This wise and hopeful fresh take on C. S. Lewis's <i>Screwtape Letters<i/> convicted, informed, and encouraged me. Though Emily wrote these letters for herself as a young mother, I've read them twice already as a single woman, and I think they would benefit men as well.

The thought that has most remained with me from this book: While carelessly cruel comments could impact us for life, we can ask for and receive healing for our hearts.

I follow Emily online because she is so joyful. That joy comes through, even in such a weighty book. I hope you will read it, too!

Note: I'm glad I requested a digital ARC from NetGalley! The copy was free, and the opinions are my own.

This book really hit home for me! There’s a lot to it but in reality it all about spiritual warfare and what we put before us.

This is a great tool for us women to shed light on where we need to improve.

Exactly three weeks ago I started reading Sincerely Stoneheart and quickly realized this would be a book that needed time. Every chapter — or rather, letter — required a bit of marinating.

This story is inspired by C.S. Lewis’ The Screwtape Letters (a must read) and is retold for the modern Christian woman. It centers around letters a senior demon is writing to their trainee to teach them how to bring their assigned human down. God is known as the “Enemy” and Satan is known as the “Chief.”

In the midst of my own work and life stress, I found that this book cut through all of the noise. Some of the only relaxation I’ve had in the past days has some from opening up this ARC and finding freedom in Emily’s words.

This book is for the woman who has a harsh inner critic. It’s for those of us that compare ourselves to others and hustle to stay at the front of the pack. It’s for the women who have been led to believe that success is a linear path and they haven’t done enough to deserve it. It’s just as relevant for single women as it is for married women.

Emily Wilson Hussem masterfully illustrates the deceptive ways the devil works his way into our lives. Similar to how I felt after I read The Screwtape Letters in college, once you pick up on the lies you’re being fed, you start living differently.

Sincerely Stoneheart caught me at the right time. It reminded me that I’m loved and worthy, even on the days I fail or make mistakes. I am not my appearance or my productivity or my possessions. I am beloved.

Thank you to Emily Wilson Hussem, Thomas Nelson publishing and NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for my honest review. Sincerely Stoneheart is available on April 8th!

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I would first like to thank Emily Wilson Hussem for writing this book. I have followed her on social media for a few years now and I have to say, she is one of my favorites. Her wisdom, her way of speaking plainly and with compassion are a light in this world and the Lord is using her in beautiful ways

I wasn’t sure about reading this book. It took me a little bit to request it because while the author is in her 30s and married with small children, I am in my 40s and married without children. I wasn’t sure how much I would get out of this book, to be honest and I was hesitant to take the risk. You see, I knew this book would cover some things that I struggle with and I quickly realized that hesitancy was fear and not of God.

I am so glad I listened to the quiet urging to read it and so grateful to Thomas Nelson for approving me for the ARC.

Every chapter in this book spoke to me in one way or another. I was absolutely astounded at how loudly it did speak.

I could see myself in so many of the scenarios and oh how it helped my heart.

Some thoughts I had been tossing around regarding these devices we all hold in our hands and social media were reinforced through some of the letters. I see so many of my habits in such a different light now.

The chapters about motherhood, well they reminded me there are different types of motherhood. More importantly, I realized that if the enemy is attacking mothers with all of the things mentioned and more, then those thoughts I have about not being good enough, not being worthy, being a bad example of a Catholic Christian because I do not have children are from him too. It was eye opening and consoling in ways I had never experienced.

This book is written in such a way that it will speak to all Christians in such a real and honest way.

As someone who battles chronic pain and illness, I could also see where the enemy likes to attack me personally. The changes I’ve seen in myself as a result of illness, I could see where my focus wasn’t on the things it should be, that of my identity as a daughter of God.

This life will forever be a constant battle of good versus evil. The things I gained from this book, I could write pages about. Instead, I will urge you to read it and soak it in. I myself will be reading it again and again for the perspective each season of life will bring to these pages.

Thank you again to Thomas Nelson. All opinions are my own.

A "Screwtape Letters" for women! This books feels really relevant. I was surprised by how much I connected with it. It focuses quite a bit on screen addiction and while I don't feel like this is a huge problem for me it still helped me see ways I am still being influenced by having a phone close by at all times. There were some chapters that felt less personal and some that really hit hard. I read it two weeks ago and I am still thinking about it and letting the "advice" sink in. Thank you for writing this book! And thank you to NetGalley for letting me read an advance copy of this book.

