Forever Love

The Women of Manatee Bay #3

by Jessica Nelson

Sky-diving instructor Maggie McCormick has a reputation in her small town for living on the wild side. What people don't know is how her painful choices have whittled away at her soul. Determined to be done with romantic relationships, she's ready to focus on a deeper relationship with God. She wants to prove she's different and dreams of opening a home for young mothers. When she stumbles across the perfect property, things seem to be going well until she discovers the owner is none other than her good-looking pastor. And he's refusing to sell.
Pastor Joe O'Reilly has big plans for his church and they don't include selling his inheritance to free-spirited, motorcyclist Maggie McCormick. When her desire to help young mothers inspires him to assist her in the quest for land, he doesn't expect to start falling for her. But Maggie guards dark secrets that could destroy his faith in their love.
Can Maggie trust Joe to love her despite her past, especially when she sees forever in his eyes?

298 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 7, 2015

About the author

My heart is filled with romantic stories, my shelves are loaded with chocolate and my lips are always longing for one more cup of Starbucks. Besides that, I write for Love Inspired Historical and am a happy mom to a bunch of little boys. I love connecting with readers and writers.

Reviews

[Amanda Clark · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed how realistic Pastor Joe and his struggles are. I find that we often put our pastors on a shelf and forget they aren't human. So, it was nice to see him struggle with the same things that we all do, and to have a few skeletons in the closet. It was nice to see him as human. However, something that really bothered me is that his family is Catholic and his mom wanted him to be a priest...which means they're pretty Catholic and not just Cafeteria Catholics. Yet, there is no discussion of his conversion or why he made it, there is no discussion of why he's Protestant. The closest it comes is that he says he just wasn't called to that. As a former Protestant who converted to Catholicism, this bothered me. Leaving one religion for another is not an easy decision, or one to be made lightly. It would've been more believable had he just fallen away and not been a pastor. The fact that he is a pastor and studied theology would mean that he had a significant reason for his conversion, yet it comes off like it's no big deal and there is no real difference in Catholicism and Protestantism.

I completely understand that that isn't the focus of the story, and that the author probably wanted to stay far away from that debate (and I don't blame her) but, because a reoccurring theme throughout is Joe's mother's sadness over his not becoming a priest, it really needed to be at least touched on a little more deeply to give us a better insight into him and the way his family functions.

The second big thing that I would've liked to see changed is that there is a rift between Maggie and Joe's mother seemingly only because Joe likes her and isn't going to be a priest, especially once he marries. There is no reconciliation between them before the closing of the book. This really bothered me because Maggie was quite distressed over his mother not liking her, so I feel like she should've reached out to her. There's even a great bit of foreshadowing in how well they got along during their first meeting that would've been a perfect way to mend fences, but that never happens.

Despite these two plot holes, I really enjoyed this one. It delves in to a lot of deeper faith topics, especially forgiveness and dealing with our pasts in order to move forward. This is a great, quick read and I highly recommend it.

*I was given this book free in exchange for an honest opinion.

[Christy · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a romance book that handles a sensitive subject matter well. Early into the book it becomes clear to the reader that main character Maggie has some sensitive issues to overcome from her past. She has had abortions, which I believe may be a difficult issue for some readers. Author Nelson does a good job at discussing the issue and includes the views of Pastor Joe, who is becoming close to Maggie. I found the romance between Maggie and Joe a little too drawn out for me but then again I don't often read books of the romance genre. I did appreciate how Nelson wrote about the important subject matter of abortion.

[Tazzy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Think this was the favourite for this series. Excellent story of what it is to find redemption in Christ and learning how to lean into Him for the clean slate He gives to repentant hearts. Although it doesn't remove the consequences of prior choices, a new way of life is possible. What a great story.

[N.M. · Rating 3 out of 5]

(I received a copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review)

I honestly read Forever Love quite a while ago but never actually wrote a review for it. Usually I start writing as I'm reading because it's fresh in my mind but this time I struggled. This is not a terrible book, don't get me wrong. But I didn't find anything particularly special about it. I enjoyed the theme of the novel the best. The idea of forgiveness, and accepting others and their past resonates with me and I'm sure it will for other readers. Having this apply to a relationship with God is vital, too. I enjoyed Joe as a character. I was happy to see an imperfect past, and family. I think that's missing in many Christian novels. Maggie, while spunky, just got on my nerves. Near the end, Joe did too. His constant comments about his ex, and and Maggie getting visibly upset went on for too long. Most of that could have been taken out without affecting the plot or outcome.

Maggie would have been a bit better if we saw a bit more development. Her development seemed to happen when she came to Christ. Yes, accepting Joe and the relationship can be seen as a big step for her, but it wasn't as satisfying as it should have been.

Overall, it was an enjoyable and simple read. With a bit more to it (like truly flushing out the issues with Maggie and her family) I think it could be even better.