Smitten Book Club: A Review

 

When Heather finds an old book written by a long-ago Smitten resident, she has to share it with her book club. Hints of buried treasure in the book send the ladies on a chase to find the money that could save Molly's business, which is in trouble after her husband's death. What they find is more precious than gold--love.

 

The four novellas are held together by the common search for the treasure, but each novella is a stand-alone story of one woman's journey to love. As a fan of all four authors, I enjoy seeing their individual styles/voices, and the authors' friendship and familiarity with each other's styles makes the characters ring true throughout all four novellas.

 

Since I'm a librarian, I have to say my favorite was Kristin Billerbeck's story since it featured a librarian as the main character. I also enjoyed the final one as the mystery was finally solved.

 

Overall, this is a sweet collection of stories. It's sad to see the Smitten books end as I love the little community readers have gotten to know over the three books.

 

I was given this book in exchange for my review. My thoughts are my own.

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A December Bride

 

 

Usually when you read a marriage of convenience story, it's a historical novel. After all, why would someone have to get married these days? But Denise Hunter does a great job pulling it off.

 

Layla blames Seth "Murphy" for her fiancé running off with her cousin. So, when they're thrown together and Murphy says their engaged to save Layla some embarrassment, it opens the door for a huge job opportunity for Layla....if she can just pretend to be in love for a few weeks.

 

Murphy is a fantastic character. I wish he was the main character in a full-length novel. He's steady and calm, balancing Layla's frantic desire to build her company on her own.

 

Although it was short, the story didn't feel rushed or the characters un-developed. It's the perfect holiday quick read.

 

Fans of Denise Hunter as well as fans of contemporary Christian fiction will enjoy this novella.

 

I was given this book in exchange for my review. My thoughts are my own.

 

 

 

 

 

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Secretly Smitten: A Review

 

 

In a follow-up to Smitten, author friends Colleen Coble, Kristin Billerbeck, Diann Hunt, and Denise Hunter offer another glimpse at the sweet town of Smitten. This time, three sisters are on a mission to solve the mystery of their grandmother's first love, who was thought to be dead many years before. Will they solve the mystery and find love along the way?

 

 

Love Between the Lines: Coble starts the book with Tess, who is determined to find clues about how her grandmother's old beau's dog tags ended up back in Smitten. The search leads her to Ryan's attic. It's a cute start with two people who like each other but think the other couldn't be interested. Cute food incidents too.

 

 

Make Me a Match: Billerbeck's character Zoe is a match-maker who is setting up her love connection business if pesky city manager William will just let her bend a few rules. Billerbeck showcases her talent for chick-lit with her novella, once again reminding fans she's the best at witty dialogue and fun characters.

 

Knit One, Love Two: Hunt shares the girls' mother's story despite her reluctant involvement in solving the dog tag mystery. When Anna expands her quilt store to raising her own sheep, she takes Michael up on his offer to help. This one is as cute as the others. I love that a range of age for romance that Hunt adds to the group.

 

Love Blooms: Hunter solves the mystery with the story of Clare, an independent yet scared landscaper. When new-to-town nomad Ethan starts helping at the nursery, Clare has to face her fears of starting her own business and about falling in love. I loved Clare's independence and Ethan was my favorite male character, which made this my favorite of the four novellas.

 

 

Secretly Smitten is a fun, fast read with sweet romances. Fans of Christian fiction will enjoy a trip back to this quaint town. 

The Trouble with Cowboys: A Review

Annie Wilkerson loves horses, but to make ends meet, she has to write an advice column about love, something she knows nothing about. When town flirt Dylan Taylor needs help with his horse, she barters with him: if he'll help her with her column, she'll return the favor with his horse. As they get to know each other, Annie finds herself falling for him even though she vowed never to love a cowboy after she saw them break her mom's heart.

I have read several books by Denise Hunter and even others in this series and enjoyed them, so I was very surprised when it took me a long time to read this book because I just couldn't get into it and found it pretty boring.

