Customer Reviews

Blue Heart Blessed

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Susan Meisnner is quickly becoming one of my favorite authors. Before this book, I'd read one of her Rachel Flynn novels, which I thoroughly enjoyed. But that didn't mean I'd enjoy a straight romance. Boy, am I glad I picked this one up.

Blue Heart Blessed is filled with characters you can love, and they have plenty of quirks to be interesting. Daisy was jilted days before her wedding and ends up opening a second-hand bridal dress boutique. She knows she's not over her ex since she can't sell her dress. Her mother and aunt live in the same building with her and help her run the shop. Father Laurent provides sage advice and blesses the little blue hearts sewn into each dress.

One of the things I loved about this book was that the romance was subtle. I thought it was going to develop. Then I hoped it would develop. But the plot never relied on romance to keep going. And Daisy talks to herself through her journal. The advice she gives herself is priceless.

I enjoyed this book and can't wait to read Susan's next, The Shape of Mercy.

This is my first Susan Meissner read, and based on this book I will be reading many others. Such a gentle, cozy but important read.

Meissner's characters are unique and their uniqueness fuels this wonderful tale. Daisy, jilted by a her fiancé, opens a used wedding gown shop....inside each one she sews a little blue heart blessed by the Episcopal priest who rents one of her apartments. The wedding gowns each have a sentimental history which double blesses them. Besides the priest, a myriad of quirky renters keep the story flowing with laughter and curiosity. I believe the pages must have turned themselves as I was so entrenched in the mesmerizing action that I don't recall my fingers touching them.

The last three chapters enraptured me. Enlightened me. Renewed my belief that God is the only One in the world that can truly love and accept us as we are. With His Love we can handle all the heartbreaks and celebrate the joyous events. In His Love we can know of our importance, our worth, our status in His eyes. I wept through the epilogue and you have to write well to have me crying.

Beautiful, lovely read and I promptly ordered a few more of this gifted author's offerings upon finishing this book.

Thank-you Cindy for the recommendation and thank-you Susan Meissner for not letting Cindy's encouragement fall flat.

Highly recommend!!

This is my first Susan Meissner book, and I loved the author's style of writing, with just the right touch of humor and compassion to counterbalance the serious issues the characters are going though, and a non-preachy approach to delivering spiritual messages. I absolutely loved the bridal shop/apartment building setting, and everything the blue hearts symbolized. This story is full of hope, and what resonated with me is that the seemingly bad and negative occurances in our lives might be God's way of clearing the path for the better things He has planned for us to come through.

I'm so, so impressed. I'm very picky with what I read, and I had never heard of this author before, so I was very hesitant but I bought the book anyway on a sense of hope. I was sucked in from the very beginning by the dress that was swishing to the name of Daisy. I honestly felt like Dory, "This is going to be good!" Susan Meissner has such an impeccable style with lovable charm and sharp wit that I couldn't put the book down. Let it be known that I read for romance. And the romance didn't really start till halfway through the book. But I didn't even care! The characters are so real and engaging, and the story had me in tears at the end, and I'm no crier. What a wonderful story about true love this author has shared with us. I hope she writes more romances in the future, for she's established a firm founded fan in me.

Blue Heart Blessed is a stand-alone love story about a young woman whose heart was broken a year in the past. Daisy Murien was happily preparing for what she thought would be a wonderful wedding, when her fiance Daniel floored her with the news that he didn't love her enough to get married. It was just ten days before the wedding. Her devastation was not only over the loss of Daniel, but also the pain of total surprise: she had never suspected that he was anything but thrilled to be marrying her.

In a daze, Daisy tries to overcome her sadness and disillusionment. She decides to open a boutique selling used wedding gowns. On one of the racks hangs her own wedding dress; she can't bring herself to sell it. Her heart is still bleeding. The apartment complex where she lives houses some good friends who offer their emotional support, especially the retired Episcopal priest who blesses each "blue heart" that will tag a wedding gown.

I really had mixed feelings about this book. The author definitely has a talent for descriptive writing. It's easy to picture each scene and character. The dialog is engaging and believable. There are two reasons I gave the book only three stars. First, it is seriously short on action. I felt like most of the book I was just waiting for something interesting to happen. The lion's share of the book is taken up with endless introspection by Daisy. She writes her most mundane thoughts in a journal in "Dear Abby" style, then she writes the responses to herself. Secondly, the mood of the story remains gloomy throughout. This is not a book to cheer you up. Nevertheless, I hung in there until I reached the predictable supposedly happy ending. For me, the ending did not make up for the underlying sadness of this character's personality.

Maybe I'm too hard to please, but I would have preferred a story with more action, conflict, and basic plot. It was rather like reading the long diary of a person who I couldn't care much about.

This book was dedicated "For Stephanie because she loves a love story". The book does not disappoint. Meissner writes this one with an unusual style that is both entertaining and enthralling. I love that the main character writes "letters" to herself, "The Voice of Reason", and then answers those letters with wit and wisdom. A very entertaining read an a wonderful love story that is loaded with characters that you will admire and love. Try it, you will not be disappointed.

The pleasure of reading one of Susan Meissner's books is like eating bread and butter - a simple joy, but basic and satisfying.

Blue Heart Blessed introduces us to Daisy Murien who, after being jilted at the altar, opens a wedding boutique that specializes in secondhand wedding dresses - starting with her own. And yet, though the sight of it brings her heartache, she can't quite let go of her own gown - not even when she has the perfect buyer for it. While trying to make sense of this, a dear friend - the Episcopal priest who blesses the blue satin hearts Daisy weaves into the lining of each dress - becomes ill. When his recently divorced son tries to take him away, Daisy's wounded heart at last throbs back to life. And finally she understands that the reason she cannot let go of her own wedding dress is because she hasn't quite given up on love.

Meissner's prose is (as usual) clean and clear. I found her protagonist agreeable company, easy-to-relate-to despite - or perhaps because of - her flaws. I liked Meissner's device of using her protagonist's advice-wielding alter-ego, Harriet, to reveal the inner workings of her heart. I liked the symbolism of the blue heart that Daisy sews into each second-hand wedding dress. And finally, I liked the reason Daisy is finally able to sell her own gown.

In Blue Heart Blessed, Meissner offers a romance delivered in her trademark style: without frills, but a sweet story, well-told.

Daisy Murien's fiancé broke up with her ten days before their wedding date. Trying to move on, she opens up a used wedding dress shop, Something Blue, in the hotel-turned-apartment complex she manages. One of the tenants, a retired Episcopal priest who is like a father to Daisy, blesses tiny blue satin hearts, one of which is sewn into every dress in Something Blue.

After Father Laurent has a heart attack, his recently-divorced son Ramsey wants his dad to move into a care facility, but both Daisy and Father Laurent strongly oppose that plan. Daisy takes matters into her own hands.

I loved the character of Daisy, always getting herself into cringe-worthy awkward moments by too-hastily speaking and acting, but with the best of intentions. I also enjoyed the unique setting of the combined wedding dress shop and apartment complex and the warm interactions between the diverse residents there. Daisy's habit of writing in her journal and answering herself back is endearing and hilarious. She finds herself learning a lot about what love really is.

I wouldn't mind reading this book again, and that's something I don't say about a lot of Christian romances. Susan Meissner's style is charming and fun to read.

The book is light reading but it is a sweet story for those times when deep thought is not your goal. It is a romance that would be espically apprciated by those still young and looking for love.

Great story. I am getting married in a year and it just shows that there are blessings in every marriage and all things happen the way the God has intended them to. Even if it is not what we had originally planned and hoped for.