A #1 Blackboard Bestselling Author Wayside, Oregon, seems like a Norman Rockwell painting come to life, with sixteen churches and a picturesque Main Street. For caterer Amber Montgomery, it's the perfect place to heal from her past as an abused wife. For Police Chief Paul Evans, it's the ideal town in which to raise his orphaned niece and nephew. But when Chief Evans hauls the feisty Amber to jail, this sleepy town begins to rock.
Amber Montgomery relocates to Wayside to forget about the abusive relationship she suffered with her ex-boyfriend in Los Angeles, who also happens to be a cop. Amber hates cops, and when Paul Evans mistakenly handcuffs and arrests her, she’s determined that he’ll suffer for his mistake. There’s no way she’s going to be manhandled by another cop.
Paul Evans is stunned that he’s arrested Amber by mistake. Since he’s accidentally bruised her hands during the arrest, he feels even worse. He’s trying to conquer his own demons and he’s now raising his niece and nephew as he comes to terms with things that have happened in his past.
There’s something about Amber that draws him in, in spite of her prickly, no-Jesus attitude. When Amber is hired as a cook for Paul’s church’s summer camp, the twosome find time to spend together, getting to know one another.
Amber’s a preacher’s kid, plus, she’s done lots of missionary work with her parents. She knows what it’s like not to have friends in remote areas – maybe being alone isn’t so bad. But she second guesses her opinions about relationships and faith as she gets closer to Paul.
I really enjoyed this novel. It shows how our faith can falter, almost disappear, because of traumatic circumstances. The lesson learned from this novel is, no matter what happens in your life, God is always there for you, he’ll never leave you or forsake you.
I encourage you to download this novel onto your Kindle, Nook or other e-reader.
Amber Montgomery recently moved to a small town in Oregon after escaping an abusive boyfriend. She's remade herself into a caterer, and managed to repress everything that happened to her back in L.A. Things begin to change once she meets the town's chief of police, Paul Evans.
Paul has also escaped L.A. with his orphaned niece and nephew, whose parents were brutally murdered. Paul can tell that something is up with Amber...but doesn't know what it could be.
The story takes a turn when both are called to chaperon a church youth camping trip.
A little bit less than believable, but a decent read.
This book pleasantly surprised me. Amber was a missionary's kid who drifted away from her Christian upbringing in order to "experience the world" but instead, ended up in an abusive relationship with a police officer. Paul is the police chief in their small town and when he arrests Amber by mistake, sparks definitely fly. I thought the author developed Amber's character very realistically. She's trying to rebuild her life but still carries a lot of mistrust issues. Paul is intrigued by her but he also is dealing with issues of guilt while trying to raise his niece and nephew as a single father. Paul and Amber's relationship grew organically, especially as Paul slowly learns more about Amber's past---which affects why she acts the way she does. There were moments of humor throughout the story and the spiritual component was strong and present throughout. There is a secondary storyline, with Marnie and Caleb, which I thought would be resolved but seemed to end in a bittersweet way. Although this is a stand-alone novel, there were characters from the author's previous novels, Sweet Harmony and Sweet Accord. Overall, this was a good read about a difficult issue and exemplified how God is always there and can even use your difficult past to help others.