The trouble with this book is that there isn't enough conflict to keep me interested. I understood why Annie didn't want to date Dylan at first, but most of the book was the same thing. Liking him. Thinking he was flirting with someone else. This was repeated a few times with little action in between. Secondly, I wasn't a big Annie fan. I found her annoying, and since I'm a character-driven reader, I found it hard to finish the book.

Fans of Christian fiction may enjoy this one, but I would suggest her other books over this one.

I received this book in exchange for my review. My thoughts are my own.

The Accidental Bride: A Review

When Shay agrees to play the bride in her town's reenactment, she never thought she would end up kissing the pretend groom---Travis, her ex-fiance who left her at the altar when she was eighteen. When a confused minister turns in the wrong marriage certificate, their reenacted marriage vows become real. Determined to win Shay's trust, Travis convinces Shay to let him help her save her dying ranch and to give him five months to win her back. With no other option to support herself and her daughter, Shay agrees. Will five months be enough for Travis to prove his love, or will Shay lose her ranch and her heart again?

Fans of Christian fiction will enjoy this tale of a second chance at first love. The characters are well-developed, their is a spiritual lesson without being preachy, and there are several funny scenes that lighten Shay's string of hard situations.

Even though I didn't find this book to be particularly thought-provoking or deep, it is a nice rainy day read. I recommend it to fans of Christian fiction, especially the ones where a hero rescues a strong woman who finds herself unable to fend for herself.

I was given this book in exchange for my review. My thoughts are my own.

Book Giveaway!

Congrats to Charity U for winning Here Burns my Candle. I just emailed you, so let me know your address so that I can ship the book.

Today, I am giving away an ADVANCED copy of Smitten, written by Colleen Coble, Kristin Billerbeck, Diann Hunt, and Denise Hunter. I got this book from Denise Hunter for the purpose of reviewing and promoting the book. Because the book doesn't come out until December, I want to keep the reviewing and promoting thing going. It's a great book.

To enter to win, leave a comment with your blog link and your email address. I want to make sure I give the book to someone who will review the book and let other people know about it. :)
I can only ship to the US.
I'll pick a winner next Tuesday.

Smitten!

When the mill in the small town of Smitten closes, the townspeople are nervous that they will lose their beloved city. Four friends, Natalie, Julia, Shelby, and Reese, decide to save their town by making Smitten the go-to spot for honeymooners and couples in love. Now, they just need to convince the men in the town that their idea will work. Will they be able to convince the men in their lives to take a chance on love and on Smitten?

For years, I have been reading the blog that Kristin, Colleen, Denise, and Diann have together. Their friendship and love for one another is evident in each post. The four women in Smitten are based on the authors themselves, and I think that’s one reason this book flows smoothly. Many times when you read a book that has two or three novellas that contain the same characters, the characters are different in each book, which is annoying for a reader. Because these authors know each other so well, the characters remain true to themselves throughout all four stories, creating one continuous novel. The characters are as vibrant and as real as the women who created the tale, and their friendship is authentic and comfortable. The element of faith in Jesus is presented as each woman struggles in her spiritual walk, but the book is never preachy, which is a plus in my book.

After reading this, I want to visit Smitten. Fans of these four authors will love this book and feel like they know the authors a little more after reading it.

Check out the authors at their blog: http://www.girlswriteout.blogspot.com/

A Cowboy's Touch by Denise Hunter

When Abigail Jones begins to see the effects of working too hard for her family’s failing magazine, she relents to her mother’s request to take a break and heads to the middle of nowhere Montana to visit her Aunt Lucy. Bored after a few days, Abigail takes a job as a nanny for a young girl named Maddy, whose father is a handsome rancher. Although Abigail feels an attraction to Wade, his past keeps them apart. After coming across a secret from his past, Abigail must decide whether to use that secret to save her family’s magazine, which is closing its doors after this last edition or keep the secret of the man she is coming to love.


This book is a great read. Characters are very important for me as a reader. I’ll read anything if I like the characters, and the characters in this book are well-developed and likeable. I would like to see what happens with Dylan, who is Wade’s best friend and somewhat of a player, and I hope Denise Hunter writes his story next! I recommend this book to Christian fiction fans.

I received this book from Booksneeze for the purpose of reviewing.