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Chautona Havig

Chautona Havig

Using story to connect YOU to the Master Storyteller

What Better Way to Start the New Year Than a Great Rom-Com?

by Chautona Havig · 1 Comment

Dear Henry, Love Edith by Becca Kinzer is just as delightful as its eye-catching cover. Start 2023 off with a wonderful rom-com... this one! via @chautonahavig

So… ever wondered if I’m really as weird as I seem? Here’s proof for ya! While normal people were gearing up for a lovely holiday with their families, I rushed AWAY from mine to my hotel room in Irvine, California to have a chat with debut romantic comedy author, Becca Kinzer about her book, Dear Henry, Love Elizabeth. Boy, am I glad I did! Guys! This book!  Listen in to find out how Becca went from writing romantic suspense to rom-com and learn why I’m pushing for a new genre–rom-com suspense!

Becca Kinzer Dear Henry, Love Edith

Note: links may be affiliate links that provide me with a small commission at no extra expense to you. Additionally, Becca Kinzer kindly sent me a copy of her book. That was after I ordered my own copy, though for what it’s worth. 🙂

What Better Way to Start the New Year Than a Great Rom-Com?

As I said in the episode, I read the first chapter…ish of Dear Henry, Love Edith before we got on the air, and once I disconnected the call, I plopped down and finished all that the “Look Inside” on Amazon allowed.  Yes, yes I did!  And when I got home from my trip BACK to Irvine (yes, I’d driven home for a few days and went back…) I found a copy of the book waiting for me.  Thank you, Becca!

Well, last night I settled in to get through chapter four. Goodness, that makes it sound like I expected it to be a slog or something! Far from the truth, I assure you. I just meant that I only allow myself five chapters a night before I have to work, and the first chapters of a book end at the end of chapter 4 for me.  *insert sniffles here*

Well, let’s just say that I’m working REALLY hard tonight so I can sneak in another set of five chapters before I have to go to bed. Guys! This book! If you love Bethany Turner, you’re going to love this book. We’ve already had the meet cute (unbeknownst to the characters), we’ve already begun the epistolary part (“notes” that really are more like short letters), and… then there’s the genius.

I wondered how Becca Kinzer would handle the fact that just because two people have names that sound older doesn’t mean they’ll speak or act older–write older!  Well, so far, it’s all working like a charm. The love of older movie actors helps some, BUT… even Henry noticed that Edith actually sounds like his niece, Kat, sometimes. YES!  YES YES YES!

So… does it work?

Yep. It sure does. I really shouldn’t be reading this book. I’ll just put that out there. I shouldn’t. I have a ton of other books in line ahead of it, but everyone gets to have a mood read now and then, and I’m most definitely in the mood for this read! Fun characters, quirky situations, awkwardness galore, and butter pecan ice cream. It’s a quadruple play in my book!

And… she’s working on a rom-com about two people riding a tandem bike in a race.  COME ON!  I’m dying for this book, too!  It just won’t come out until… forever!  So, in the meantime, don’t forget the TWO free novellas you can get if you head over to Becca Kinzer’s WEBSITE and sign up for her newsletter.  I did. EEEP!

Just a few weeks before it releases on January 31, 2023

Dear Henry, Love Edith Becca KinzerDear Henry, Love Edith by Becca Kinzer

He thinks she’s an elderly widow. She’s convinced he’s a grumpy old man. Neither could be further from the truth.

After a short and difficult marriage, recently widowed Edith Sherman has learned her lesson. Forget love. Forget marriage. She plans to fill her thirties with adventure. As she awaits the final paperwork for a humanitarian trip to South Africa, she accepts a short-term nursing position in a small Midwestern town. The last thing she needs is a handsome local catching her eye. How inconvenient is that?

Henry Hobbes isn’t exactly thrilled to have Edith, who he assumes is an elderly widow, dumped on him as a houseguest for the summer. But he’d do almost anything for his niece, who is practically like a sister to him given how close they are in age. Especially since Edith will be working nights and Henry works most days. When he and Edith keep missing each other in person, they begin exchanging notes, short messages at first, then longer letters, sharing increasingly personal parts of their lives.

By the time Henry realizes his mistake?that Edith is actually the brown-eyed beauty he keeps bumping into around town?their hearts are so intertwined he hopes they never unravel. But with her departure date rapidly approaching, and Henry’s roots firmly planted at home, Edith must ultimately decide if the adventure of her dreams is the one right in front of her.

