Smitten is a fun read, but it doesn't degenerate into syrupy chick-lit like I expected it might. Natalie, Julia, Shelby, and Reese come up with a plan to turn their hometown into a romantic tourist destination, despite protests from the loggers and other town men. Each woman's story is separate from the others, but the book as a whole is cohesive, and each woman sounds like herself in all 4 stories. Fans of Christian romance and those who enjoy reading the 4-in-1 novellas will love Smitten.
With thanks to Thomas Nelson via NetGalley for my review copy.
With thanks to Thomas Nelson via NetGalley for my review copy.
Smitten,Vermont is a struggling community when the town's largest employer, Smitten Lumber, closes up. Four friends get together and decide to turn their home town of Smitten, Vermont into a romantic getaway and honeymoon destination by capitalizing on the town's name. Natalie, Julia, Shelby and Reese are all good friends who love their community and want to see it thrive. The faith of a young girl also helps the 4 friends, as well as others in the town, see what faith in God can do. As all four friends work together to help the town grow again, each of them finds their own true love as well as increasing their faith in God. While Christian faith is an element in this book, it is not real preachy.
The four stories of Natalie, Julia, Shelby and Reese are all wound together to create one unified story. Each story is written by one 4 real-life friends and popular Christian fiction authors: Colleen Coble, Kristin Billerbeck, Denise Hunter, & Diann Hunt. As I read the book, I thought the stories all flowed seamlessly from one to the other. It was a light, relaxing read and the love stories are somewhat predictable. Sometimes in this hectic life, that is just the prescription I need to help myself de-stress so I recommend it for that reason. I also enjoyed reading the conversation over coffee between the authors at the end. Personally, I also liked the aspect of this book that one of the main characters could not eat gluten. I have a similar struggle as I am allergic to wheat so I often eat gluten-free products. At the very end, some yummy-looking gluten-free recipes are included and I am anxious to try those. Food allergies and gluten intolerance are problems for many people today so it was fun for me to see this woven into the story. Finally, I also like that another Smitten, Vermont book will be out in December 2012 so the story will continue.
I received this book from Thomas Nelson as part of the Booksneeze program. I was not required to write a positive review.
The four stories of Natalie, Julia, Shelby and Reese are all wound together to create one unified story. Each story is written by one 4 real-life friends and popular Christian fiction authors: Colleen Coble, Kristin Billerbeck, Denise Hunter, & Diann Hunt. As I read the book, I thought the stories all flowed seamlessly from one to the other. It was a light, relaxing read and the love stories are somewhat predictable. Sometimes in this hectic life, that is just the prescription I need to help myself de-stress so I recommend it for that reason. I also enjoyed reading the conversation over coffee between the authors at the end. Personally, I also liked the aspect of this book that one of the main characters could not eat gluten. I have a similar struggle as I am allergic to wheat so I often eat gluten-free products. At the very end, some yummy-looking gluten-free recipes are included and I am anxious to try those. Food allergies and gluten intolerance are problems for many people today so it was fun for me to see this woven into the story. Finally, I also like that another Smitten, Vermont book will be out in December 2012 so the story will continue.
I received this book from Thomas Nelson as part of the Booksneeze program. I was not required to write a positive review.
I enjoyed the book Smitten, which was written by four excellent authors. The stories are about four friends, and were sweet and simple, perfect to read on a cool autumn day.
I have just finished this amazing book! It was super good and I would recommend it to anyone!
Smitten
The residents of Smitten, Vermont just received some very bad news, the mill is closing.
Natalie, Julia, Shelby & Reese are close friends and they brainstorm on what can be done to save the town. Without the mill the town will die. They come up with the idea to use the town name to bring tourism, to create a romantic town.
Natalie: Birthday Wishes Colleen Coble
Natalie Mansfield was raising her niece, Mia. Natalie had come to live with her three aunts when she was ten after her mother died. She owned a coffee shop in Smitten that helped to support Mia and herself and so she had good reason to find alternatives for the town she loved. The biggest battle in council would be Carson Smitten. Most women thought he was so handsome and great but Natalie new a secret about him that left a bitter taste.
Carson did not want to see the town his family built change. He hated the new ideas and also feared people would go gun ho and then lose everything. Working along side Natalie was not easy either. She was beautiful but he knew what she thought about him. As the two start working together they enjoy each others company. Only Natalie grew up watching both her mom and sister make bad choices with men and could not believe that the attributes she saw in Carson was truly who he was. The town may get help from Carson's brother, Sawyer Smitten who is an up and coming country singer. Sawyer is known for his love songs and now that he is engaged he wants to get married in Smitten.
Julia: Small Town, Big Dreams - Kristin Billerbeck
Julia Bourne was probably the only Smitten resident walking around in stiletto shoes. She came home to Smitten from Manhattan, where she worked at a spa, to take care of her mother. Julia decided she would open a spa for her part of helping the town and called Devlin, her former boss. When Devlin flew in to see if he would back her, he chose the Smitten Grill as the perfect place. She could not believe it, the place was as masculine as you could get let alone the time it would take to clean the grease. And the worst part was that Zak Grant owned it. Zak had been her brother Greg's best friend and Julia was in love with him since sixth grade. Once he hit high school he ignored her and she became invisible to him. She would not rent his building and watch his revolving door of girlfriends and have her heart broken over and over.
