An NPR commentator's story of an unlikely epiphany and the healing power of faith

After years of sleeping around, working as a waitress, and suffering booze- induced blackouts, Heather King settled into sobriety, marriage, and a financially lucrative but unfulfilling career in a Beverly Hills law firm. As someone who had reached middle age "never believing in much of anything," she found herself in the last place she thought she'd end up: the Catholic church.

Redeemed describes the steps of King's journey--from finding herself holed up on the couch reading Hermits of the World (and then wondering why she and her husband weren't having sex) to dealing with the breast cancer that brought her face-to-face with the Virgin Mary. With the death of her father and the devastation of divorce, she connects with Jesus Christ: "A guy who hung out with lepers, paralytics, the possessed: this is someone I can trust."

This is a profound, fervent, darkly funny tale of an ongoing conversion by a Catholic who, however devout, is about as far from saintlike as can be imagined. Fans of Lauren Winners's Girl Meets God and Anne Lamott's writings will be drawn to King's refreshing sense of humor, mesmerizing voice, and piercing honesty.