Reminiscent of the beloved classic You’ve Got Mail comes a delightful new romantic comedy about mistaken identities, second chances, and finding love in unexpected places.

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Comments

  1. Cindy Davis says

    January 7, 2023 at 9:07 am

    I have this one on Net Galley and plan to read it this month! I am excited about it and your review makes me even more so! I love the idea of rom-com suspense, yes please!! I LOVE humor in the books I read. Thanks for sharing!!

    Reply

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The Because Fiction Podcast

The Because Fiction Podcast
The Because Fiction Podcast

Taking the pulse of Christian fiction

Episode 231: A Chat with RomCom author, Shannon Sue Dunlap
byChautona Havig

Shannon Sue Dunlap isn’t new to rom-coms, and her first book in the Sweetheart Series promises to be a literary riot, and it lives up to that promise. I’m only halfway through it and am thinking mean, ugly thoughts of everything keeping me from being able to escape into the crazy small-town politics and quirky characters. So far the com far outweighs the rom, which makes me thrilled to bits. Listen in to discover what makes Lone Star Sweetheart so much fun.

Note: links may be affiliate links that provide me with a small commission at no extra expense to you.

Why Did This Author Write a Rom-Com about a Loveable Shrew?

Well, I think we can safely blame Shakespeare for that. Shannon Sue Dunlap has taken inspiration from Shakespeare’s The Taming of the Shrew in her Katherine, but unlike Katerina, Dunlap’s character is actually trying to learn to tame the tongue. Maybe someone should send her over to the book of James. There’s that whole bit about not being able to tame it, being an “unruly evil, full of deadly poison.”

Kate’s isn’t that bad, but not for lack of trying. Or something.

Shannon Sue Dunlap isn’t joking when she says that her Katherine is a “loveable” shrew. Seriously, I love this character. She’s forthright, no-nonsense, and “what you see is what you get” in her approach to life. I respect that. Add to that her boss who has shaken up the town of Sweetheart, Texas, and you’ve got the makings of a great story. I’m loving Lone Star Sweetheart.

But this isn’t all Dunlap has written.

Under the pseudonym, Shannon Kent, you can find her sweet and clean romances (including one Christian romance) inspired by Korean dramas. If you said I’d be not only chomping to read a sweet and clean romance about Korean tour guides and all that entails but also ready to watch a Korean drama on Netflix… Okay, I might not have laughed in your face, but I’d’ve been laughing on the inside.

Best part… one of them ties into her Sweetheart Series

Lone Star Sweetheart by Shannon Sue Dunlap

Katherine Bruno’s passionate, unfiltered temper makes her the shrew of small-town Sweetheart, Texas. When she’s drafted to help the mayor’s wife run against her own husband, Katherine meets opposing big city political consultant Ryan Park. The good-looking, flirtatious campaign manager gets under her skin, but fraternizing with the enemy is off-limits.

Katherine must battle her lack of experience, campaign sabotage, and her growing feelings for Ryan as she strives to succeed. His unprejudiced acceptance of her strong-willed character beckons her heart, but his jaded rejection of God is an insurmountable barrier. Will Ryan return to his faith and stay with her in Sweetheart or leave when the election ends?

You can find out more about Shannon Sue Dunlap AND get that first novella in the Korean Crush series free on her WEBSITE.

Like to listen on the go? You can find Because Fiction Podcast at:

  • Apple 
  • Castbox 
  • Google Play
  • Libsyn 
  • RSS
  • Spotify
  • Stitcher
  • Amazon
  • and more!

 

Episode 231: A Chat with RomCom author, Shannon Sue Dunlap
Episode 231: A Chat with RomCom author, Shannon Sue Dunlap
May 26, 2023
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Episode 230: A Chat with Bryan Timothy Mitchell
May 17, 2023
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Episode 229: A Chat about Murmur in the Mud Caves with Kathleen Denly
May 12, 2023
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Episode 228: A Chat with Author Emilie Haney
May 9, 2023
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Episode 227: A Chat about the New Jewels of Kalispell Series
May 5, 2023
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Episode 226: A Chat with Archaeological Thriller Author, Doug Powell
May 2, 2023
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Episode 225: A Chat with Dani Pettrey
April 28, 2023
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Episode 224: A Chat with Author Megan Besing
April 25, 2023
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Episode 223: A Chat with Tosca Lee about A Long March Home
April 21, 2023
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Episode 222: A Chat with Regina Rudd Merrick
April 18, 2023
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