Book Review: Grace Unexpected by Gale Martin
Book Description: Grace Unexpected
Grace Unexpected by Gale Martin
Thirty-something Grace Savage has slogged through crummy jobs and dead-end relationships with men who would rather go bald than say “I do”. In search of respite from her current job, she visits Shaker Village in New Hampshire. Instead of renewal, she’s unnerved to learn that Shaker men and women lived and worked side by side in complete celibacy.
When her longtime boyfriend dumps her instead of proposing, Grace avows the sexless Shaker ways. Resolved to stick to her new plan – dubbed the Shaker Plan – despite ovaries ticking like time bombs, she returns to her life in Pennsylvania. Almost immediately, she's juggling two eligible bachelors: Addison, a young beat reporter; and True, a venerable anthropology professor. Both men have ample charms and soul mate potential to test her newfound Shaker-style self-control, and Grace appears to be on the fast track to a marriage proposal… until secrets revealed deliver a death rattle to the Shaker Plan.
Grace Unexpected Book Review
A great read. The ending was unexpected. I don’t know how it will work out but, all in all, the whole story is incredible and shows a different level of understanding when it comes to the word ‘love’. – Ara of My Book and My Coffee
Grace Unexpected is a story about Grace Savage, a woman who thought she’d get a proposal from her longtime boyfriend, Christian, on her 35th birthday. Oh well, let’s just say that it was a mistake, that Grace should have seen this coming instead. But if you ask me, ‘Good riddance to bad rubbish’.
Before this birthday fiasco, Grace and her sister-in-law went on a vacation; they went to Shaker Village in New Hampshire. This Shaker-village-experience led her to learn how men and women of that village lived: in complete celibacy. After what happened on her birthday, she decided to declare a plan that will let her concentrate more on work – the Shaker plan, giving up sex unless it’s with a man she has a commitment with. A noble plan, I must say.
The next events weren’t so easy for Grace especially when it seemed like this plan attracted two of the most adorable bachelors in the planet – Addison and True. :)
The story, overall, is very interesting. I remember feeling really happy and excited for Grace when she and Addison were together. And I had the same feeling when Grace was with True. The story is very modern, you know. I mean, from where I came from, you cannot date two guys at once. It’s frowned upon, not really illegal. You can entertain multiple suitors but then it’s really up to you if you want to ‘date’ one of them. I feel old sharing this with you. HAHA. But I understand what Grace went through in this story. She wanted to explore and decide from there. What her heart will tell her after getting to know the two, etc. The problem was she liked them both and could not decide. I felt the ‘sparks’ between her and Addison. I felt how enchanted she was with True, and how he True-ly adored and cared for her. So will she go with the one with ‘sparks’ or the enchanting one? I tried to put my self in her shoes and I, too, could not decide.
The story is never a bore because aside from her dating life, Grace will also experience some office madness that may or may not be a good thing for her career and, overall, her life.
Characters in the story: Special mention to Goody. He is one of my favorites. You’ll encounter a McDisaster character here and she’s one to lookout for; she’s a real piece of work. And of course, I like Grace. She’s funny and intelligent. Maybe not so much when it comes to dating. LOL. There’s a big ‘OMG’ there. You’ll have to find out for yourself.
One let down here is the ending. I’m not completely happy about how the story ended. Yes, it is a happy ending because of what happened to Grace but ‘question marks’ are floating in my head. Like, why? And how will it work out? And it’s like I need one more chapter before this ending so I can understand why this has to happen and with this person. I guess I needed more to feel the sweet and happy ending as it's intended to be.
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Thank you for reading!
2 Dazzling Comments
Ara, thank you for the generous and thoughtful review. So pleased to receive 4 stars. Thank you, thank you, thank you.
ReplyDeleteHi Gale! Thank you for stopping by! Thank you as well. You're so sweet.
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