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4.17 AVERAGE
4.17 AVERAGE
I LOVE Jenny B. Jones. She's a safe author, never disappoints me. I always feel related to her writings, and that happened here again. But I was really frustrated more than once in this book, and that never happened before.
When you've been let down by people more than once, you start depending on yourself, you'd be your own hero, your only hope. We trust people who could easily let us down, and forget that the only one who we should really trust is GOD. Because by trusting him, HE will guide us, and give us some of his light, and show us the way, the right way. Sometimes we forget our way to GOD, but the good thing is HE never forgets us.
Rating 2.5
When you've been let down by people more than once, you start depending on yourself, you'd be your own hero, your only hope. We trust people who could easily let us down, and forget that the only one who we should really trust is GOD. Because by trusting him, HE will guide us, and give us some of his light, and show us the way, the right way. Sometimes we forget our way to GOD, but the good thing is HE never forgets us.
Rating 2.5
Another amazing book by Jenny B. Jones. Her books never fail to speak to me and the i love her sense of humor
There are some books you might remember for a week, a month, or even a year or two.
However, THIS, is a book you will remember for a lifetime. No wonder it was chosen as a Women of Faith fiction pick of 2009! If you’ve read the other books Jenny has written, you know it’s going to be full of hilarious situations and dialogue. Yet Jenny still manages to maintain the mood when the scene is serious.
Yes, it’s a romance, but it’s also a bit more, it’s funny, endearing, sincere, and above all, fear-conquering. This is one I’ll be keeping on the shelf and reading over and over again
However, THIS, is a book you will remember for a lifetime. No wonder it was chosen as a Women of Faith fiction pick of 2009! If you’ve read the other books Jenny has written, you know it’s going to be full of hilarious situations and dialogue. Yet Jenny still manages to maintain the mood when the scene is serious.
Yes, it’s a romance, but it’s also a bit more, it’s funny, endearing, sincere, and above all, fear-conquering. This is one I’ll be keeping on the shelf and reading over and over again
The characters are beautiful and well-developed. They were also so relatable and so real! The development that the characters went through in this novel was just remarkable. Love, love, love this book. So sweet.
I really wish I could give this 4.5 stars. It was really good, but I love Jenny B. Jones' other books more. Although, the ten year-old has a lot more sass than I ever will.
I could *not* put this book down. It was filled with every I want in a novel: a sassy and funny heroine, a hot and studly hero, and conflicts and issues that cut straight to my core.
Maggie Montgomery is a woman who wants to make a difference. She works as an executive for a travel show and travels to exotic locations on a regular basis. But while her show is showcasing the beauty of the places, she is finding the real stories: of children who are scavenging for food, hungry and broken. Of child trafficking and drugs. She has footage for her own documentary but nobody wants to see the bad parts of these locales.
An emergency brings her back to her hometown of Ivy, Texas where she was the fearless girl who would do anything on a dare. In Ivy, she is confronted by a father who could never show his love for her, a 10-year-old niece with a bad attitude that she barely knows, and a hunky vet who never fails to get her blood boiling.
Coming back to Ivy is God calling her home. Calling her to live without fear and trepidation. To find out what she really wants out of life. She is stubborn, though, and needs to learn what love really means.
Thoroughly enjoyed this book. It had a romantic story that was a big focus but there was also a big focus on Maggie and her figuring out how to let go of fear. It's Christian fiction, but I wholly recommend it!
Maggie Montgomery is a woman who wants to make a difference. She works as an executive for a travel show and travels to exotic locations on a regular basis. But while her show is showcasing the beauty of the places, she is finding the real stories: of children who are scavenging for food, hungry and broken. Of child trafficking and drugs. She has footage for her own documentary but nobody wants to see the bad parts of these locales.
An emergency brings her back to her hometown of Ivy, Texas where she was the fearless girl who would do anything on a dare. In Ivy, she is confronted by a father who could never show his love for her, a 10-year-old niece with a bad attitude that she barely knows, and a hunky vet who never fails to get her blood boiling.
Coming back to Ivy is God calling her home. Calling her to live without fear and trepidation. To find out what she really wants out of life. She is stubborn, though, and needs to learn what love really means.
Thoroughly enjoyed this book. It had a romantic story that was a big focus but there was also a big focus on Maggie and her figuring out how to let go of fear. It's Christian fiction, but I wholly recommend it!
"Just between You and Me" is what fiction of faith is supposed to be--moving, meaningful, real, and funny.
Jenny B. Jones weaves a poignant tale full of delectable dialogue, and believable situations.
The Good:
Clichés are kept to a minimum One of the main reasons I do not read Christian fiction is because they feel predictable and un-relatiable. Even though this book has a "big city heroine returns to small town" plot, there's a believable reason for the return. Maggie's family truly does face a crisis, and it is a crisis long in the making. Not some sudden just-so-happens-to-be-a-well-timed event that brings her home for a weekend. Just a problem that has been growing and growing and slowly brings her home and keeps her there. The back story being Maggie home prevents the plot from feeling terribly like a cliché
Secondary Characters The secondary characters in this novel are expertly drawn. Particularly, Riley, Maggie's neglected ten-year-old niece. As I was reading I couldn't help but hear her annoyed little sighs, see her hardened little face, and hear her angry words. And, as in the real world, there was no pat solution given to "fix" Riley. But Jones does write about there always being hope
Realistic Conflict Maggie has some hard choices to make with regard to her family and her agonizing over them is shown pretty realistically. Likewise, Maggie having to face who she was in high school and how hurtful she was to a lot of people makes for painfully real and awkward reading. Which is uncomfortable to read of course, but it gives the story and the character of Maggie some nice depth.