Zak wanted Julia to see he had changed. If he could fix up part of his building as a spa for her than she would be around him and see the difference. When she refused his offers for help, he went ahead in faith and began working on building it anyways. He had promises to keep to his friend Greg who was stationed in Afghanistan but it was getting harder to resist what he felt for Julia. And with her domineering father, Zak may have crossed the line by taking charge. Will she choose to stay or hi-tail it back to New York?
Shelby: You've Got A Friend - Diann Hunt
Shelby Evans teaches young girls how to be graceful and loves to sew. Her seven point Shih-poo is always in high fashion, and the dog seems to enjoy it even. As a child Shelby's father moved them all the time. Now that her mother is dead she don't see her dad, or even keep track of where he lives. As a teenager her father made a choice for her that she has never really forgiven him for. And now here he is at her door in Smitten, with a suitcase.
Nick Majors really dislikes all this romancing the town stuff. He almost growls every time he sees one of the lavender wreaths little Mia makes. Than suddenly Nick's world changes. His ex-wife dies and he becomes a full time dad to his twelve year old daughter, Willow, who he barely knows. And he is a bit on the over protective side. When his good friend Shelby tries to help he seems to always be biting her head off. And since when does she affect him in a way that is more than just friends?
Reese: All Along - Denise Hunter
Reese Mackenzie likes having her life in order. Planning for her outdoor store had her planning every little detail but she still had too much fear about the success instead of trusting God, like little Mia was doing. Her friend Natalie's little niece had been making wreaths as a symbol that God would keep Smitten going. Reese also had once been the fiance of Sawyer Smitten, now an up and coming singing star. She knew her friends were concerned over his upcoming wedding but Reese knew she was over him. What surprised her was that she had a reaction to be so close to her longtime best buddy, Griffen Parker.
She decided to pretend to date someone else to make him jealous and see her as a woman instead of a tomboy, when a misunderstanding has Griffen believing she wants to win Sawyer back...he volunteers to help make him jealous.
Griffen Parker has loved Reese for some years. In fact, he left his hometown three years ago after Sawyer & Reese became engaged. This was his last chance to win her over. He can't believe that she would go after a man who was not only engaged but their town depended on this wedding to bring people in. He uses every opportunity he can to be close to Reese. Will Reese be able to see him more than a buddy? Could she learn to love him now that Sawyer is married? If not, Griffen would go back to his lonely apartment two states away.
This was an excellent book. The Author's worked well together blending each story where the last one ended.
**Received through NetGalley for review.
http://justjudysjumbles.blogspot.com/2011/12/thomas-nelson-publishers.html
The residents of Smitten, Vermont just received some very bad news, the mill is closing.
Natalie, Julia, Shelby & Reese are close friends and they brainstorm on what can be done to save the town. Without the mill the town will die. They come up with the idea to use the town name to bring tourism, to create a romantic town.
Natalie: Birthday Wishes Colleen Coble
Natalie Mansfield was raising her niece, Mia. Natalie had come to live with her three aunts when she was ten after her mother died. She owned a coffee shop in Smitten that helped to support Mia and herself and so she had good reason to find alternatives for the town she loved. The biggest battle in council would be Carson Smitten. Most women thought he was so handsome and great but Natalie new a secret about him that left a bitter taste.
Carson did not want to see the town his family built change. He hated the new ideas and also feared people would go gun ho and then lose everything. Working along side Natalie was not easy either. She was beautiful but he knew what she thought about him. As the two start working together they enjoy each others company. Only Natalie grew up watching both her mom and sister make bad choices with men and could not believe that the attributes she saw in Carson was truly who he was. The town may get help from Carson's brother, Sawyer Smitten who is an up and coming country singer. Sawyer is known for his love songs and now that he is engaged he wants to get married in Smitten.
Julia: Small Town, Big Dreams - Kristin Billerbeck
Julia Bourne was probably the only Smitten resident walking around in stiletto shoes. She came home to Smitten from Manhattan, where she worked at a spa, to take care of her mother. Julia decided she would open a spa for her part of helping the town and called Devlin, her former boss. When Devlin flew in to see if he would back her, he chose the Smitten Grill as the perfect place. She could not believe it, the place was as masculine as you could get let alone the time it would take to clean the grease. And the worst part was that Zak Grant owned it. Zak had been her brother Greg's best friend and Julia was in love with him since sixth grade. Once he hit high school he ignored her and she became invisible to him. She would not rent his building and watch his revolving door of girlfriends and have her heart broken over and over.
Zak wanted Julia to see he had changed. If he could fix up part of his building as a spa for her than she would be around him and see the difference. When she refused his offers for help, he went ahead in faith and began working on building it anyways. He had promises to keep to his friend Greg who was stationed in Afghanistan but it was getting harder to resist what he felt for Julia. And with her domineering father, Zak may have crossed the line by taking charge. Will she choose to stay or hi-tail it back to New York?
