Let Love Bloom: The Introduction

The Spring season is here and I'm simply delighted!

I love this season so much because of its natural beauty and hope of new beginnings. People often say that "love is in the air" every time Spring arrives and this year, I'd like to celebrate that with my blog's new series "Let Love Bloom".

This special series is designed to promote pure romance stories written by Christian authors.

Every Sunday from March 25 through June 17, I'll host a new author on my blog and they'll host a giveaway of their book that we're featuring on that day. So that means you'll have a chance to win their book and read it for free!

But the authors are doing more than giving away copies of their books! They're also visiting with us via author interviews, character interviews, devotionals based on the book, personal essays related to a theme in the book, along with book review and story excerpt features from their stories.

I hope that you will enjoy this and "Let Love Bloom" in your personal collection of books and in your real-life stories too!

Happy Spring 2018!

Love,

Alexis

Litfuse Publicity Group blog tour featuring Real-Life Romance

Happy Valentine's Day! What better way to celebrate this special day of love than with a book filled with real-life stories of romance?

So with that in mind, I'd like to welcome you to my blog's stop on the tour for Rhonda Stoppe's book, Real-Life Romance: Inspiring Stories to Help You Believe in True Love!

See my review of Rhonda's book below then read on for further details such as information about the content of the book, the author bio and fun giveaway details from Litfuse Publicity Group.

Enjoy! :)

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My Review of Rhonda Stoppe's book, Real-Life Romance: Inspiring Stories to Help You Believe in True Love:

This was a delightful collection of real-life stories of romance, heartbreak, and hope. But most importantly, the characters in these stories show the reader how having God at the center of their romance made all the difference. God is the Creator of humankind and He has a heart filled with love for all of His children. The stories in this book show how God cares about our hearts and covers every detail of our lives. As a reader, I was reminded by these stories that God created romance so my first priority should be to seek Him and ask Him for wisdom in choosing who I should date and marry. I like how most of the people in these stories turned to God through every stage of their journey whether it included heartbreak, tragedy, pain, hope, love and other life experiences, they sought God and because of their faith in Him, God blessed these people beyond their wildest dreams.

I like the fact that this is not a fictional book filled with fairytale romance or endless happily-ever-after endings for the characters. Instead, the pages in this book are filled with real-life situations, hopes, worries, fears, dreams and plans that did not turn out how the characters expected. The stories vary in plot and structure. Every couple’s real-life romance was different in the details but one thread remained the same and that was evidence of how their faith in God carried them through tough times and blessed their hearts.

I don’t have a favorite story from this book but if I were to choose three that stood out to me the most, it would be the author’s love story, the one about the author’s daughter and the one about the fighter pilot who found romance with the feisty woman who refused a former date’s invitation for a one-night stand (she was determined to honor God by waiting until marriage to have sex).

All of the stories in this book—not just my favorites—were told in a way that captivated my heart and inspired my mind. The stories reminded me why God’s plans for us are better than ours and His way of conducting ourselves in romantic relationships are the best and much more pain-free.

The author’s sense of humor and heart for helping her readers keep hope alive for a love story that lasts is evident throughout this book. Her storytelling skills are second to none. The pacing of the stories in this book will keep you moving from page to page in a timely fashion to the point where you may finish reading it in only about five hours.

I would recommend this book to anyone who’s given up hope of finding a real romance that lasts. It’s a very inspiring read that reminded me of God’s love and encouraged me to seek His plan for every aspect of my life because He as my Heavenly Father knows best.

*Litfuse Publicity Group provided me (writer@heart) with a complimentary copy of this book, "Real-Life Romance: Inspiring Stories to Help You Believe in True Love". My opinions in this book review are my own.

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Blurb for Rhonda Stoppe's book Real-Life Romance: Inspiring Stories to Help You Believe in True Love (Harvest House, February 2018):

Do you believe in true love?

In a world of broken relationships and hurting people, it can seem like all we ever see is heartache—that marriages are doomed from the start and romance isn’t worth the risk.

But heart-fluttering, long-lasting love is all around us…we just have to look for it!

