Wild in the Hollow: On Chasing Desire and Finding the Broken Way Home

Amber Haines is a woman haunted by God. Like Eve in the Garden, she craved the fruit that she thought would lead her to freedom. But the whispers of temptation led her instead down a path of isolation, dissatisfaction, and life-altering choices. In her most broken moment, Amber met God waiting for her in the fallout, freely offering her grace and life.

This is a story of the God who makes himself known in broken places.

"Wild in the Hollow captivated me from the first page. Amber's brave story invites us to explore our own broken places as she beckons us to wholeness and healing."--Rebekah Lyons, author of Freefall to Fly and co-founder of Q Ideas

"This book made me feel homesick and at home all at the same time. Only Amber could so beautifully and rightly write into the parts of our human experience that usually defy words."--Sarah Bessey, author of Jesus Feminist and Out of Sorts

"Amber Haines is a once-in-a-generation voice. She moves us back to the place we all long to be--deeply intimate with and known by God. This book is a true gift, and I have more hope because of it."--Nish Weiseth, author of Speak: How Your Story Can Change the World

"How can a woman with a story so different from my own be telling my story too? Amber Haines has found a way, and I am deeply grateful for her artistry, her honesty, and her courage. This captivating book has stunned me speechless."--Emily P. Freeman, author of Simply Tuesday and A Million Little Ways


I always knew there was more than what my eyes could see. Maybe that's why it's easy for me to imagine Eden. I have my own version, the place where I clearly remember my early childhood experience as beautiful, wild, and protected.

In prose that is at once lyrical and utterly honest, a brave new voice takes you on a windswept journey down the path of brokenness to healing, satisfaction, and true intimacy with God. Amber Haines calls us to dispense with the pretty bows we use to dress up our stories and instead trust God to take our untidy, unfinished lives and make them free, authentic, and whole.

If you struggle with doubt or hold secrets, if you have ever felt marginalized or like you are missing something, you will find in Amber a sister and a voice inviting you back home, to a place of acceptance, fulfillment, and identity--and into the heart of God.


Amber C. Haines is a soulful writer and a blogger at TheRunaMuck.com. She is curator, with her husband, Seth, of Mother Letters and is a contributor with many acclaimed writers and bloggers at DaySpring's (in)courage. She lives in Arkansas, has four wild sons, and finds community among the broken.

Endorsements

"Wild in the Hollow captivated me from the first page. Amber's brave story invites us to explore our own broken places as she beckons us to wholeness and healing. This honesty inspires freedom in the church."

Rebekah Lyons, author of Freefall to Fly and co-founder of Q Ideas

"I want people to read this anointed book for dozens of reasons: Amber's voice, her writing, is incomparable to anything you've read before. But even beyond that gift, she writes about desire, our longing for home, with a deeply orthodox and yet mystical and sensual soul. This book made me feel homesick and at home all at the same time. Only Amber could so beautifully and rightly write into the parts of our human experience that usually defy words. I loved Wild in the Hollow."

Sarah Bessey, author of Jesus Feminist and Out of Sorts

"How can a woman with a story so different from my own be telling my story too? Amber Haines has found a way, and I am deeply grateful for her artistry, her honesty, and her courage. Her story splays out like a pathway, her voice leading us forward like a mother, a prophet, and a child, each word a stone marking the way to the kingdom of God. This captivating book has stunned me speechless."

Emily P. Freeman, author of Simply Tuesday and A Million Little Ways

"Amber Haines is a once-in-a-generation voice, and her lyrical, poetic writing is truly high art. Through her own story in Wild in the Hollow, she moves us back to the place we all long to be--deeply intimate with and known by God. It's a journey that doesn't overlook brokenness but rather illuminates a God who is ever-present in the midst. This book is a true gift, and I have more hope because of it."

Nish Weiseth, author of Speak: How Your Story Can Change the World