Shelby: You've Got A Friend - Diann Hunt
Shelby Evans teaches young girls how to be graceful and loves to sew. Her seven point Shih-poo is always in high fashion, and the dog seems to enjoy it even. As a child Shelby's father moved them all the time. Now that her mother is dead she don't see her dad, or even keep track of where he lives. As a teenager her father made a choice for her that she has never really forgiven him for. And now here he is at her door in Smitten, with a suitcase.
Nick Majors really dislikes all this romancing the town stuff. He almost growls every time he sees one of the lavender wreaths little Mia makes. Than suddenly Nick's world changes. His ex-wife dies and he becomes a full time dad to his twelve year old daughter, Willow, who he barely knows. And he is a bit on the over protective side. When his good friend Shelby tries to help he seems to always be biting her head off. And since when does she affect him in a way that is more than just friends?
Reese: All Along - Denise Hunter
Reese Mackenzie likes having her life in order. Planning for her outdoor store had her planning every little detail but she still had too much fear about the success instead of trusting God, like little Mia was doing. Her friend Natalie's little niece had been making wreaths as a symbol that God would keep Smitten going. Reese also had once been the fiance of Sawyer Smitten, now an up and coming singing star. She knew her friends were concerned over his upcoming wedding but Reese knew she was over him. What surprised her was that she had a reaction to be so close to her longtime best buddy, Griffen Parker.
She decided to pretend to date someone else to make him jealous and see her as a woman instead of a tomboy, when a misunderstanding has Griffen believing she wants to win Sawyer back...he volunteers to help make him jealous.
Griffen Parker has loved Reese for some years. In fact, he left his hometown three years ago after Sawyer & Reese became engaged. This was his last chance to win her over. He can't believe that she would go after a man who was not only engaged but their town depended on this wedding to bring people in. He uses every opportunity he can to be close to Reese. Will Reese be able to see him more than a buddy? Could she learn to love him now that Sawyer is married? If not, Griffen would go back to his lonely apartment two states away.
This was an excellent book. The Author's worked well together blending each story where the last one ended.
**Received through NetGalley for review.
http://justjudysjumbles.blogspot.com/2011/12/thomas-nelson-publishers.html
Smitten by C Coble K Billerbeck D Hunt D Hunter Review
The same characters, four friends, are in the whole novel. However, this novel is divided into four parts, with each part featuring a different woman as the main character. They all live in the small Vermont town of Smitten.
Natalie: Birthday Wishes by Colleen Coble
I enjoyed this first story highlighting Natalie and her not-yet-adopted young daughter, Mia. Although Natalie has made a nice life for herself and Mia, she has severe trust issues, when it comes to men. My favorite character in this first part of the book is Mia. She is a precious and loving child.
Julia: Small Town, big Dreams by Kristin Billerbeck
This second story has the women and the town making great strides to improve their hometown in myriad ways. The only discord seems to be between Julia and Zak. And there is Julia's attitude toward her parents. Sometimes it's hard to let go of the past. This is a good story that made me think and assess my own attitudes.
Shelby: You've Got a Friend by Diann Hunt
This was my favorite story, and it made me remember what a wonderful author Diann Hunt was. I like all the main characters in this story: Shelby, Nick and Willow. Of course, by now, I knew Natalie and Julia pretty well, so I was really pulled in by this segment of the novel. I especially found the spiritual theme of forgiveness to be very real.
Reece: All Along by Denise Hunter
This last story is especially good. Of the four girlfriends, Reece is my favorite. This story brings everything together and ends the book in a satisfying way.
The same characters, four friends, are in the whole novel. However, this novel is divided into four parts, with each part featuring a different woman as the main character. They all live in the small Vermont town of Smitten.
Natalie: Birthday Wishes by Colleen Coble
I enjoyed this first story highlighting Natalie and her not-yet-adopted young daughter, Mia. Although Natalie has made a nice life for herself and Mia, she has severe trust issues, when it comes to men. My favorite character in this first part of the book is Mia. She is a precious and loving child.
Julia: Small Town, big Dreams by Kristin Billerbeck
This second story has the women and the town making great strides to improve their hometown in myriad ways. The only discord seems to be between Julia and Zak. And there is Julia's attitude toward her parents. Sometimes it's hard to let go of the past. This is a good story that made me think and assess my own attitudes.
Shelby: You've Got a Friend by Diann Hunt
This was my favorite story, and it made me remember what a wonderful author Diann Hunt was. I like all the main characters in this story: Shelby, Nick and Willow. Of course, by now, I knew Natalie and Julia pretty well, so I was really pulled in by this segment of the novel. I especially found the spiritual theme of forgiveness to be very real.
Reece: All Along by Denise Hunter
This last story is especially good. Of the four girlfriends, Reece is my favorite. This story brings everything together and ends the book in a satisfying way.
