Miss Fishfly by Linda S. Glaz

Miss Fishfly by Linda S. Glaz
Publisher: White Rose Publishing
Genre: Contemporary, Holiday, Inspirational
Length: Short Story (89 pgs)
Heat Level: Sweet
Rating: 4 stars
Reviewed by Fern

Searching for love everywhere but in the right places, Christie Hayes is confounded when chocolate brown eyes wink at her at her best friend’s wedding. A narrow miss of the bedpan, and she discovers old Mr. Hartway’s grandson, Colton Keller, and brown eyes are one in the same.

Migraines are very painful headaches which regularly come with other indicators like queasiness, vomiting as well as the increased level of sensitivity to light and canadian cialis mastercard sound. The physical issues concerning sexual issues of men need medical discount viagra the usa attention. You will have to keep numerous things in mind before you file the Propecia lawsuit or not. online pharmacy sildenafil Kamagra is available in the form of tablets which is favorites for those people who don’t like to share such problems with viagra 100 mg their partner. Christie Hayes has a record for falling for the bad boy, then having her heart crumpled and broken. Maid of Honour at her best friend’s wedding, freshly single again, she swears not to repeat her mistakes, only to find herself unable to look away from one of the best men. Cole Keller has a new mantra – love ‘em and move on. With his shady past and wounded heart after his previous love had run off with a friend while he was captured in a cell in Iraq, Cole has no desire to open himself up to that brand of heartache again. Thrown together again after the wedding, Christie is surprised when one of her patients turns out to be Cole’s grandfather, dying of cancer but determined to live until the fireworks on Fourth of July. This is a heart warming story where Christie and Cole have more than a few cupids trying to set them up – and also some obstacles and mis-communications confounding them both.

I found this to be really well written, with characters that sucked me in right from the first chapter. Cole and Christie have both been hurt, damaged in their own way, and both are trying to make the best of their solitude. Working through their personal issues, and with friends and family urging them to open themselves more to the spiritual side of human nature, and have faith and trust in God more, there is a lot going on in this story. Full of fun antics, heartwarming friendship and complicated relationships this is a fast-paced novel that draws you in and held my attention throughout. I also got a bit of a kick out of the “friends without benefits” line they tried to describe their burgeoning relationship as it was different to so many other novels out there.

While Christianity and God are a heavy influence in this book, it’s not the sole driving force behind the plot. Instead, it’s woven quite skillfully throughout the story, instead of being Bible-bashed or hammered into the reader. I found this far more realistic, and more of a pleasure to read than other Christian inspirational books. Church, God, spirituality and Christian beliefs are a strong theme, especially relating to love, marriage and trust – but it’s worked well into the characters, their interactions and their friends giving advice. I found this still managed to give a strong impression, but not drive the whole story. I thought this left the characters and plot far more room to shine and grow, and quite enjoyed this style of story telling.

Conversely quite a bit of the story is dedicated to misunderstandings between Cole and Christie. While this was a bit more clichéd and predictable, there were enough surprises and fresh, different aspects that it didn’t overshadow the story or detract much from my enjoyment. One of the most notable surprises was a particular scene where Cole and Christie go on their first date, and Cole tells Christie about his experiences in Iraq. While not graphic or gore-filled, I personally found them a challenging read – and certainly something totally different for a romance novel. I think the author had a lot of guts adding this into the book. To my mind it adds an extra layer of reality to the character of Cole, an ex-solider, but also was something quite unexpected. While the mis-communications were a little clichéd, they were totally offset by some of the stronger details of soldiers getting used to civilian life after war, the realities of facing death from sickness (cancer), and learning to overcome hurt in the past and betrayal by family, lovers and other people important in our lives. This certainly isn’t your average Christian romance book, that’s for sure.

An interesting blend of classic, sweet and military – I feel certain this will appeal to a wide range of readers. There is no graphic sex, and indeed nothing stronger than a few kisses between Cole and Christie. I found this sweet enough to let mature teenagers read or to loan to your mum or granny. This is still undoubtedly a romance and filled with a strong, interesting cast of secondary characters and a vibrant moral/Christian themed basis. I think there’s also plenty of reality and enough adventures to interest a broad range of tastes. I thoroughly enjoyed it and would happily read more by this author.