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Chautona Havig

Chautona Havig

Using story to connect YOU to the Master Storyteller

Life Is Full of Second Chances What Was Yours?

by Chautona Havig · 8 Comments

Sometimes, second chances change the whole course of your life, and sometimes they don't last long enough to. Sometimes... sometimes it's both. via @chautonahavig

We planned a fiftieth wedding anniversary party–across the miles and one we never actually held.  My parents’ fiftieth wedding anniversary happened smack dab between #1son’s and #5daughter’s graduations from college.  Oh, and just after that, I had to teach at a conference.

It would have been awkward, I told myself.  Dad’s in a home now.  Mom wasn’t.  Since being at my mom’s house in Noel, I know even better why the Lord decided that our grand plans for a party weren’t to be.  He’s pretty good at that stuff if we just don’t try to force our ideas about things.

Around that time, I had a chance to read a book about another woman’s experiences in marriage–a long one and a short one.  I figured it would be a good book, so I requested a free review copy.

My parents had a second chance, once.  I’ve had second chances.  How about you?

Second Chances Review

Links may be affiliate links that provide me with a small commission at no extra expense to you.  Additionally, I received a free copy of the book for review purposes and the following review is my opinion alone.

Life Is Full of Second Chances What Was Yours?

The genre for this book is listed as “Family and relationships/Death, Grief, Bereavement.  I’d call it a memoir.  Written almost as a diary of the author’s life over the span of about five years, we learn much of the two very different men she married, what she learned from each of them, and how the Lord blessed her with both easy and difficult marriages.

Saying goodbye to one husband is hard enough, but having to do it back-to-back has to be one of the hardest things a woman can live through, and while Ms. Mozena is raw and real about her pain, her faith shines through.  She encouraged me by her trust in the Lord in difficult times.

Still, I have to admit that some parts confused me. I find it difficult to understand why people choose which details they share. Some of the details in this are clearly very important to the author–clothing, food, decor.  But aside from a couple of things, they only confused me because I kept waiting for the point to them to show up. Unfortunately, it didn’t.

I’m glad I chose to request a review copy of the book.  If I’d known it was a memoir, I wouldn’t have, and I would have missed some encouraging stories.  Recommended for people who enjoy memoirs, seasoned romance, and encouragement in the Lord’s goodness even when it seems that He isn’t.

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Filed Under: Book Reviews

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Comments

  1. Trixi says

    November 3, 2019 at 7:43 pm

    Thank you for your review on this book. I like to read how people find strength in the Lord through difficult circumstances because it gives me hope for when I go through my own. 🙂

    Reply
  2. Bea LaRocca says

    October 25, 2019 at 6:29 pm

    Thank you for sharing your review of Second Chances. Your comments on the story were helpful.

    Reply
  3. James Robert says

    October 25, 2019 at 5:49 am

    So happy to have gotten to know about your book. Thanks so much for sharing.

    Reply
  4. Melissa Wenger says

    October 25, 2019 at 4:56 am

    I’m always looking for ways to understand what others are going through. Sounds like this book will be helpful!

    Reply
  5. Amelia says

    October 24, 2019 at 10:30 pm

    This book sounds really good.

    Reply
  6. Dianna says

    October 24, 2019 at 8:02 pm

    I’m not typically a fan of memoirs but just finished two. So, maybe I should start reading more of them!

    Reply
  7. Debbie P says

    October 24, 2019 at 4:21 pm

    This book sounds like a fantastic read.

    Reply
  8. Rita Wray says

    October 24, 2019 at 11:30 am

    Sounds like a good read.

    Reply

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The Because Fiction Podcast

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Taking the pulse of Christian fiction

Episode 512: A Chat with Tim Bishop
byChautona Havig

I had the best time chatting with Tim Bishop about his book, The Road Unveiled. If you want to learn about the phobia that I never knew I had, listen in. I mean, there’s a great story you won’t want to miss learning about as well.

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

I loved Tim’s heart for people, cycling, and the Lord as we chatted about his books, his later-in-life marriage, and their own long cycling trips!

And I’m really glad my husband likes to cycle alone! Far away from tunnels.

The Road Unveiled by Tim Bishop

Two wounded hearts. Long, winding roads. And second chances neither saw coming. Lauren Baumgartner pedals toward Yellowstone National Park, anticipating a grand celebration when she reaches the Atlantic Ocean. But when her wedding plans collapse, old wounds resurface—and a haunting secret still holds her heart hostage. Traveling alone with bear spray and a one-woman tent, she shares the highway with motorcyclists bound for a massive rally, including gang members who eye her as theirs for the taking. Doug Zimmer, another lone cyclist, is grappling with loss and wondering if anyone will be alongside him when he figures out what’s next. He isn’t the only one drawn to Lauren’s vitality and spirit. But Lauren may already be in too deep. What she faces on the Golden Prairie Indian Reservation tests her courage—and her faith—more than anything she encountered as a missionary in Uganda. A woman with a secret and a man healing from loss pedal the rugged roads of the American West on a quest for love and purpose that leads to unexpected horizons.

Visit Tim’s online store HERE and put in code: FRIEND for 25% off your order!

Learn more about Tim on his WEBSITE and follow on GoodReads and BookBub.

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Not all romance soars on silver-lined clouds with Not all romance soars on silver-lined clouds with a #9 dangling from it. Some people can't get it right no matter how hard they try. Meet Heath Karras. Bless him, he's about as awkward with women as they come. Need proof? How about the fact that he has a string of first dates and no second dates.  Or what about the gal who went home and informed her mother that he'd be single for the rest of his life?
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Not THAT way anyway.
After studying everything the Bible has to say about marriage, she’s decided she wants in. Now. So who’s going to take her up on that offer?
And just why did no one remind her that those vows include that little word, “love?”
Oops!
With her Bible in her hip pocket and a shiny new ring on her finger, Bentley navigates this new world of marriage with grace and… oh, who is she kidding? She flounders until she gets a sure footing and hangs on tight.
Grab the first book of this unusual series today! https://amzn.to/49UP8Oh #affiliatelink
Available on Kindle Unlimited, too!
#Christfic
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CrossWords--an absolutely fictional store inspired CrossWords--an absolutely fictional store inspired by a real and lovely treasure in Greeneville, Tennessee.  Have a slice of pizza at The Gentry with Milton and Atticus, grab a cup of coffee from Catalyst or Iris Books and Coffee, but whatever you do, don't leave town without grabbing a salted caramel bachelor's button from Peggy Ann's Bakery. YUM.
And if only Christian Books & Gifts would create that Airbnb for me... because it's all about me, right?  WRONG! It's about the lovely folks @christianbookandgiftgrv.  Thanks for letting me fictionalize you! I'm having a blast!
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