---

---

MY REVIEW:

I had absolutely no preformed expectations when I agreed to review Blessing Bentley. Honestly I probably thought that  with a cover that cute, the book had to be a good one. That might not be the most accurate way to choose a book but in this case my instincts were on the mark.

Blessing Bentley may be the most unique novel about the path to marriage that I have ever encountered. With a quirky, determined, and dedicated to the Lord heroine it was a given that there would be plenty of humorous moments and there were. Yet blended in with Bentley’s unusual ideas about marriage was an in-depth study of what the Bible has to say about marriage.

I may not agree with all the conclusions that Bentley reached and I probably wouldn’t advise young women to attempt to follow in her footsteps but she raised plenty of ideas that all married couples should consider, whether newlyweds or an old married couple like my husband and I who are quickly approaching fifty years together.

It was a lot of fun reading Blessing Bentley and I would definitely recommend it. I think it would be a wonderful book for young women who are beginning to think about their future marriage and what it should look like. Looking forward to the other books in this series. I hope the wait will not be too long!

I voluntarily reviewed a copy of this book provided by Celebrate Lit. A favorable review was not required. All views expressed are my own.

---

---

ABOUT THE BOOK:

Book: Blessing Bentley Author: Chautona Havig Genre: Fiction / Christian / Romantic Women’s FictionRelease date: June 13, 2019Get your copy here!

Bentley Girard’s about to propose… to a guy she doesn’t even love.

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 reminded 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.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Chautona Havig lives in an oxymoron, escapes into imaginary worlds that look startlingly similar to ours and writes the stories that emerge. An irrepressible optimist, Chautona sees everything through a kaleidoscope of It’s a Wonderful Life sprinkled with fairy tales. Find her on the web and say howdy—if you can remember how to spell her name.

MORE FROM CHAUTONA:

If You Need to Save Time, Don’t Ask for Help

Not from my friend anyway. It all started with a conversation about Bentley…

She pops up now and then—the most ubiquitous (and yet not) of my unpublished characters, you might say. Who is this unsung Bentley, and why should we care about her? For that matter, why has her story been languishing in my “to be edited” pile for over a decade?”

It’s worse than that. Bentley isn’t the only book that’s been sitting there, unedited, waiting for a chance at daylight. There’s also Tait’s story. Andi’s story. Ami’s story… all the unpublished stories. Those don’t even include the partially done ones.

It’s an illness, I tell ya.

Some people may not know this about me, but I plot out my books while I’m driving. I get in the car, turn on my voice recorder, and talk to myself. You can’t know how grateful I am for cellphones. I don’t own or use one, but man I’m glad they exist. Know why? Because people don’t give you weird looks when you talk to yourself in the car now. When I was a kid, that wasn’t true. Not that I know from personal experience or anything. *whistles*

So one trip down south (it’s an hour and a half to go anywhere from my house, and most of my trips are at least three hours one way), I realized that Tait and Bentley’s stories could be merged. It would be awesome. Two books. One stone. If I did that to a bunch of my languishing manuscripts, I could clear out that unfinished file in no time! (Okay, let me dream here. Eternal optimist, remember?)

And that brings us back to Blessing Bentley

I was at my friend Sandy’s house (if you know Celebrate Lit, yes, that Sandy), and I told her I needed a new title. Why? Because now it included Tait and his story.

We talked. We schemed and plotted. Sandy wanted something to happen that just can’t. I’d seriously have to rewrite the entire series. Oh, and then there would be issues with already published books. Ahem.

Then it happened. She said the words. “It needs to be two books.”

I could have put an ice cube down her shirt. Do you remember how excited I was to have two combined into one??? Now we’re back to two books. Still, they were written as two. I just don’t have a satisfactory ending for Tait’s.

That’s when things got fun. Sandy tossed out one idea. I tossed it back. She remolded it and flipped it in the air. I caught it, made a few changes, and voila! We had a BOOK. And it would be adorable.

Then she swore at me.

Okay, so she actually just said, “You really need a third book, friend.”

Anyone who has ever heard her talk, can hear her voice there. I know you can. Still, as sweet and kind as she might have meant to sound, I heard swearing.

Another book. You’ve got to be kidding me! I went from having two books morphed into one being split back in two, and now you want to add one? I’m trying to reduce the to-do pile!

But then I remembered another story that’s been percolating since I wrote 31 Kisses. Carson’s brother is newly single. And well…

Yep. Enter trilogy.

Marriage of Conviction—that was supposed to be the title of Blessing Bentley. Who knew that when I started writing that book fifteen years ago—who knew it would end up being the title of a series instead. Marriages of Conviction. Blessing Bentley, Tempting Tait, and Charming Chloe.

Welcome to a new look on marriage and a wild ride with these characters!

And remember… if you think I have too many series… Well, this one’s Sandy’s fault.

BLOG STOPS:

Among the Reads, July 8 Cultivating Us, July 8 Texas Book-aholic, July 9 janicesbookreviews, July 10 Book Bites, Bee Stings, & Butterfly Kisses, July 10 A Reader’s Brain, July 11 Abba’s Prayer Warrior Princess, July 12 CarpeDiem, July 12 Retrospective Spines, July 13 Splashes of Joy, July 13 Back Porch Reads, July 14

Inklings and notions, July 15 Through the Fire Blogs, July 16 Godly Book Reviews, July 16 Lots of Helpers, July 17 Captive Dreams Window, July 17 Daysong Reflections, July 18 She Lives To Read, July 19 Blogging With Carol, July 19 Truth and Grace Homeschool Academy, July 20 For Him and My Family, July 21 Debbie’s Dusty Deliberations, July 21

GIVEAWAY:

To celebrate her tour, Chautona is giving away a Blessing Bentley grand prize package that includes a paperback copy of the book, a book cozy, a Blessing Bentley Candle, and a $25 Amazon gift card!!

Be sure to comment on the blog stops for nine extra entries into the giveaway! Click the link below to enter.

https://promosimple.com/ps/e550/blessing-bentley-celebration-tour-giveaway