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writerbeverly's review against another edition
4.0
This features a minister, Elsa, her former fiancé, now a priest, and her sister, Tamsin, abandoned wife of a much-wanted embezzler. Elsa is a character to root for, who suffers from a crisis of faith following the brutal murder of a teenager in her Seattle community. Tamsin, a quilter, has to literally piece something of a life together after her husband skips the US, having pulled a Ponzi scheme and getting caught, leaving her with frozen bank accounts and a house she's barred from entering.
Joaquin, the priest, still has mixed feelings towards Elsa, his best friend, now that she is on sabbatical in their hometown of Pueblo, Colorado. But she has another love interest, Deacon, someone who is helping with the community garden they are building. And there are cute kids and sweet dogs and lots of food cooking. It was a fun read and ends in a HFN.
Joaquin, the priest, still has mixed feelings towards Elsa, his best friend, now that she is on sabbatical in their hometown of Pueblo, Colorado. But she has another love interest, Deacon, someone who is helping with the community garden they are building. And there are cute kids and sweet dogs and lots of food cooking. It was a fun read and ends in a HFN.
b_evans's review against another edition
3.0
I liked it but as not as much as the other books I read by her. I read it fairly quickly however because it definitely kept my interest. I had moments when I wasn't sure I liked all the characters. There were moments I knew I didn't like some of the characters but overall I enjoyed the book.
winemakerssister's review against another edition
3.0
I really like Barbara O'Neal's books but this one was more religious/spiritual than I'm comfortable with.
lauragessert's review against another edition
4.0
Just reading this author’s books makes me feel at peace .
Her characters are wonderful . Loved the fact a Unity minister played a central role as this is the church I grew up in .
Dog lovers , community gardeners, cooking hobbyists , quilters and spiritually minded folk will all love this writer’s book .
Her characters are wonderful . Loved the fact a Unity minister played a central role as this is the church I grew up in .
Dog lovers , community gardeners, cooking hobbyists , quilters and spiritually minded folk will all love this writer’s book .
keen23's review against another edition
4.0
Another great book by one of my favorite authors. Barbara O'Neal writes about food and heartbreak like nobody else.
rebelkiss's review against another edition
5.0
I love Barbara's writing. At first I thought this book might be a bit too religious for me. But I'm seriously questioning my life right now so it hit home. It was what I needed. I was crying in parts. Sure, the ending isn't anything new, but it was marvelous just the same.
jackiehorne's review against another edition
4.0
As I'm not a religious or even a spiritual person, the spirit-based challenges faced by two of the main characters were not ones that moved me deeply. O'Neal does her usual excellent job, though, of crafting flawed, intriguing characters and getting readers deeply inside their thoughts and feelings. I admire her craft in this book, even while I find myself LIKING her other works far more.
cathiedalziel's review against another edition
3.0
Ok tale of lives falling apart and the need to keep on moving forward.
Note to anyone interested in reading this: this is a Christian Fiction novel and at times is quite heavy on the Catholic church rites and practices (just so you know). It is also very contemporary, so there is swearing, lusty wants (albeit tamed down), violence and other aspects you don't normally find in a lot of Christian Fiction novels.
(And if you love recipes, it's got some good ones in the back.) I think the author was trying to feed the reader's soul as well as their stomachs, lol.
There was a lot of interest points in this novel, but I just found most of it bland, even though there were some very heavy topics. (It was probably the romance part, felt to Harlequinny to me).
Note to anyone interested in reading this: this is a Christian Fiction novel and at times is quite heavy on the Catholic church rites and practices (just so you know). It is also very contemporary, so there is swearing, lusty wants (albeit tamed down), violence and other aspects you don't normally find in a lot of Christian Fiction novels.
(And if you love recipes, it's got some good ones in the back.) I think the author was trying to feed the reader's soul as well as their stomachs, lol.
There was a lot of interest points in this novel, but I just found most of it bland, even though there were some very heavy topics. (It was probably the romance part, felt to Harlequinny to me).
pattydsf's review against another edition
4.0
I read so many different kinds of books that I often only read one or two by authors that I like. There are too many books and not enough time. However, I make a concerted effort to keep track of Barbara O'Neal and what she writes.
Her novels resonate with me because the women characters are strong, but dealing with tough issues; faith in God is usually part of the story; love andfood are always involved and there are happy endings. I read partly to meet new people, i.e. characters and I always enjoy the people in O'Neal's stories.
This novel gave me all I want from Barbara O'Neal. I found Elsa, Tamsin, Father Jack and Deacon to be delightful - I would have dinner with any of them. Some of the conflict seems far-fetched, would you know if your husband was stealing - I hope I would. However, for me some of the conflicts of faith that are part of the story rang true.
I recommend this to readers who want to meet interesting people in what they read, to folks who like reading about food and community, and to anyone who would like to be lost in a book knowing all will work out.
Her novels resonate with me because the women characters are strong, but dealing with tough issues; faith in God is usually part of the story; love andfood are always involved and there are happy endings. I read partly to meet new people, i.e. characters and I always enjoy the people in O'Neal's stories.
This novel gave me all I want from Barbara O'Neal. I found Elsa, Tamsin, Father Jack and Deacon to be delightful - I would have dinner with any of them. Some of the conflict seems far-fetched, would you know if your husband was stealing - I hope I would. However, for me some of the conflicts of faith that are part of the story rang true.
I recommend this to readers who want to meet interesting people in what they read, to folks who like reading about food and community, and to anyone who would like to be lost in a book knowing all will work out.