Goooooing to the chapel and I’m, gonnna find a good looking minister to fall in love with. Ok, definitely not as catchy a tune as “Going to the Chapel of Love” by the Dixie Cups, but it’ll have to do!
What’s it About?
Desperate times call for desperate measures. At her core, merchandising maven Sophia Anton is an old-fashioned girl. To start a family by age 30, she’ll do what’s needed to make sparks fly with an old friend—including a crash diet. But when Sophia meets Jackson Thomas, the handsome new minister in town, she quickly finds she’s playing with fire. Sophia’s new look is working like a charm to snag the man of her dreams, so why is it Jackson’s face she sees when she closes her eyes?
Jackson, whose troubled past has led him to adopt a life of celibacy, never expects to feel hot under the collar for a woman of his own parish. How can Jackson dream of a future with Sophia after he’s shut the door on love?
First Impressions
Mkay, so technically I don’t know if Sophie found her handsome minister in a chapel, church, priory, rectory, or monastery, but boy did she find a good one! For those of you who may not be familiar with church terms and titles, don’t worry! One thing I do know is that ministers are allowed to get married. No rules being broken here! Jackson may have taken a personal vow of abstinence after the failure of his first marriage, but when he meets the selfless and caring Sophia, he starts to question if she might be the one for him. Which will win out? His vow, or his growing love and appreciation for one of the members of his church?
Ballet Dancer vs. Minister
Sophia is facing a dilemma of her own. For years, she’s been in love with Christopher, a man who has always treated her as more of a friend than anything else. But Sophia is determined to attract his attention in any way possible, even if it means starving herself to lose weight. This was definitely one of the most fascinating, yet depressing aspects of the novel.
It shows the lengths one person can go to when desperately searching to make a connection with someone else. She doesn’t realize that there’s a minister who already appreciates her for who she is on the inside. Sophia can’t deny her growing attraction for the new minister, but what will she do when Christopher starts to actually take notice of her new appearance?
Unexpected Twist
The first half of this novel really focuses on Sophia attempting to get involved in some new church volunteer opportunities, all the while also trying to balance her efforts to woo Christopher, and her growing attraction for Jackson. The second half of the book takes a totally unexpected twist that was so unbelievably sudden, I had trouble believing it actually happened at first. Although it was definitely a unique feature, I also felt it kind of interrupted the overall flow of the book.
Additionally, even though this book is supposed to feature a budding romance between Jackson and Sophia, I felt like they never really spent a whole lot of time together. They have one really deep, emotional conversation, but it sort of seemed like throughout the majority of the book they were mainly thinking about each other rather than interacting with each other one-on-one.
*A copy of this book was provided for an honest review*
Series: Stand-alone
Should you read it? I’d categorize this as a sweet read. It’s not an overly religious novel, but rather really shows the importance of having faith/trust in others, as well as yourself. It highlights caring for others, the close relationships we can make in life, and even the mistakes we can make too.
Smut Level: This is an extremely clean read. It’s a minister for crying out loud! Don’t tell me you were expecting any kink! All they do is exchange a kiss or two.
Get it on Amazon: Click Here. $4.99 Kindle Price. The Wild Rose Press, Inc. 201 Pages
Romance Novels for the Beach 