Courting Trouble is a book that I
declined to read for a while, based on the, um, very unflattering reviews I’d
seen. (And “unflattering” is
putting it lightly…) But, I said
to myself, “Amber, be brave.
Venture forth with courage.”
Well, actually, it may have been more like, “Eh, just read it.” So I did. I would like to be able to echo the sentiments of the few
pleasing reviews that I read, but alas, I cannot.
Book Rating: Meh…
I hate to do it. I hate to rate this book so low, but I
just have to. This is my first
“Meh…” rating. I can honestly say
that I went in to this book truly believing that I would like it. Every Gist book that I have read so far
I have thoroughly enjoyed--loved, really. I
struggled through the first bit, and after a while, I decided I just couldn’t
finish it.
Essie is a “spinster”. At the ripe old age of thirty she is
afraid she will never get married.
So, she chooses a kind, older widower and decides that she will use her
charms to get him--whether she is in love with him or not. She desperately wants a family of her
own! Then along comes a “drifter”
of sorts named Adam. He’s
handsome, flattering and a complete scoundrel! Wow. I disliked
Adam from the beginning and that dislike grew to a strong visceral hatred as I
continued reading.
As Essie and Adam’s relationship
develops, I kept thinking to myself, “Holy cow! Poor girl, can’t she see he is just using her! He is SO creepy!” He continues to get more forward with
her, (ew!) and gets her to be more and more physical with him (jerk!) until
finally they…well… I was super uncomfortable with that, and I couldn’t keep
reading. I skimmed the rest, and I
kind of got the feeling that Gist might have been trying to share a message of
repentance and God’s loving atonement—which is a very good thing, since we are
all sinners. But I have to admit,
reading about their encounters was just too much for me.
But, please don't be hatin' on me! I could not be a bigger Gist fan, at all! She is wonderful and a very gifted writer, but this book just didn't do it for me--but you might love it, and if you read it, please let me know what you thought!
I wanna hear what you think about
it!
Happy Reading!
First let me say that I LOVE Deeanne Gist's books, but this one (and the sequel) are one of the harder ones for me to read. They aren't as 'exciting' as the rest. I don't know....they were kinda slow for me. I own these books but I end up skipping over them and read the rest of Gists' books intstead. You may want to try and read the second book I do think it's better than the first....there is some romance and murder in it :)
ReplyDeleteI watched an interview one time with Deeanne Gist. In this interview she said that she felt like God wanted her to write this story about Essie. She was trying to let girls and ladies know that having a man isn't going to fill and complete you. Jesus is the only thing that will totally satisfy. She thought it was sad because so many girls thought that if they didn't have a boyfriend or husband than couldn't be happy and loved. Her publishers only agreed to let her write the book if she wrote a sequel where Essie does find a good husband. After all these are supposed to be romance books and one has to have the happily-ever-after for the man and the woman! :)
ReplyDeleteI do kind of agree with you about the book being a difficult read and that it gave a little more intimate detail than I would usually read. It was kind of yucky for sure. The most of the book left me feeling kind of dirty, but I was glad for her explanation.
My favorite book by her so far, is Maid to Match.
Sylvia, I had no idea-- thank you so much for explaining that to me, that helps me understand it a lot more. I am very glad that she was trying to explain that, because it is very true. I'm so glad you shared that with me.
DeleteIt's great to hear from you!
Yes, Maid to Match is a wonderful story!!
Thank you again for stopping by!!
Hi!
ReplyDeleteI'm just checking your blog out. :)
This is more of a 2 parter. Yep, this isn't the typical escape romance, so you get the happy ever after in book #2. It's been a long time since I read them, I've kept them on my shelf since I think I'd want to allow someone to borrow them off my shelf, but I don't think I'll read them again....but book #2 does make "it better." Though if you skimmed through the rest of book #1 you might not be involved enough for Book #2.
It was certainly a risk for her in this genre. Kudos to her for trying something different. I think as a teen with the early Christian Romances I was given a too rosy look of falling in love with the perfect Christian hero--then I met my husband who was not a thing like any of them and I was a bit discombobulated, I like that there are some clean stories out there that show young romance readers that just because you've met a guy in love with you it might not turn out perfect no matter the obstacles--so be careful!
I wish i had read (and taken to heart) this book in college. Only Jesus can fill the void in our heart...no man, no s*x, nothing. I can pretty much say I was Essie before I got married so maybe that's why I liked this book so much. I can see why some might be offended by the "relations" before marriage and her willingness to go along with is, but I understood completely her desire to be wanted and loved...even by a creepy womanizer. :( Love your blog so much and have been filling up my amazon wish list and library hold list with books you review! Keep up the awesome work.
ReplyDelete