Romance stories are not typically my cup of tea. When I first started reading fiction a lot, they were, but I no longer go out of my way any more to read a romance. Well.....I'm glad I decided to make an exception for Stand-in Groom! This is a romance done right!
Anne's career choice alone really makes this book stand out. I had a brief desire at one point in my life to be a wedding planner, but now that I actually know what's involved, plus reading how Anne practically runs herself ragged day after day.....let's just say that I'll leave that job to the professionals. I loved how she really cared for each one of the brides that she worked with, so much so that she would drop everything at a moment's notice to help one of them through a crisis.
And then, there's George.... My, my, my! He set my heart to flutterin' from the moment he first met Anne. Initially, his part in the story was a little confusing, especially trying to distinguish between the role he was trying to play and the person he really was, but things quickly became easy to follow. Oh, and did I mention that he's British? And such a perfect gentleman? Wow!
Parts of the story were slightly predictable, but I was genuinely surprised a couple times along the way. I also appreciated how the romance progressed slowly throughout the book and not just in one big lump; it just made the story that much more believable.
All that's left to say is that I will definitely be reading more from Kaye Dacus! This was an impressive debut novel, and I have no doubt that the rest of this series will be just as exceptional! Bravo! ]]>
bookshelves: currently-reading
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The Swiss Courier was only just released a few weeks ago, and there are already a ton of great reviews out all over the web. Based on all the reviews I've seen, I had really high expectations of it, and I was really anxious to read my first book by Tricia Goyer. Even though it was a really great story, there were just too many things that kept bugging me throughout the whole story, and I just can't help but give my honest opinion.
First of all, the title alone is somewhat misleading. I look at the cover and see a woman along with the book's title, The Swiss Courier. So, I expect that she will be the main character in the book. Well, she wasn't. During the first half to two-thirds of the book, she appears about every 3rd chapter at best. While the rest of the story was good, there's so much other activity going on, and her character almost gets lost in the shuffle. Because of this, I think that's why I didn't connect with her or any of the other characters throughout the story.
Another thing that disappointed me was a portion of Joseph Engel's story. I really enjoyed the beginning of it when I was learning about him, and what he's on the brink of discovering. But then, it just stops abruptly once he's in hiding. It was like I got to meet him for 10 minutes, and then he was gone.
Lastly, I think it would've been a huge help if there had been some sort of glossary enclosed in the book. I don't know the slightest bit of German, not to mention that my knowledge of WWII in general is limited, and can't tell you how many times I was confused along the way. In addition to this, I think it would've helped tremendously to have a "fact or fiction" segment at the end of the story just to establish what was real and what wasn't.
You'd think from all those criticisms that I didn't like the book one bit, but I really did. It is quite evident that there was tons of research that was poured into this book, even down to the plane ride at the end. There were even a few twists and turns that caught me by surprise...so much so that I was practically holding my breath hoping that things would end the right way! Overall, I would have to give it 3 stars--a middle-of-the-road rating because even though it was a good story, there were a lot of things that could've made it better. ]]>
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Christy
read and liked
Erin's
review of White Picket Fences: A Novel:
"It takes her a good 50 pages to set the plot up, so it's a little slow at the start, but after I got through the beginning, I read the whole book in one setting. Sue uses a similar plot technique as in Shape of Mercy, with the historical context. It ...more "
"It takes her a good 50 pages to set the plot up, so it's a little slow at the start, but after I got through the beginning, I read the whole book in one setting. Sue uses a similar plot technique as in Shape of Mercy, with the historical context. It ...more "