Synopsis
Single mom Laura Lessoway won’t accept her mother’s plan of selling her late grandmother’s inn without a fight. But when big-city attorney Jonathan Masters arrives to arrange an offer from his client, she’s drawn to him. And working together as he helps with repairs only brings them closer. With his career and her home on the line, can they ever find common ground?
Evaluation
As Christians, we are aware of how vital it is to keep the battleground of our minds holy and void of worldly thoughts regarding love and relationships. Falling for the Innkeeper is a safe romance to read with a powerful message of godly attraction.
I Fell in Love
I don’t read romance novels, so I don’t know how author Meghann Whistler did it, but I fell in love while reading this novel. Two lines specifically made me gush:
“Then he watched her climb the stairs, feeling curiously disappointed that she’d been thinking of their challenge when all he’d been thinking about was…her.” (page 61)
“What he didn’t say was the word that was playing on an endless repeat loop in his head:
“Mine.” (page 166)
When I read the first line, I was disturbed (as not being a fan of romance) by how it swept me off my feet. I got butterflies and had this irresistible smile in my soul. That was a smooth line.
The second one was so much better than any account of sexual intimacy I’ve read in other romance novels. This was two souls uniting. This was falling in love, not falling into bed. What was happening between Jonathan and Laura was natural and holy and beautiful. It was real, and it got me good.
Christian Romance
Unlike mainstream romance that relies heavily on physical attraction (because sex sells), this book develops through an emotional and spiritual connection between two people. This is by far the most realistic way people fall in love that lasts. The “love” you read about in all those lust-driven pages of “romance” novels is but a page or two of thrill and pleasure. This entire BOOK was endorphin-inducing.
Author’s Natural-Born Talent
Usually when a writer picks a location for a book, especially somewhere that’s extraordinarily gorgeous or dear to their heart, they’ll do everything in their power to emphasize that as a theme in the book. It’s exhausting and has nothing to do with the plot or characters most of the time, and it’s just a bunch of useless description.
Whistler’s experience in Cape Cod crossed the pages naturally. Places she’s either been or imagined were crystal clear to picture. There was a subtle amount of detail that was included in the scene effortlessly. The way she described the characters, too, was downright beautiful. From fleet-footed treks across the rocks by the beach to shingle-roofed streets and candy shops with homey owners. Everything in the book felt so real it was as though I were embedded in the scene.
Before Falling for the Innkeeper, I have never read a romance novel that I would recommend to others. I’ll be buying this book for my sisters, my best friend, and I’ll be suggesting it every opportunity I get. Love stories that inspire hope, encourage vulnerability, and create realistic expectations are romance novels written right!
Danny Raye 