While I appreciate the idea of this text, it was all together too personal for me. The recurring theme of "screens are evil" was also a bit over the top. Current society cannot get away from screens whether they like it or not, so while certain things can be avoided (e.g., social media) screens in general are unavoidable for work, life, etc. Nearly every other or every third letter in the text addressed "screens are evil" (or so it seemed).

I greatly appreciate the overall attempt made here, but also do not support authors who take a classic work and rework it as their own. The Screwtape Letters are a classic and unique work and morphing that into a contemporary Christian text just doesn't sit well with me. Many of her letters are clearly very personal, as she explains at the beginning so I do not fault the author; however, while reading I felt I was snooping into her business instead of gaining clarity of my own. I did appreciate the theme of women being taught to attack other women to divide them. I think that is a message that needs to be broadcasted in current society and young girls need to hear this part of her message.

The author was very brave to share her personal journey through these letters. Overall, lovely idea but I would not use this with students or recommend it to others.

I rarely give books 5-stars, and even then, most of those are classic pieces of literature like Les Mis or The Lord of the Rings . I can't compare this book in the same way as the others because it's nonfiction, but holy cow, you guys. This is the best nonfiction book I've ever read and definitely a contender for the best book of any genre.

I can't express how grateful I am that Emily Wilson Hussem 1) wrote this book and 2) approved me for the arc. I pretty quickly stopped making highlights in this book, because the whole thing is so good. This book is full of nothing but irrefutable Gospel truths and is one of the most insightful books I've ever read. This genuinely is a book that every woman should read.

I was hesitant about how this book would hold up when compared against The Screwtape Letters , but it does not disappoint one bit. I honestly can't stress enough how amazing this book is. I will absolutely be rereading this book again and again. This book teaches eye-opening, inspiring lessons and I'm sure it will only get better and better the more I experience life.

Truly a 10/10 read.

Thanks to Netgalley for providing a free copy of the ebook in exchange for my review. All opinions expressed are my own.

This book is a take-off on the classic book by C.S. Lewis, The Screwtape Letters. In that book a demon, Screwtape, writes letters to another demon who is trying to get his human "patient" to sin and move away from God. In Sincerely, Stoneheart, Emily Hussem uses the same convention of letters from a demon supervisor to a junior demon. In the case of Sincerely, Stoneheart the demons are trying to get their female patient to sin. Many of the ideas in this book are directed towards temptations that are primarily weaknesses for women. In other cases the temptations are those of current day society such as social media. The gender switch as well as the current day situation works for this book. although Hussem is not the writing genius that C.S. Lewis was.
A recent book using this same premise is My Dear Hemlock by Tilly Dillehay. I preferred Dillehay's book over Hussem's book, because of Dillehay's writing style as well as her topic choices. However, either book would be a light, but thought-provoking read for Christian women. I received a complementary copy from the publisher via NetGalley.

These letters are from a senior demon, addressed to an apprentice demon trying to keep one particular woman from relationship with God, but the letters could have been written for me.

Busyness, identity, comparison... all of the topics covered in the letters are ways we as women are distracted from our purpose, to be-loved daughters and to love in return.

In this collection of letters, I found an echo of what I've struggled with throughout my life, proof that I'm not alone in these challenges, and reminders of true love.

I highly recommend women read this book, and to take it letter by letter. Much like chocolate truffles, you may be tempted to read many chapters in the same sitting, but the content is so rich that more than a few at a time may lend itself to not appreciating the goodness of those you consume.

4.2⭐️ Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC.

I want to start this off by saying I was beyond excited for this, and in most ways, it did not disappoint. The Screwtape Letters is one of my all-time favorite books, and I thought this did a wonderful job of mimicking the style and flow of the original classic.

While premise was absolutely beautiful and a fantastic idea, the execution had a couple small issues. My main complaint is that I feel like the author could’ve done a LOT more with it. I know it’s focused on her temptations specifically, but I think slightly more generalization would be more applicable to more readers. While some sins the author focused on felt so on-the-nose, like distraction and busyness with social media, others felt like the stereotypical “I don’t like how I look” that so many women’s ministries focus on. I would’ve loved some deeper theological doctrine brought into this. Let’s talk about pride and secret sins and all these things that are hard to talk about. It also was a bit odd to me that the author discussed motherhood in GREEAAT detail but didn’t even mention being a wife. Maybe the author isn’t married, but it still feels weird to hit on being a mom and not on being a wife.

That being said, it still was a captivating read, and I enjoyed it immensely. Recommend!