Not Guilty of Love [Paperback]

Pat Simmons (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 1, 2009

One man, one woman, one God, and one big problem.

Malcolm Jamieson wasn't the man who got away, but the man God instructed Hallison Dinkins to set free. Instead of their explosive love affair leading them to the wedding altar, God diverted Hallison to the prayer altar during her first visit back to church in years.

Malcolm was convinced that his woman had loss her mind to break off their engagement. Once Malcolm concedes that their relationship can't be savaged, he issues Hallison his own edict, "If we're meant to be with each other, we'll find our way back. If not, that means that there's a love stronger than what we had."

His words begin to haunt Hallison until she begins to regret their break up, and that's where their story begins. Someone has to retreat, and God never loses a battle.

Product Details

• Paperback: 304 pages
• Publisher: Urban Trade Paper (September 1, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1601629311
• ISBN-13: 978-1601629319
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.5 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (13 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #444,838 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Pat Simmons is a self-proclaimed genealogy sleuth. She is passionate about digging up the dirt on her ancestors, then casting them in starring roles in her novels. She envisions some unsuspecting reader will connect names, places and family tales, then begrudgingly, admit to sharing Pat's heritage. She has been a genealogy enthusiast since her great-grandmother died at the young age of ninety-seven years old.

She describes the gift of the Holy Ghost as an amazing, unforgettable, life-alternating experience.
Pat has a B.S. in mass communications from Emerson College in Boston, MA. She has worked in various media positions in radio, television, and print for more than twenty years. Currently, she oversees the media publicity for the annual RT Booklovers Conventions.
She is the award-winning author of Talk to Me, ranked Top #14 books in 2008 that Changed Lives; the Katherine D. Jones Award recipient for Grace and Humility from the Romance Slam Jam committee in 2008; and Still Guilty was voted the Best Inspirational Romance for 2010. Pat is best known for her Guilty series: Guilty of Love, Not Guilty of Love, and Still Guilty. Crowning Glory is her 2011 release.
Pat has converted her sofa-strapped, sports fanatical husband to an amateur travel agent, untrained bodyguard, and GPS-guided chauffeur. They have a son and daughter.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars "My Sheep Know My Voice", September 7, 2009

By 

L. Bishop - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Not Guilty of Love (Paperback)

Not Guilty of Love is a very engaging and interesting read. It is actually a Love story - God's Love. It is written, "My Sheep Know My Voice." The story's main characters are Hallison (Hali) and Malcom. The plot begins with Hali being pulled by God to return to Him. In returning she is asked by Him to choose - Him or Malcom, the love of her life. She chooses God and ends her relationship with Malcom; a man who loves her, can provide for her and is handsome, financially stable and faithful. The only problem is Malcom is not saved - "Be ye equally yoked." This story is one where as a woman you are screaming on the inside "Is she crazy?", she needs a second opinion here or the girl needs to seriously clean out her ears (chuckle) at the same time as a Christian you know God's will is best and that she is doing the right thing, yet you are pondering whether of not you would have ended the relationship. Malcom doesn't give up easily - but soon offers his own ultimatum to Hali - me or God? He warns her that he is successful, handsome and basically can have any woman he chooses. Feeling defeated he does just that and chooses another woman - enters, Lisa. She is "hot," business like, and piques his curiosity. She "appears" to be the one that he could see himself with and be happy. Fast forward, enters Trey - a handsome officer who is saved, and a man after God's heart who is attracted to Hali and she sees him as God's blessing to her. Especially since she was obedient and surely God wouldn't have asked her to give up her first love and leave her hanging - right????

But wait a minute, God's thoughts are higher than ours and boy does He have a plan for these lives. The author Pat Simmons was truly directed by God to write this story, because only He could have orchestrated this story with the many twists and turns - peppered with scriptures and with such an explosive and dynamic ending. This story will have you questioning your own behavior and whether or not you would truly "listen" to God and be obedient. Whether or not you would go along with God's plan or abandon what your heart is saying and "listen" to your head or what we deem "common sense." This story has it all, God's love, drama and more drama, sadness, a crazy grandma - affectionately known as Grandma BB, laughter, joy and God's school of hard knocks! You will not be able to put the book down out of plain ole curiosity and the "having to know" how this is going to end! It is truly an annointed story and well worth the read! Remember, it's a love story - God's love!
Enjoy.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars You Cannot Run From God, September 4, 2009

By 

Donnica Carter "AKA DCSquared" (Marietta, GA United States) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Not Guilty of Love (Paperback)

In NOT GUILTY OF LOVE by Pat Simmons, Hallison Dinkins and Malcolm Jamieson are head over heels in love and engaged to be married. That is, until God takes a hold of Hallison's heart and makes her choose Him or Malcolm. Hallison breaks off their engagement and focuses on her renewed relationship with Christ. Malcolm is not happy about it. He wants absolutely nothing to do with God. But, he and Hallison were so intertwined in each other's lives that it is hard to just walk away. Hallison has become best friends with Malcolm's sister-in-law, Cheney. Cheney and Park VI, Malcolm's brother, are shocked at the broken engagement, but support Hallison with her decision to love the Lord. This causes MAJOR problems in the Jamieson family.

Malcolm decides to move on to someone new when he meets a potential client, Lisa. Lisa is very sultry and seduces Malcolm from the beginning. Everyone sees that she is not the one for him, but what can he do when Hallison has moved on as well? Hallison meets Trey, a handsome officer that is as passionate about Christ as she is. Will God bring Hallison and Malcom back together? Or have they found their destiny in other people? Will Malcolm surrender his life to Christ?

Every character has their own interesting storyline. Simmons developed the characters so that I was drawn into their stories. I could feel every emotion. I laughed, cried, and wondered with each of them. It kept me glued to the pages. This was my first time reading Simmon's work, but I look forward to others.

Donnica Copeland
APOOO BookClub
Sista Talk Book Club

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Impressive, September 10, 2009

By 

EKG Literary Magazine "The pulse of the liter... (www.ekgliterarymag.com) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Not Guilty of Love (Paperback)

Hallison Dinkins is definitely a woman of God. She prays for a mate to be a man of God, but does not receive that in Malcolm Jamieson. "Not Guilty of Love" is a book that portrays the true meaning of "waiting on God." Both Hali, as she is called throughout the book, and Malcolm, have several aspects of their lives in common including their professional careers and genealogy. The author provides a profound history of African culture dating back as far as the 1700s to show the true meaning of family. I was very impressed with the history she provided.

A walk with God is all that Hali yearns for in Malcolm and when he chooses not to deliver, both go their separate ways. I was pleased with how the author threw monkey wrenches in each individual's lives to give the reader insight that no one is perfect. Humor is thrown into the story when Grandma BB steps onto the scene, which is Hali's best friend's Cheney's surrogate grandmother, and described as a "gangster in heels". But even gun-toting grandmas have their own skeletons in the closet.
Everyone in the book has issues, but most are willing to give it to God like Malcolm's God fearing brother Parke VI and his wife Cheney, who encounter their own issues. Malcolm faces the ultimate battle as he fights for Hali, but if he had just "listened", he would not have had to go through such turmoil.

The author provides great lessons for someone going through any aspect of their life in terms of health, relationships, bearing children and family values. She truly deserves an encore for this story as she distinctively uses faith as her theme for the book. I look forward to the continuation she has in store!