The Second Yes Review, Guest Post and Giveaway!

Posted by abakersp in Contemporary / 6 Comments

The Second Yes FB Baer

Welcome to the Celebrate Lit Blog Tour for The Second Yes. This is a sweet collection of romantic stories that go perfectly with wedding season.

About the Book

The Second Yes

Book: The Second Yes

Author: Chautona Havig

Genre: Fiction / Christian / Romance

Release date: May 15, 2019

The Second Yes: Five of today’s Best-selling Christian Authors weave six brand-new, unique, interconnected stories of what happens after the bride says yes to him and yes to the dress.

Something Borrowed, Someone Blue: A borrowed dress, half-completed marriage counseling, and a last-minute theft.

Let’s face it. Weddings equal stress for the families involved. Preachers, however, have it easy. Or so they say.

Ty Jamison’s first parishioner is getting married. Though he’s performed many services at the little chapel in New Cheltenham–grand affairs, all designed to give the illusion of simplicity–all of them were strangers to him.

So when Lara Priest asks him to perform the ceremony at her wedding, and to use the chapel, of course, Ty is thrilled. That joy fades as one by one, things go wrong. From a groom who refuses to attend pre-marital counseling to Lara discovering that her dream wedding dress is a no-can-do, what can go wrong seems to.

And like so many weddings that movies are made of, things go from bad to worse to “worser.”

All the while, Ty tries to remind himself that he only has to provide a little premarital counseling, show up, perform the service, and find a way to hide his broken heart through the whole ordeal.

All in a life’s work.

Click here to purchase your copy.

My Perspective

This was a fun collection of books to read. Each author had something different to contribute, and I really appreciated that. They stayed true to their own writing style in my opinion, rather then trying to blend styles to make the collaboration “better”. Does it really make it better? Maybe sometimes, but in this case I felt each individual story was able to shine because they chose not to do this.

Season of Surprises was a joy to read. First of all, I love rekindled relationships, especially one (or both) of the characters are so hesitant against it at first. It paints a beautiful picture of second chances, which doesn’t have to only apply to our love lives! But the true surprise was how much I loved the plot line. Having the tailor of your aunt’s wedding dress accidentally sell it!? That’s a Hallmark story in the making right there 🙂

Something Borrowed, Something Blue was true Havig from start to finish. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again. Havig has such a fun and quirky writing style that you cannot help but smile when reading her stories. She also tackles some interesting character dynamics – two people with different spiritual beliefs coming together. She’s not afraid to ask some tough questions, and allow her characters to have some internal dialogue that the readers are already thinking (such as what church would they go to, would you want to go to church separately, are his beliefs something she’s going to be able to live with). The way Havig wrote the minister in this story was brilliant. I don’t want to say too much, because it’ll ruin the story. Just trust me on this!

I’m not sure what more I could say about Black Belt, White Dress then this – what an adventure! Those who have overbearing moms will especially love and connect with this story line in my opinion. But skydiving over the Grand Canyon as your wedding? To see the outcome of that alone had my interest in this story!

Terry’s emotional story, Sewn Together, was simply beautiful. She is an exceptional writer, and very good at playing with a reader’s emotions. Readers who are looking for inspiration, a good love story, and heartwarming characters are sure to love this story. Have tissues nearby – I needed them a time or two!

The Second Yes by Amanda Tru is a great story that was the perfect finish to this collection. There is fun, romance, a little trouble making, and a making of a Hallmark movie all on its own. London was such a cool character – charming, fun, and a little devious. Yes, you can have that in Christian fiction!! This story definitely put a smile on my face!

So friends, as you can see this collection of stories has a little something for everyone. I encourage you to read every single one of them. They will lift your spirits, make you laugh, and certainly make you smile.

I received a complimentary copy of this book. I was not required to write a favorable review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

About the Author

Chautona

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

The tiny bridal shop held dozens of dresses. Frothy princess dresses, twenties dropped-waist dresses, straight, short, silky, shiny satin, lace, beaded appliques… I looked at them all and found an ivory jacquard, tea length, dress by Jessica McClintock. It was a hundred dollars. To a girl making $4.25 an hour and too broke to buy food, it might as well have been a thousand. Still, it was also cheaper than any other dress in the store and just my style.