This collection of beautiful, real-life accounts will bring laughter and tears as you enjoy each story of ordinary people who found extraordinary love. Page after page, you will find inspiration to

—rekindle the romance in your love story
—trust in God’s providence and timing
—faithfully hope for your own happily-ever-after
—celebrate true romance
—believe in life-long love

Don’t let the world define romance for you! See how God is at work in the hearts of His people—knitting together hearts in a love that forever endures.

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Author bio: 

Rhonda Stoppe is the No Regrets Woman. 

With more than 20 years of experience as a pastor’s wife, mom, mentor, author, and speaker, Rhonda uses humor and honest communication to help women build No Regrets Lives. 

She and her husband live their real-life romance in northern California. They have four grown children and eight grandchildren.

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Connect with Rhonda:
Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/NoRegretsWoman/
Twitter - https://twitter.com/rhondastoppe
Pinterest - https://www.pinterest.com/rhondastoppe/
Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/rhondastoppe/

Website - http://www.rhondastoppe.com

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A Special Message from Litfuse Publicity Group about Rhonda Stoppe's book and blog tour:

Whether you’re single and looking for a reason to believe in love or a parent watching your own child fall in love, Real-Life Romance by Rhonda Stoppe will inspire you to believe in life-long love. This collection of beautiful, real-life accounts will bring laughter and tears as you enjoy each story of ordinary people who found extraordinary love. Don't let the world define romance for you! See how God is at work in the hearts of His people—knitting together hearts in a love that forever endures.

Join Rhonda and other real-life romancers on March 6 for a Facebook Live party, plus enter to win the Make Your Own Real-Life Romance prize pack!

 

One grand prize winner will receive:

• One copy of Real-Life Romance
• A $50 restaurant gift card
• A $25 movie gift card

Enter today by clicking the icon below. But hurry, the giveaway ends on March 6. The winner will be announced at Rhonda's Facebook Live Party. RSVP for a chance to connect with Rhonda and other readers, as well as for a chance to win other prizes!

RSVP today and spread the word—tell your friends about the giveaway and Facebook Live party via social media and increase your chances of winning. Hope to see you on the 6th!

Book review: Spring Brides

My Review of Spring Brides
A book of three novellas written by Rachel Hauck, Lenora Worth and Meg Moseley

The book’s back cover blurb starts with an invitation that reads, “Happily after begins today. The honor of your presence is requested at three spring weddings.” I loved the details on the blurb and was honored to receive this lovely invitation. But it was the book’s front cover that made me accept the invitation these three fictional springtime weddings.

The cover photo of Spring Brides is elegant, sweet, soft and simple. I loved the fact that the color theme was purple. I simply adore that color! A woman wearing an elegant, white wedding dress with what looks like a sweetheart neckline with buttons trailing down the middle low back of the dress. She’s hiked up her dress with her left hand to make a clear pathway for her feet. Her right hand is doing double-duty because she’s balancing her clutch of her bouquet of purpose flowers with her grasp on a lilac color umbrella. 

The background of this front cover photo is of a grassy area that leads to what looks like a blue-gray river stream. The title of the book along with the authors’ names are written in purple. All of those elements blend perfectly to create a whimsical and wonderful book cover. It also made me want to pick up the book and read it. Yes, I judged this book by its cover and I’m SO glad that I did. Allow me to tell you my reasons why. We’ll spend a little time on each of the three stories, in order of publication:

“A March Bride” by Rachel Hauck

I’d say that this story was a perfect 10. The author (Rachel Hauck) spends a great deal of her storytelling style on details. It’s through the details that you understand the characters and fall in love with their story. The story is about Susanna Truiit who is three ways away from marrying the man of her dreams who happens to be royalty. His proper title is King Nathaniel II of Brighton Kingdom. He wooed her and won her heart in Rachel’s previous book Once Upon a Prince and now it’s time for their love to be sealed. However, there is a problem—the prince's government insists that Susanna renounces her American citizenship before the wedding. She cannot have dual citizenship due to the political reasons. Making things worse is the fact that her closest family and friends for health-related reasons, cannot fly to Brighton for the wedding. The reader learns of this multi-layered conflict within the first few chapters of the story.

