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3.0 out of 5 stars
Weddings for Everyone... *Spoiler Alert, September 9, 2010
This review is from: Chesapeake Weddings (Romancing America: Maryland) (Paperback)
Cecelia Dowdy wrote a collection of three short stories in the Christian fiction genre based on the lives of three women in unrelated situations, but whose life path ended up crossing at a later point. Monica was forced to take in her blind nephew when her younger and irresponsible estranged sister decides that she wants to chase her dream of traveling the world with her new fiancé under the premise that she wanted to travel the world. After the death of her father, Emily thinks that her biggest challenge is managing an entire dairy farm all alone, but soon finds that she has to fight for the survival of her livelihood once some secrets are exposed that she was never told. Karen had her entire life turned upside down when her fiancé ran off with the church secretary and a large chunk of embezzled funds, leaving her to wonder if her life with the man she was about to marry was a farce.
The title of the book gave the reader the proper expectation for all of the short stories, so there was little opportunity for shock and surprise. This was the first time that I read a book from the 'Romancing America' series, but it seems that there are a series of books that highlight a different state in the country and focus the setting of the story on that particular region. To whet your appetite, the author speaks at length about all of the various food selections in that area to the point that while reading, I often wanted the pleasure to taste the dishes myself.
Another impressive point of this story was the obvious research that the author conducted to make her characters' areas of expertise believable. In Monica's story, the gentleman that she ended up falling in love with was an agnostic scientist who was able to tutor her blind nephew. In that story, she was able to convey the language of someone who had that background. Emily's life was based on a dairy farm with an eventual CPA beau that had a drinking problem, and she was able to make the reader feel as if they were actually in a farm setting with all of the proper lingo. Karen fell in love with the man who lived next door to her mother who was a plumber and who had a heart for ministry.
I recommend this for the reader who needs something to just sit back and relax with on a lazy day. It is not a difficult read that requires much active thought. But, I definitely recommend that the serious dieter pass this read by, the temptation is entirely too great with all of the wonderful description of fresh seafood from the Chesapeake.
The book was provided by the author for review purposes.
Shica Robinson
APOOO BookClub
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4.0 out of 5 stars
Romance and Christian values without "preachiness", August 9, 2010
This review is from: Chesapeake Weddings (Romancing America: Maryland) (Paperback)
First, many thanks to Ms Dowdy for sending me a copy of Chesapeake Weddings to read and review. I found her stories filled with Christian inspiration and romantic charm.
"Chesapeake Weddings" is a collection of three different novellas. The first, "John's Quest" is Monica's story. Scotty, her blind nephew, arrives on her doorstep in the middle of the night when her sister is unable to take him with her on her honeymoon. Adjusting to life with a blind child is difficult for Monica. He's behind in school and been allowed him to misbehave because of his handicap. John, a college professor who tutors blind children in his spare time, agrees to take Scotty on as a student. The attraction and the conflict are clichéd, but convincing. Monica has been hurt before, and she is a Christian, so dating agnostic John is a problem so instead she helps him find his way into a loving relationship with God. At times, the dialogue read stilted, but overall you can identify with the characters. The story is after all a romance so John and Monica do find a way to each other.
I thought Ms Dowdy's crafting of dialogue and attention to detail in storytelling was much stronger in the second story, and the conflict felt less contrived than in "John's Quest." "Milk Money" is about young Emily who is faced with trying to save the family dairy farm after her father dies and her stepmom goes to live with one of her daughters. Frank, the CPA hired by the stepmom, handles the accounting side of the business. He is, of course, a very handsome gentleman and he takes a "liking" to Emily. Emily has feelings for Frank too only his drinking is a problem. Miss Dowdy does a fine job of weaving their journey to one another. "Milk Money" is definitely a worthwhile read.
The last story is "Bittersweet Memories." Karen Brown's embezzler fiancé has run off with another woman and $50000 of their church's money. Rather than contend with the ugly comments from church staff and members, Karen leaves her job, her friends, and her church to live with her mother in Annapolis to lick her wounds and build a new life. But she finds a blunt plumber named Keith who already knows Karen's story and the conflict and attraction interfer with her plans. Again, Ms Dowdy creates a fun story about healing and love.
I would recommend Chesapeake Weddings to someone who likes shorter stories. I'm really looking forward to more (and longer) romances from Cecelia Dowdy!
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3.0 out of 5 stars
Clean Christian Romance, July 7, 2010
This review is from: Chesapeake Weddings (Romancing America: Maryland) (Paperback)
Cecelia is a good writer, I just had a hard time getting 'into' each novella and to be honest I am not sure why. I think I prefer longer stories that have opportunity to delve deeper. I do love clean, Christian romance and Cecelia provided that. Personally, I had a hard time connecting with her characters and I think that is more me and not Cecelia. The book is worth checking out for quick, easy romances.
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