Blog tour stop for Delia Latham's novel Destiny's Dream, with bonus review!

About the book:

Is a little respect too much to ask at a funeral? Apparently it is for Destiny May. Clay Gallagher is built like a small mountain and far more vocal than is fitting when he shows up late to her mother's "going away party." When it turns out he's not even at the right funeral, Destiny demands retribution in the form of an escape from the day's dreary proceedings. Spending time with a handsome stranger who makes her laugh is more therapeutic than fighting with her overbearing family. Clay finds Destiny beautiful, charming...and intelligent. So why is she stubbornly determined to open a Christian dating service? Clay has little respect for such a frivolous profession, and doesn't think the small, conservative town of Castle Creek will welcome such a progressive business. But when Destiny is threatened by an anonymous caller who deeply resents her and what she does for a living, Clay makes it his business to keep the saucy redhead out of harm's way. Trouble is, spending time in her company weakens his defenses, and Destiny may be the one thing Clay can't escape... if he even wants to.

My review:

There are some things I loved about this book. For one, the cover is gorgeous. The opening scene was also very touching and made me cry. So don't start this book when in a public place. It could get embarrassing. I loved the way the hero and heroine met and the romantic tension that followed. I found their relationship endearing and her desire to start her own business admirable. The added tension with the brother and the funding of the business was a nice touch. The dialog between the hero and heroine was charming and fun to read. The romantic elements were tender and the most addictive reading for me. This part of the novel was all well-written and very believable, reminding me a lot of Janice Thompson's writing.

But then a subplot was introduced into the story regarding a dangerous client and that sort of wrecked the overall feel of the book for me. It was cruising along with the perfect romantic pace and then it was like a bomb dropped in the center of the book. That didn't work for me. I was enjoying the story just fine up to that point. I don't think the subplot was needed, and in fact was distracting to me. There were parts of the story through the end that reminded me of the beginning and I enjoyed them very much. I wasn't really fond of the scene mentioning the "bodyguard" either, as it just seemed out of place. Regardless, for people who love tender romances, this author knows how to drum them up and does a great job writing those scenes. As for angst and drama and suspenseful type scenarios? Not so much. I would have preferred the story much more without that element. Nevertheless, I did enjoy the majority of the story even though at times it felt like it was over the top in regards to Christian themes and scriptures. Recommended.



Destiny's Dream was published by White Rose and released in Dec. 2010.