For Pete's Sake by Linda Windsor

This week, the
Christian Fiction Blog Alliance
is introducing
For Pete's Sake
Book Two of the Piper Cove Chronicles
(Avon Inspire - April 1, 2008)
by
Linda Windsor

ABOUT THE BOOK

For Pete's Sake is a remarkable story about the unlikely live between a grown-up tomboy and the millionaire next door.

Ellen Brittingham isn’t sure true live exists until she contracts to do the landscaping of the estate of the sophisticated widower next door, Adrian Sinclair. Adrian has it all—at least on the surface, He’s engaged to a beautiful woman who helped him build a successful business and he’ll soon have a mom for his troubled son Pete.

Yet, from the moment Ellen rescues a stranded Adrian on her Harley, his well-ordered world turns upside down, cracking his thin façade of happiness and revealing the void of faith and love behind it. Even more, his son seems to have his own sites set on Ellen – as his new mom.

As Ellen’s friendship grows with Pete, she realizes that his father is about to marry the wrong woman for the right reasons. And despite her resolve to remain “neighbors only” with the dad, the precocious boy works his way into her heart, drawing Ellen and Adrian closer. Close enough for heartbreak, for Pete’s sake!

But how can her heart think that Adrian Sinclair is the one when he’s engaged to a sophisticated beauty who is everything Ellen isn’t. When Ellen’s three best friends see she’s been bitten by the love bug, they jump into action and submit her to a makeover that reveals the woman underneath her rough exterior and puts her in contention for Adrian’s love.

But Ellen must ask herself whether she’s ready to risk the heart that she’s always held close. Will Ellen be able to trust that God brought this family into her life for a reason? Or will her fear of getting hurt cause her to turn away from God’s plan and her one true chance at love?

MY REVIEW:

For Pete’s sake, Adrian’s sake and Ellen’s sake….this book is fantastic! I was so pleasantly surprised by this story! Not knowing what to expect, I began reading only to find myself genuinely drawn to the main characters. Ellen was the perfect blend of tomboy and down-to-earth girl that you couldn’t help but love her, and Peter and Adrian were so in need of someone to love them back into existence that you found yourself automatically cheering for them every time they loosened up and started to have a good time!

Linda Windsor did a wonderful job of creating characters that you really care about, and then mixed in a romance that drew you even further into their lives. But the kicker for me, was that she went a step further and added a mystery and some suspenseful scenarios toward the end that really kicked your reading into high-gear! This was the perfect blend of everything I have come to love in Christian fiction, and I thoroughly enjoyed this story!

I think Ellen’s blend of motorcycle riding, landscaping and love for children created a character that anyone could love. The faith that was lived out among the members of her family was believable and practical, and Adrian’s own struggle to keep God at arm’s length couldn’t help but be affected by the genuine love of Christ ebbing all around him. And precious Pete….he represents the struggle many people face today as they try to meet the needs of their children and balance them with the responsibility of their work schedule. Linda Windsor touched on real emotions in every area, and her resolution came about in a believable and very exciting way!

No matter who we are, from successful businessman to director of the local children’s program, we all have to submit to God’s will in our lives. When that submission comes, we always find that God’s plans for our lives far exceed anything we could have ever dreamed or imagined. I highly recommend this book, and I look forward to the next installment!