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Chautona Havig

Chautona Havig

Using story to connect YOU to the Master Storyteller

Guest Post: Buying Love by Toni Shiloh

by Chautona Havig · 4 Comments

I love fiction.  Always have. Any time I’ve had to try to explain something, I’ve always done it in story. For example, when my oldest was just about two or three, she got rough with a book and tore a page.  Many of my friends would have given a brief explanation of how to take care of a book.  I wrote a children’s picture book.  (I’m still looking for an illustrator for that one!  It’s a nice story!!!)

But when I review a book, I try to be sure to share what I loved about a book and the things I or others might take issue with.  Sometimes, I fear, that creates the impression that I didn’t enjoy it. So, I’ve decided to do guest author posts here on occasion–to combat that misconception AND to highlight favorites.  If you see a guest author post, no matter what issues I might have addressed in my review, I liked that book!

guest post toni shiloh

One such review was Toni Shiloh’s Buying Love. I really enjoyed the characters, the setting, the storyline, and the dog of choice.  I loved that Toni told a faith-filled story without preaching and did it with a unique twist on an old idea. I’m looking forward to the next one in the series.  Yes, I did share what I thought its weaknesses were, but that’s not to imply I didn’t like it.  I wouldn’t have said I did if I didn’t! So, I asked her to come on over and share a bit of her inspiration.

Buying Love

buying love by toni shilohWill money ruin everything?

Nina Warrenton is ready for the next step in her life plan—marriage, but no one has proposed. Taking matters into her hand, she places an ad in the newspaper hoping to entice a willing stranger. But when she begins to fall for the small-town chef, she realizes how much she wants him to love her and not her money.

Dwight Williams needs fast cash to save the family restaurant. When he sees Nina’s monetary offer for a husband, he goes for it. He’s determined to save the legacy his dad left him, but can he let it go to prove his love for her?

Can Nina and Dwight find true love, once money has entered the equation?

Without further ado, Toni Shiloh!

author toni shilohThank you so much for having me today! I’m so excited about Buying Love’s release. It’s the first book in the Maple Run series. Maple Run is a fictional town I set in Northern Virginia. Funny thing about the town, I was driving one day to pick apples with my two boys when we passed this area that was absolutely beautiful. It was on the edge of Loudoun County and the fall foliage was breathtaking. I thought to myself, what a great setting for a story. Thus, Maple Run was born.

In Buying Love, my hero, Dwight Williams is a chef at his family-owned restaurant, The Maple Pit. I wanted it to have a cozy atmosphere that inspired fellowship, laughter and of course, make the readers hungry. So, the idea of a restaurant in a renovated barn came to mind.

Most of my story thoughts come at me in blips. Since I don’t plot before I write, the story can go in any direction. It’s fun to see what the characters have to say and what they want to do. Of course, some of them (ahem, Nina) like to stay in their comfort zone. I’m a big fan of pushing them, so I’m constantly asking myself, “How can I make them more uncomfortable?”

In Buying Love, the answer came mostly in the form of Mrs. Williams. She has a way of getting under your skin. She means well but doesn’t always go about it with finesse. Now that I’m into the third book in the series, I’m wondering if she may have a story to tell. For now, I’m enjoying the characters of this great town and where they’re taking me.

You can learn more about Toni and her books here:

Website
Facebook

And, for fun, I’m giving away a copy of Toni Shiloh’s book. Just answer the question she asked below:

If you’ve read Buying Love what was your favorite aspect?

And if you haven’t read it, be sure to let us know what you think of the synopsis.  What appeals most to you?

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Filed Under: Book Reviews, Guest Post

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Comments

  1. Emma Filbrun says

    November 24, 2016 at 8:46 pm

    I haven’t read this book, or anything by her, but I do wonder if love can be real when money is involved?

    Reply
    • Chautona Havig says

      November 24, 2016 at 10:37 pm

      It’s hard to imagine, but I think through the ages of marriages that were made for alliances etc. that turned out to be loving relationships. So it obviously happens, but it’s difficult to imagine. I think Toni did a good job of showing that.

      Reply
      • Toni Shiloh says

        November 25, 2016 at 6:01 am

        Thank you, Chautona. You said it perfectly.

        Reply
  2. Toni Shiloh says

    November 24, 2016 at 3:39 am

    Thank you so much for having me!

    Reply

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The Because Fiction Podcast

The Because Fiction Podcast
The Because Fiction Podcast

Taking the pulse of Christian fiction

Because Fiction: A Chat with Split-Time Author, Melanie Dobson
byChautona Havig

I chatted with Melanie Dobson a few weeks ago, and boy was it a wonderful time of talking about my favorite books of hers and her latest release, The Wings of Poppy Pendleton. Listen in to the heartwrenching story that sparked the idea for the book and the delicious (and fascinating) research she did to write it!

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

How a Family Mystery Sparked the Idea for a Beautiful Story

The Wings of Poppy Pendleton takes place during the dichotomous Gilded Age among New York’s famous Thousand Islands.  Combining a family mystery with that era, Melanie Dobson creates a wonderful story that echoes the tumultuous time at the turn of the 20th century.

We chatted about the research involved–both for Melanie’s family mystery of a missing child who was in a photo but no one knew who she was and for the era and area as well.  I loved hearing how her mother got involved in trying to discover what happened to… was it Marjorie?  I think.  And, of course, how that helped shape the story of this book.

The Wings of Poppy Pendleton by Melanie Dobson

In this compelling new time-slip mystery, a little girl goes missing from her family’s castle in the Thousand Islands of New York. Eighty-five years later, a journalist teams up with a woman living on Koster Isle to find out what happened to Poppy, once and for all.

1907. On the eve of her fifth birthday, Poppy Pendleton is tucked safely in her bed, listening to her parents entertain New York’s gilded society in their Thousand Islands castle; the next morning, she is gone, and her father is found dead in his smoking room.

1992. Though Chloe Ridell lives in the shadows of Poppy’s castle, now in ruins, she has little interest in the mystery that still captivates tourists and locals alike. She is focused on preserving the island she inherited from her grandparents and reviving their vintage candy shop. Until the day a girl named Emma shows up on Chloe’s doorstep, with few possessions, save a tattered scrapbook that connects her to the Pendleton family. When a reporter arrives at Chloe’s store, asking questions about her grandfather, Chloe decides to help him dig into a past she’d thought best left buried. The haunting truth about Poppy, they soon discover, could save Emma’s life, so Chloe and Logan must work together to investigate exactly what happened long ago on Koster Isle.

You can learn more about Melanie Dobson on her WEBSITE.  Also follow her on GoodReads and BookBub.

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