The Sweet By and By was written by Sara Evans with Rachel Hauck. It is a fictional story about Jade Fitzgerald as she prepares to get married. The book opens with Jade living a peaceful life filled with success; she has a great business and her fiancé is adored by his hometown. As she prepares for the wedding, she is forced to confront her mom and troubles from her past.

These authors did a great job of balancing reality and creative in this book. The characters are expressive and memorable, but maintain the human qualities needed for the reader to relate to them. The book was surprisingly fast paced and the chapters were short and manageable. The vast majority of the book was written from Jades perspective, but occasionally the perspective would switch to another character; this switch often seemed sudden and awkward. While the overall storyline seemed predictable, almost every chapter offered a twist, bring the store to life. There are many flashbacks scattered throughout the main timeline providing insight into the characters and a sense of suspense as the concluding scene materializes. The ending was the only part lacking in substance, partly because it seemed rushed, and partly because themes were introduced that were absent in the rest of the book. It seemed like Jade’s experience was too abrupt and would have been better facilitated if a different character developed from a similar experience earlier in the book.