I pulled out the twenty-dollars I’d saved by doing extra work around my apartment for the landlord and said I’d put it on layaway.

My maid of honor protested.

The dress wasn’t fancy enough. It didn’t reach the floor. It wasn’t white. I didn’t look good in ivory (she was right on that one, anyway), and the veil I’d fallen in love with—you know the $120 veil I could never afford—wouldn’t look good with it.

Duh.

Look, I was eighteen (barely), and had parents who would have paid me to elope in Las Vegas in lieu of the wedding. Two months later, we did go… And we still had the wedding, but that’s a story for another day.

I left the store with my choice on layaway. Went home and later told my fiancé about the thing. He said to get the one I wanted. And I had. Still, I got the impression that he thought I actually wanted the other one… and maybe he meant that I should get that one.

That left a conundrum. Did he like the sound of the other one more? Was that why? The traditional white and floor-length thing? I went back to the shop the next day to look again. Seriously, if we’d had cellphones back then, I would have taken a picture and asked him.

That’s when I found out the white one was now on layaway—not the ivory I’d chosen. The decision had been made for me.

AND SO WENT THE REST OF MY WEDDING PLANNING.

I made one decision. It was countermanded as not grand enough, not traditional enough, too cheap, not enough… One decision, I’d made involved flowers. I called to ask about something after I’d ordered them and found they’d been changed to something else. I lost it—informed the florist that if any changes were not made in person with my driver’s license as proof of me making them, then when the wedding day came, if the flowers were wrong, I’d do without flowers. We wouldn’t have any. And I wouldn’t pay for them.

I wish I’d have had the backbone to do more of that.

But come on, I was eighteen. My mother didn’t have anything to do with wedding planning. They’d agreed to show up in whatever clothes we told them to, and that was it.

Back to the dress. I think it’s important to note that I did love that white, floor-length dress. It was beautiful, it looked good on me, and it would make for lovely pictures. It would.

IT JUST WASN’T WHAT I’D CHOSEN.

You see, I’d said “yes” to a dress—just not the one that I had agreed to pay for. Instead, it was the one that was almost four times the cost of the one I already couldn’t afford.

I’d always planned to tell the story—fictionalized, of course—but I figured it would be about Rockland’s wedding planning company, “The Agency.” So, when it came time to do my book for the next Crossroads collection, The Second Yes, I was surprised to discover that elements of my own wedding kept cropping up in different ways.

The motivation is different in Something Borrowed, Someone Blue, but the result is the same—a girl who, no matter what happens, can’t seem to have the wedding she envisions.

The question is… is that a good thing?

Blog Stops

Truth and Grace Homeschool Academy, June 17

A Baker’s Perspective, June 18

Quiet Quilter, June 19

For Him and My Family, June 20

Through the Fire Blogs, June 21

Cultivating Us, June 22

Carpe Diem, June 23

Debbie’s Dusty Deliberations, June 24

Kat’s Corner Books, June 25

Stephanie’s Life of Determination, June 26

Power of Words, June 26 (spotlight)

Texas Book-aholic, June 27

janicesbookreviews, June 28

A Reader’s Brain, June 29

Inklings and notions, June 30

Giveaway

To celebrate her tour, Chautona is giving away a grand prize that includes a Spa Basket designed to soothe any bride’s nerves (or to make any reader feel as though she is part of the bridal party and getting pampered before the big day) and also includes a $25 gift certificate to Amazon (Image not reflective of actual contents)!!

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/e514/the-second-yes-celebration-tour-giveaway

6 responses to “The Second Yes Review, Guest Post and Giveaway!

  1. Lelia (Lucy) Reynolds

    Sounds like one I would love to read. Thank you for sharing.

  2. Dianne Casey

    Sounds like a great summer read. Looking forward to reading the book.

  3. Caryl Kane

    Sounds like a great beach read. Thank you for being part of the tour.