The Wedding Planners of Butternut Creek by Jane Myers Perrine

The Widows are very disappointed in Pastor Adam. Not only has he not set a date for his nuptials, he hasn't even proposed. The Widows' skills know no bounds, but even they find it difficult to plan a wedding under those circumstances. Of course, what they don't know is Adam has proposed to Gussie, but the couple is trying to keep the engagement a secret--not easy in Butternut Creek.

Meanwhile, Adam's sister Hannah, a doctor, has returned from a two-year trip to Kenya where she was working in refugee camps. She is staying at the parsonage until she recovers from a bout of malaria, and is having difficutly adjusting to life back in the US after the horrors she's witnessed. Though physically weak, she becomes animated when verbally sparring with Gabe Borden, her adopted nephew Hector's high school basketball coach. The Widows spot sparks of a different color between the two, and are soon up to their matchmaking ways once again.

My Review:
This Christian fiction is a fun book to read. There are several humorous moments. Two I particularly enjoyed are the scene where Hannah and Gabe are first pushed together by the Widows, and Charley and the ceiling tiles. It takes talent to write such funny stuff.

Butternut Creek is a place I'd like to live. It's a small town filled with people who care, led by the Widows, an important group of church ladies, who live to inflict their will on others (ahem) serve.

Romance blossoms whenever the Widows spot any single. I like the way the author tells the story of love blooming.

Reading Group Guide is included.

Thank you to Sarah Reck at Hachette Book Group for my copy.

The Matchmakers of Butternut Creek by Jane Myers Perrine

A traumatic experience as a college freshman has left Gussie Milton "once bitten, twice shy." Although she'd like a relationship, she's frightened, so she's thrown herself into caring for her aging parents, her photography business, and her church.

In the eyes of Miss Birdie and her friend Mercedes, aka "the Widows," Gussie would make their young pastor the perfect wife. And though the attraction proves mutual, first Gussie's past and then the pastor's hopes for the future threaten to keep them apart.

Can the Widows' meddling be the catalyst that changes the couple's lives forever?


My Review:
Pastor Adam Jordan, an unsuccessful-at-love single pastor of a small country church in Texas, struggles with a group known as "The Widows," who set about finding him the perfect bride. To further complicate matters, the one chosen to be the pastor's bride, Gussie Milton, shows a reluctance to being touched. There are some humorous scenes as the lovebirds are pushed [ahem] gently maneuvered together.

Although this novel reminds me of Jan Karons' Mitford series with Father Tim, the writing is a bit more uneven. Perhaps this is because I had an uncorrected proof to read. Hopefully, further editing will make a difference.

Reading Group Guide included.

Thank you to Sarah Reck at Hachette Book Group and FaithWords for my copy.