Character Growth Maggie really does grow personally and spiritually throughout the book
The bad:
Downside to romantic novels- I do not understand the romantic cliché that two people who hate each other also have ‘the hots’ for one another. Within the novel Conner and Maggie never go more than an hour without screaming at each other, so I have to ask, how did they ever reach the point of loving one another?
Maggie as a Scapegoat- Maggie's sister is obviously mentally ill, her family sounds pretty dysfunctional, and yet there seems to be a running thread of blaming Maggie for leaving town, getting an education, and trying to build a life. I under that Maggie wasn't as compassionate toward her family as she could/should have been but the complete lack of understanding for all that Maggie herself had gone through frustrated me quite a bit.
The One Cliché Maggie is an educated woman with a career, ergo she can't cook. What’s more she is one of those women who lives off of eating cake for dinner, doughnuts for breakfast and yet still is seen as slim and, well a babe. It does not work that way people! I'm so tired of this ridiculous cliché that I could scream.
Jenny B. Jones weaves a poignant tale full of delectable dialogue, and believable situations.
The Good:
Clichés are kept to a minimum One of the main reasons I do not read Christian fiction is because they feel predictable and un-relatiable. Even though this book has a "big city heroine returns to small town" plot, there's a believable reason for the return. Maggie's family truly does face a crisis, and it is a crisis long in the making. Not some sudden just-so-happens-to-be-a-well-timed event that brings her home for a weekend. Just a problem that has been growing and growing and slowly brings her home and keeps her there. The back story being Maggie home prevents the plot from feeling terribly like a cliché
Secondary Characters The secondary characters in this novel are expertly drawn. Particularly, Riley, Maggie's neglected ten-year-old niece. As I was reading I couldn't help but hear her annoyed little sighs, see her hardened little face, and hear her angry words. And, as in the real world, there was no pat solution given to "fix" Riley. But Jones does write about there always being hope
Realistic Conflict Maggie has some hard choices to make with regard to her family and her agonizing over them is shown pretty realistically. Likewise, Maggie having to face who she was in high school and how hurtful she was to a lot of people makes for painfully real and awkward reading. Which is uncomfortable to read of course, but it gives the story and the character of Maggie some nice depth.
Character Growth Maggie really does grow personally and spiritually throughout the book
The bad:
Downside to romantic novels- I do not understand the romantic cliché that two people who hate each other also have ‘the hots’ for one another. Within the novel Conner and Maggie never go more than an hour without screaming at each other, so I have to ask, how did they ever reach the point of loving one another?
Maggie as a Scapegoat- Maggie's sister is obviously mentally ill, her family sounds pretty dysfunctional, and yet there seems to be a running thread of blaming Maggie for leaving town, getting an education, and trying to build a life. I under that Maggie wasn't as compassionate toward her family as she could/should have been but the complete lack of understanding for all that Maggie herself had gone through frustrated me quite a bit.
The One Cliché Maggie is an educated woman with a career, ergo she can't cook. What’s more she is one of those women who lives off of eating cake for dinner, doughnuts for breakfast and yet still is seen as slim and, well a babe. It does not work that way people! I'm so tired of this ridiculous cliché that I could scream.
Just Between You and Me by Jenny B. Jones is a powerful novel about living without fear and learning to trust God. Maggie Montgomery has made a career of running away. As a cinematographer she also views the world at a safe remove without having to actually interact with it. Twelve years after she left her hometown of Ivy, Texas, her father calls demanding she return to help out with her niece, Riley. Maggie has spent years avoiding returning to Ivy and all that it holds for her: her father's cold shoulder, her sister's bitter rage, and her mother's death that haunts them all. She goes home for Riley's sake, just for a few days, but her departure keeps getting delayed as God works on her heart through Riley's brokenness and handsome vet Connor's romantic attention. Whenever I see "Women of Faith Fiction" on the front cover of a novel, I know that I'm in for a treat, but Jones' stands out even in that elite group. Maggie and Connor have some of the best repartee I've ever read. They zing each other, even as they can't seem to stay apart. While the plot may be familiar: career girl returns home to face a family crisis and find romance, Jones' dialogue and appealing characters make this a real page-turner. Every sentence is carefully crafted: Because I've seen the world. But sometimes I wonder...has it ever seen me? Beautifully written with humor, romance, and faith; this book has it all.
Loved it! Jenny B. Jones has been officially added to my favorite authors list!
This is Jenny B. Jones’s only adult novel, and I finally asked my library to order it just so I could read it (and many others could enjoy it, too!). It was published in 2009, and I still remember my friend Mary’s rave review about it. And how could I not love something Jenny wrote? Everything I said about [b:I'll Be Yours|29339707|I'll Be Yours|Jenny B. Jones|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1456426693s/29339707.jpg|49574366] pretty much applies here: Jenny writes gorgeous romance with real, solid, complex characters with issues other than the romantic plot. Our main character, Maggie, has returned to her hometown to help her dad with her niece, whose mom is nowhere to be found. While on this “sabbatical,” Maggie is faced with her feelings about family, God, her mother’s death, and old acquaintances from high school who know her as someone completely different. Another one I read in just a few hours, cover to cover.