Amazing Debut! 'Anything' - Mayberry University 1 - by Kristina Welch

 

About the book:

Two guarded hearts.
He’s breaking down walls and she’s building them higher—
A match made in Heaven, or a blueprint for disaster?

After the fiery downward spiral of senior year, Kit Talbot crash-lands on a quirky college campus where traditions rule and dorm floors act more like family. It’s just weird enough to keep her mind off the wreckage she’s leaving behind.
Enter Levi Whitaker, known as the swooniest guy on campus. Magnetic, confident, and far too much like the ex who sent her life into that PTSD-tainted nosedive. Levi seems to be everywhere, focused on her like she’s the only girl in the world—even indulging her sugar addiction with delivered treats. But Kit’s self-preservation instincts are sharper than ever, and she deflects him like Wonder Woman blocking bullets.

That is, until Levi’s quiet faith and humble apology start to break down Kit’s defenses. He loves Jesus in the dreamiest way, looks like wow, and ... somehow triggers the flashbacks she fights so hard to avoid. Every minute with him is a risk she isn’t sure she should take. Should she protect them both from the chaos of her life or learn a bravery that feels irresponsible?
As Kit fights to keep her life safe and manageable, she leans into her faith, clinging to the Bible verses God whispers to her heart. Clearly, he’s up to something, but the healing she prays for isn’t happening the way she wants.

Why is God silent on the prayer she needs most?

My review:

This was an amazing debut!  I loved all the fun pop culture references and great music referenced.  I had to stop listening to the book so I could look up some of these and found some great new bands to me!  This book was humorous and fun while also having a great spiritual message.  Kit has a hard time trusting for some reason.  Levi can't understand why she seems to be the only girl not interested in him but he knows she's worth pursuing.  Both of them try to listen for the Lord's leading and I loved all of the verses that came to Kit's mind and how she prayed throughout her day.  Her relationship with the Lord was inspiring.  They had a great friend group who were a lot of fun and I'm looking forward to reading about them in future books.  I liked that the story dealt with mental health and trauma but felt like Kit should have realized her options sooner.  The romance was very sweet and wonderful and I loved seeing how both of them grew throughout the story.  I highly recommend this book and can't wait for the next one!

No Place Like Home - Magnolia Bay 2 - by Betsy St. Amant

 

About the book:

The girl he always loved ran away to join...the circus. But will a homecoming give him a second chance at giving her a reason to stay in this unrequited love romance?

Magnolia Bay’s development director, Cade Landry, would do anything for his town—and his family. So when the mayor—who also happens to be his father—decides to retire, he talks Cade into running for his seat. But Cade is already up to his dimpled cheeks in the town’s post-hurricane revitalization fundraiser—Magnolia Days, featuring a flashy Cajun Circus. If Cade can’t put the bay back on the map as a tourist town, he’ll let the whole community down…and worse yet, his father.

Rosalyn Dupree is a famous aerialist with a secret—actually, quite a few of them. Much to Cade’s relief, she agrees to return to Magnolia Bay for the first time in years as a headliner for the Cajun Circus. But neither her charming former school rival Cade nor her parents know she’s broke, in debt, and nursing a knee injury...among other things. She’d love to move back to the bay for good, but the beloved sport that used to let her fly has become her cage.

Despite her best efforts at resisting, sparks fly between Cade and Rosalyn as they work together on the circus fundraiser. But when everyone’s secrets are revealed and worlds collide, will Rosalyn find forgiveness and restoration in a town being rebuilt? Or will there never be anywhere to truly call home?

My review:

This was a sweet love story set in a beautiful small town that's a little down on its luck after a hurricane.  Rosalyn and Cade's back story was very cute, rivals all through school but secretly had crushes on each other.  It was fun seeing them reminisce about pranks and school experiments gone wrong like volcanoes and the epic battle for valedictorian.  That's why it surprised me so much when the extent of Rosalyn's secrets came out.  She's obviously smart and I couldn't understand how she could have made so many poor choices or that she couldn't figure out some answers herself.  I can understand her struggle with perfectionism but not really Cade's struggle to live up to his family's legacy as I don't have any politicians in my family.  I can understand his trying to do everything himself as I struggle with that at work as well.  There were some cute romantic moments and some suspense.  Rosalyn felt distant from God but felt she had to fix her problems first and then she could come to Him, which I think most of us have felt at one time or another.  Cade was such a noble guy in so many ways, trying to help everyone.  I loved his food obsession.  I also loved the other quirky characters in town, especially the crabby barista, and the wonderful sense of community.  This town reminded me of the town from Gilmore Girls, which I loved.  This worked well as a stand-alone but I want to read the other books in the series as Cade's friends seemed great and their stories sound really cute!  I liked this story and would recommend it if you like romance.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from the author.  I wasn't compensated for my review.  All opinions are my own.