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Chautona Havig

Chautona Havig

Using story to connect YOU to the Master Storyteller

How One Fluffy Read Betrayed Me & Why I’m Thrilled

by Chautona Havig · 7 Comments

The post promised a great historical read—FREE through Tuesday, August 14. Well, the last time Smitten Romance informed me (through a friend) that I’d love this “great historical book,” I’d found myself lost among the pages of Among the Poppies. So, I dashed off to Amazon.

Then I saw it. Free for Kindle Unlimited.

Now, look. I’m an author. I get it. Free books are great ways to introduce people to your work and to get needed reviews. But writing is an expensive business. And yes, it may be a ministry for many Christian authors, but it is also a business. So, instead of the download, I hit the Kindle Unlimited button. At least the author will get paid for it, right?

The screen popped up with, “YOU GREEDY FOOL! YOU HAVE TOO MANY ALREADY! PUT ONE BACK, FIRST!”

Okay, that’s just how it felt. In reality, it said something like, “You already have ten books shelved. Please, return one and try again.”

There was just one problem.

I hadn’t read any of the ten that sat shelved on the page.

I might as well confess that I almost just said, “forget it” and bought the dumb book. But I am no quitter. If I must read a book so that I can shelve another, then I’ll make that sacrifice. Take one for the team and all that.

But which one? That wasn’t an easy prospect. I finally landed on a pink-covered book that screamed “fluff and nonsense” to me—with a fabulous title. Bookishly Ever After.

Bookishly Ever After by Sarah MonzonThe synopsis gripped me—with its promises of the fluff I needed.

Emory Blake is the ultimate bibliophile. She’d take curling up with a good novel over a night on the town any day of the week. But then best friend Tate Woodby accuses her of living between the pages of her paperbacks instead of the real world, and make a bet that will force her to experience the adventures of her fictional friends…instead of just reading about them. With her face no longer buried in books, Emory must confront the pain of the past. But is it also her perfect opportunity to discover the hunky hero who could be the happily-ever-after of her own story?

I’d skim that sucker—get it done in no time. After all, it was “just a sweet little romance” from what I could tell. They’re the easiest ones to skim.

How One Fluffy Read Betrayed Me & Why I'm Thrilled

Note: links may be affiliate links. they provide me with small commissions but don’t add to your cost at all.

How One Fluffy Read Betrayed Me & Why I’m Thrilled

Yeah. And so I began. Riveting opening… I jumped, even knowing what would happen, I jumped right when I should have. And the game (both literaturely and literally—within the context of the story, anyway) was afoot!

Emory? I’m half in love with her myself. She’s a delightful mix of flawed perfection. She has a sharp wit that doesn’t cut, she’s clueless but not indefinitely, and not stupid in her cluelessness, and she’s oh, so much fun.

I’d gotten two or three chapters in before I realized that I had read every stinkin’ word. Then I looked at my progress.  How many hours would this take!?

Confession: I did not have time to be reading a book today.  I was busy. Behind. Scrambling for time as it was!

But I was already at about twenty-five percent!  That’s when I realized I’d grabbed a novella!

Confession number two: I don’t usually enjoy novellas.  They feel rushed.

Yes, I recognize the irony there.

But Sarah Monzon pulled off a delightful novella that held my attention and made me slow down and savor every scene.

Yes, it was fluffy—in part.

The book is pure romance.  That didn’t surprise me at all.  What did surprise me was how into the romance I was.  Maybe it was because she kept it about people instead of piling emotion upon emotion. It could be.

But I suspect it was more.

Because even in this short, ninety-one-page novel, she also tackled a deep-seated issue in Emory.

And she used a great guy, Tate, to help with it.

I love a good best friend.  I mean, come on. Like I shared here, I married mine. And Tate has some first-rate qualities that remind me a little of the guy who got stuck with me for life.  (Hey, I finally “get” the whole “sorry, not sorry” thing…).

And Monzon wrote a great one.  He’s real, honest, raw, and flawed—just like every “hero” I’ve ever loved.  His patience spoke volumes. I’m just sayin’.

Did I mention she did it in first person?

Yeah, I just fell in love with a book written in first-person.

Confession: I didn’t notice until I was three-quarters of the way done with the book.  She should get five stars for that alone.  But Monzon earned it many times over.

Like how about taking something people complain about and turning it on its head?

Look, in so much of romantic fiction, a whole boatload of stuff could be solved if people just talked instead of “misunderstood” and brooded.

Sarah Monzon did something novel in this novella. She had her characters talk—or at least acknowledge an unwillingness to when something else got in the way (mostly Emory’s past issues).

Monzon earned five stars just for that.  But I didn’t give them to her for it.

Nope.  She gets five stars for writing a book with fabulous characters I’d love to have over for dinner and chat with. I’d love to hear more about their bookish dates and when he just…knew.  I’m giving her five stars for writing a book I loved and immersed myself into when I just wanted a skimmed read.

She gets five stars for writing fluff I couldn’t put down, with something substantial beneath that fluff, and for betraying my need for a quick read while giving it to me at the same time.

I didn’t skim this book. But being a novella, I read it in just over an hour and a half. Yes, it was fluffy. But writing something more than just fluff among the pages made it rich, too.

It was my first book by Sarah Monzon.  It will not be my last.

For my .02 on book two in this series, Literarily for Keeps, go HERE.

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Comments

  1. Linda Sue McKinney says

    August 14, 2018 at 10:08 am

    Thank you so much, I’ve had Bookishly Ever After in my kindle library for a while and kept reading other books. But thanks to your blog email I moved it up and bam!I was reading and twisting uncomfortably due to having a similar reaction to confrontation as Emory had. Satisfying reads, what else can make us read through so many “meh so so” books hoping to find an Aha. Thanks for pushing me to a satisfying aha.

    Reply
    • Chautona Havig says

      August 14, 2018 at 2:59 pm

      Wasn’t it good!

      Reply
  2. joyofreadingweb says

    August 13, 2018 at 3:11 pm

    I love reading Sarah Monzon’s books!! I’m glad you enjoyed this one and I hope you get the opportunity to read more of her wonderful books!

    Reply
    • Chautona Havig says

      August 13, 2018 at 3:29 pm

      I have every intention of doing… um… Esther something next. It was recommended.

      Reply
      • joyofreadingweb says

        August 14, 2018 at 4:10 am

        Yes! The Esther Paradigm

        Reply
        • Chautona Havig says

          August 14, 2018 at 2:59 pm

          YES! That one. I may jus thave to buy it so I don’t have shelving issues.

          Reply
  3. Patty says

    August 13, 2018 at 5:16 am

    I also read this in the last week or so, thoroughly enjoyable! Also my first book by Sarah.
    I’ve had a Kindle for years, but never read that much on it. Instead, using it for email, Facebook etc. That is until authors started releasing Kindle only Novellas. Now I’ve actually started reading full length books on it ?

    Reply

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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.

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