Rachel as an author, does an awesome job of developing the conflict and using it to drive the readers deep into the characterization of her hero and heroine. Even the secondary characters are solid and written well. The author gives great thought about their hopes and dreams in their fictional life along with showing the reader their strong support of the main characters. She knows how to show and not simply tell the story.

The plot was unpredictable, even to a seasoned reader like me! I enjoyed the surprises and experienced great anticipation about how the plot twists would work out toward a happy ending. After all, she’s marrying a prince and don’t all fairy tale-like stories have happy endings?

Without giving away the ending of "A March Bride", I will say that as a reader, I was satisfied with the ending of this story. I look forward to reading more books by this author.

“An April Bride” by Lenora Worth

Another story that I’d give a perfect 10 rating. The author (Lenora Worth), does a fabulous job of painting these captivating fictional characters and structuring their world with her words.

The author’s strength is telling the story through emotions and memories. She focuses on Stella Carson who is a blushing bride and is ready to marry the man of her dreams (Marshall Henderson). Marshall is a wounded warrior. He was sent to the Middle East as a soldier for the U.S. Army but he suffered a loss so great that it robbed him of his memory. So after a long stay at the hospital, he returns home and is reunited his bride but he barely recognizes her and does not remember their love story.

The fact that Marshall does not remember their relationship and love story troubles Stella. But she refuses to give up. She’s strong-willed about marrying him as scheduled, from the first day of their reunion through most of their story. She makes every effort to kindly show him their love story and tell him why they're meant to be together. As time goes by, Marshall realizes the reasons why he wanted to marry Stella—she’s beautiful, sweet, compassionate, caring and patient—but he does not remember how they fell in love. He cannot remember any of their dates but he does listen to his parents who gently push him to still marry Stella despite his memory loss. His parents tell him that he and Stella are the “real deal” and help me realize that memory loss or not, when you find true love, it’s rare and worth fighting to keep.

However, Marshall’s trauma from his experience as a soldier makes him more distant to Stella because he won’t share his burdens with her and it causes a rift in their relationship. You’ll have to read the story to find out if love conquers all. But I will say that as a reader, I was not disappointed.

The author weaves a very sweet and realistic story, one that soldiers and army wives in real-life can relate to. I’d recommend “An April Bride” to everyone who has ever loved a soldier. It’s truly a touching and beautiful story that anyone can appreciate and enjoy.

“A May Bride” by Meg Moseley

May is my birth month, so I instantly wanted to read this story. It focuses on Elle Martin, a country girl living in the city, who dreams of a traditional wedding. She goes shopping for wedding dresses in her free time and plans other details for her wedding. But there’s just one necessary detail that she cannot shop for or exactly plan to get—the groom. She’s one of those women who have dreamed of their perfect wedding day since she was a little girl. Now she is a grown woman with an agenda, one that she keeps hidden when she meets her hero, Gray Whitby.

Gray is quite a catch. He’s good-looking, stable, funny and smart. The only flaw in his character, I’d say, is his impulsiveness. He and Elle strike up a fast friendship that leads to mutual attraction and then a whirlwind romance, the kind that ends with a proposal.

But the proposal is only the first hurdle on the path to Elle’s dream wedding. She has a strict mother who after having her heart broken by Elle’s father, is cynical about love. Elle’s Mom does nothing to improve or approve of Elle’s relationship with Gray. She rains on their wedding planning parade and places doubt in their heads as to whether or not they should tie the knot. Oh, the conflict! But don’t you know, it’s the conflict that makes the story?

The author (Meg Moseley) does a great job at creating conflict and going deep into her character’s thoughts/desires/fictional life stories. However, the story’s pacing felt rushed. I think that the story may have been better if the pacing was a bit slower and more steady because the rush, while it was fine for the whirlwind romance, took away from the story’s structure. It seemed a bit loose in points and unbelievable.

However, “A May Bride” was still a good story. The dialogue was unique and the characters were likeable. I think that if this story was a standalone novel, the author may have had more time to develop the plotline and deepen the characters. I’d give this story a solid 8 (on a scale of 1 to 10).

After “attending” each of these “weddings,” I’ve decided to give Spring Brides an A+! It’s a wonderful collection of stories. If you love romance stories with a hint of humor and a solid thread of faith, you need to read this book.