Susan May Warren's Take a Chance on Me ~ Reviewed

Take A Chance On Me (Christiansen Family Novel)
By Susan May Warren

Release Date   Apr 1, 2013 
Publisher   Tyndale House Publishers 
ISBN  1414378416  


Description:

Darek Christiansen is almost a dream bachelor—oldest son in the large Christiansen clan, heir to their historic Evergreen Lake Resort, and doting father. But he’s also wounded and angry since the tragic death of his wife, Felicity. No woman in Deep Haven dares come near. 

New assistant county attorney Ivy Madison simply doesn’t know any better when she bids on Darek at the charity auction. Nor does she know that when she crafted a plea bargain three years ago to keep Jensen Atwood out of jail and in Deep Haven fulfilling community service, she was releasing the man responsible for Felicity’s death. All Ivy knows is that the Christiansens feel like the family she’s always longed for. And once she gets past Darek’s tough exterior, she finds a man she could spend the rest of her life with. Which scares her almost as much as Darek learning of her involvement in his wife’s case. 

Caught between new love and old grudges, Darek must decide if he can set aside the past for a future with Ivy—a future more and more at risk as an approaching wildfire threatens to wipe out the Christiansen resort and Deep Haven itself.

Review:

Susan May Warren pens a delightful story of heartache and healing in her latest Deep Haven novel, which introduces the Christiansen family and a new series of contemporary romance tales.  Love blossoms between two couples, with all four characters authentically struggling to move past hurts in their lives. Conflict, regret, and the need for forgiveness etch each page as Darek, Ivy, Jensen, and Claire negotiate an emotional minefield as they try to discover the courage to love again. As Deep Haven is threatened by wildfire, danger and sacrifice refine each heart in this tender and compelling story.

Reviewed by: Rel Mollet

Bonus Review:

Take A Chance On Me follows Darek Christiansen, the oldest son of the Christiansen family and heir to their historic Evergreen Lake resort, and Ivy Madison, the new assistant county attorney who is looking forward to the closeness of small town life. Darek is a widower and a single father, who is still bitter over the accidental death of a wife that he didn’t love. He holds his best friend, Jensen, responsible, as he was the one that was involved in the accident. When he meets Ivy, he thinks he might be able to start over again, not realizing that Ivy was involved in the original case that kept Jensen out of prison. Ivy has no idea either, until different events start unfolding.

I really enjoyed this story. I liked seeing how all of the characters grew and began trusting the Lord. Darek really came a long way from the beginning to the end. And Ivy started off not believing in God at all, but slowly came to the knowledge that He exists and cares for her. As the story kept unfolding it was hard to put the book down!

Reviewed by: Sarah Meyers