My husband and I have spoken about how I probably wouldn’t have liked him very much before he was saved, if I would have liked him at all.
Sometimes I ponder just how amazing it is that God doesn’t love us because we have given our lives to Him and because we are obedient to Him.
But God showed His love to us. While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. And since we have been made right in God’s sight by the blood of Christ, he will certainly save us from God’s condemnation. For since our friendship with God was restored by the death of his Son while we were still his enemies, we will certainly be saved through the life of his Son. So now we can rejoice in our wonderful new relationship with God because our Lord Jesus Christ has made us friends of God.
Romans 5:8-11
How amazing is that? God’s love for us isn’t because we have become His followers and because of the changes the Holy Spirit has wrought in our lives. He loved us even while we were His enemies! And that encourages me so much because it means I don’t have to worry about keeping up my “performance”, continuing to always meet His expectations to keep His love. He loved me when I was at my worst and will always love me.
Wow!
Betwixt Two Hearts
by Amanda Tru, Cathe Swanson, Kari Trumbo, Alana Terry, Carol Moncado, Chautona Havig
Series: Crossroads Collection #4
Publication Date January 9, 2019
Genres: Christian Fiction, Clean Romance, Mystery
Setting: Missouri, Minnesota, Texas, Massachusetts, South Korea Contemporary
Main Character Ages: 25-34, 35-60
Written for: Adults
Pages: 874
Synopsis:
Six of today's Best-selling Christian Authors weave six brand-new, unique, interconnected stories where nothing comes between the love betwixt two hearts.
Betwixt Two Hearts by Amanda Tru
With control of their dating website the prize, Bailey and Camden embark on a matchmaking competition that snags on unexpected results. All is fair in a contest of love. May the best matchmaker win.
The Swedehearts Glory Quilt by Cathe Swanson
Eleanor ran away to find herself. David knew exactly where to go in life and Eleanor didn't fit into that journey. Could a matchmaking agency put them on the same map?
Whole Latte Love by Kari Trumbo
Misguided Drew thinks all quiet women hide harmful secrets. While pretty, new best friend Addi's soft-spoken nature reminds him too much of past hurts to move their relationship forward. Can a matchmaking agency change his heart?
Seoul Refuge by Alana Terry
Caroline is a new believer, excited and passionate about her faith. Calvin is a Boston police detective, an atheist who can hardly believe Christians have brainwashed his wife. Caroline just wants to follow God. Calvin just wants his wife back.
Guardian of Her Heart by Carol Moncado
Signed up for a dating service by friends and brought together by a stowaway cat, Mark and Casey must decide if they want to overcome their apparent incompatibilities or go their separate ways.
Random Acts of Shyness by Chautona Havig
Heath's sister, Selby, has laid down the law. It’s time to let her take over his love life. After a series of first and only dates, Heath embarks on her new scheme to help him overcome the debilitating nervous habit that has plagued him all his life. However, between dates, each worse than the last, he tries one more time to do things his way… sort of.
I would like to thank Chautona Havig for giving me this copy of the book. This gift did not influence my opinion or review.
As with the other Crossroads collections, Amanda Tru has written the story that ties them all together. I have to say that I love the way that the authors work together to tie the stories together, not only with the main storyline of the collection but also having them fit into their own series and still making it so each one can stand alone. Whew! I’m guessing that is a lot of work!
This story is the one that ties them all together and introduces the matchmaking agency, Betwixt2Hearts.com. I started out not liking Bailey a whole lot. She was a tad selfish and not very nice to Camden at all. At one point, I was going to just skip through the rest of the story and move on to the next. I’m glad I decided to finish it. The funny thing is, when I read the author’s notes at the end of that story I found that she didn’t really like Bailey at first either. Yet Bailey’s story was one of a woman who thought she was a Christian only to find that she didn’t really know Jesus. The author did a great job of making the Gospel message clear. And taking a character who is not all that likable and through the redemptive power of the Holy Spirit showed the kind of change that can take place when we give our lives to the Lord.
It is hinted in the introductory story that there is something “off” about Eleanor living in the small town of Minnesota. I enjoyed this story.
This is my favorite of the Alana Terry books I’ve read. It doesn’t fit into the romance category as well as the others and is far more mystery and Christian fiction. The message is powerful and the story very interesting. The tie-in of Betwixt2Hearts.com to this story is not what you would expect (until you read the intro story, of course!)
I mostly think of this author as writing historical fiction. Yet in this contemporary romance, she does a fantastic job. I really liked Drew and Addi. Both are a little shy and insecure. It was fun the way they already knew each other before getting matched and I loved watching Addi’s transformation as she was able to grow past her fears.
With another Serenity Landing story, the author brings us the story of Mark, one of the bodyguards of Addie, now Queen Adeline. The way that he and Casey end up meeting when matched is so fun and unexpected.
Pastor’s wife Alana Terry is a homeschooling mom, self-diagnosed chicken lady, and Christian suspense author. Her novels have won awards from Women of Faith, Book Club Network, Grace Awards, Readers’ Favorite, and more. Alana’s passion for social justice, human rights, and religious freedom shines through her writing, and her books are known for raising tough questions without preaching. She and her family live in rural Alaska where the northern lights in the winter and midnight sun in the summer make hauling water, surviving the annual mosquito apocalypse, and cleaning goat stalls in negative forty degrees worth every second. Amanda Tru loves to write page-turning books that inspire real-life Christianity while providing plenty of unexpected twists. She figures she loses so much sleep writing the things, it’s only fair she makes readers lose sleep with books they can’t put down! Amanda’s current book list includes everything from historical, to action-packed suspense, to inspirational romance, to a Christian time travel/romance series. She is also the author and organizer behind the unique, multi-author Crossroads collection series. Amanda is a former elementary school teacher who now spends her days being mommy to her four young children and her nights furiously writing. Amanda and her family live in a small Idaho town where the number of cows outnumbers the number of people. When she’s not writing about her imaginary friends, Carol Moncado is hanging out with her husband, four kids, and a dog who weighs less than most hard cover books. She prefers watching NCIS to just about anything, except maybe watching Castle, or Girl Meets World with her kids. She believes peanut butter M&Ms are the perfect food and Dr. Pepper should come in an IV. When not watching her kids – and the dog – race around her big backyard in Southwest Missouri, she’s teaching American Government at a local community college. She’s a founding member and President of MozArks ACFW, category coordinator for First Impressions, blogger at InspyRomance, and represented by Tamela Hancock Murray of The Steve Laube Agency. Chautona Havig lives and writes in California’s Mojave Desert where she uses story to point readers to the Master Storyteller. Kari Trumbo is a best-selling author of Christian and sweet romance. She writes swooney heroes and places that become characters, with historical detail and heart. She’s a stay-at-home mom to four vibrant children. When she isn’t writing, or editing, she home schools her children and pretends to keep up with them. Kari loves reading, listening to contemporary Christian music, singing when no one’s listening, and curling up near the wood stove when winter hits. She makes her home in central Minnesota, land of frigid toes and mosquitoes the size of compact cars, with her husband of almost twenty-one years. They have two daughters, two sons, two cats, and one hungry wood stove.
This is the story that had me reading the collection. I had heard little bits about it on Facebook since the idea for it was conceived. And I was quite intrigued. I was not one bit disappointed. It was completely adorable. Heath may have become my favorite of this author’s heroes and that is saying a lot because she has written some great ones. His social awkwardness that has sabotaged relationships with women was quite cute.
About Alana Terry
About Amanda Tru
About Carol Moncado
About Chautona Havig
About Kari Trumbo
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