could be obvious to the reader that paid attention to her unresolved grief issues and maybe a little post partum thrown in. That was just my feeling. While the group was busy guiding the single woman through a questionable friendship with a man, Jenna was always the peacemaker of the group. Withholding her own story, I didn't find her likable at times, yet I am certain there are many women who can relate to this scenario. Jenna tries several times to talk to Joel about Garrett, and none of which she's able to accomplish due to Joel. Things blow up, Joel's anger really shines through and leaves the reader wondering really what's going on here. It did me.
When he turns a corner, I found it superficial and much too quick and tidy. I needed more character development and depth to these two. It's a light read, quick and light on their faith relationships.
Also notable you never read about Jenna or Joel going to church. While church attendance isn't the focus of the story, it's brought up by other characters while they were relating a story to each other.
I had higher expectations for this book, since the author is a talented writer. For me it was just ok.

arc from publisher with thanks

Thanks to Net Galley for the ARC of this book! I am a Robin Jones Gunn fan and have read her books for many years, Now I am a librarian and our readers love the christian message in her books.
We will be buying this one for our shelves. Great story! All readers can enjoy this book.

I really don't enjoy women's fiction, but Robin Jones Gunn captured my attention with the Christy Miller series when I was a teenager, and I look forward to everything she writes whether it is YA or Women's fiction. Being Known continues the journey of adult, parenting group of friends that have devoted time to spend together. Either praying or talking about issues in their lives. It is nice to catch up with Christy Spencer and Sierra from Gunn's earlier writings. But it is also nice to hang with the new girls. Everytime I read Gunn's new series, Being Known included, I wish I had a group of Christian women I could hang out with and plan different get together days. It would be nice to have prayer partners who I can see actually caring about the situations in my life. Gunn does a wonderful job at showing the heartache of being a mother at home with kids all day while the husband works. Now one of her novels needs to show a mother who works 50 hours a week while her husband works 40 hours and she still has to come up and cook dinner, enforce chores, assign baths, and work on homework while the husband lounges on the couch watching television. That is a book I couldn't wait to get my hands on. In Being Known, I really admired the way Gunn handled the grief of losing a mother from Jennalynn's perspective. So many times novels mention once and then the characters appears to move on and never think about it again. So untrue. Losing my Daddy four years ago, it can hit at the most unexpected time, and I think about him almost every day. Overall, Being Known is not a typical women's fiction novel, I love how Gunn faces the harsh realities of being a mother and parent in her novel, but with grace and surrounded by friends. I highly recommend this series to anyone. Christian or not.

I received a complimentary copy of Being Known by Robin Jones Gunn from Waterbrook-Multnomah Publishing, but the opinions stated are all my own.

Very good story. The plot was very easy to follow. The characters were well developed and easy to identify with. The religious overtones weren’t to bad. As not every one believes in G-d, I think everyone can enjoy this book.

As always it’s a great story. Filled with warmth, love, truth, honesty and trust. A group of friends help one another in life. The choices they make in their relationships are held to a level of trust and truth only a God can direct. The storyline is written in a way that draws you directly in and you feel as though your living amongst these friends.