Meet Me in the Margins

GIVEAWAY

FERGUSON, MELISSA

MEET ME IN THE MARGINS

You've Got Mail meets The Proposal -- this romance is one for the books.

Savannah Cade's dreams are coming true. The Claire Donovan, editor-in-chief of the most successful romance imprint in the country, has requested to see the manuscript Savannah's been secretly writing while working as an editor herself -- except at her publishing house, the philosophy is only highbrow works are worth printing and commercial fiction, particularly romance, should be reserved for the lowest level of Dante's inferno. But when Savannah drops her manuscript during a staff meeting and nearly exposes herself to the whole company -- including William Pennington, new publisher and son of the romance-despising CEO herself -- she races to hide her manuscript in the secret turret room of the old Victorian office.

When she returns, she's dismayed to discover that someone has not only been in her hidden nook but has written notes in the margins -- quite critical ones. But when Clare's own reaction turns out to be nearly identical to the scribbled remarks, and worse, Claire announces that Savannah has six weeks to resubmit before she retires, Savannah finds herself forced to seek the shadowy editor after all.

As their notes back and forth start to fill up the pages, however, Savannah finds him not just becoming pivotal to her work, but her life. There's no doubt about it. She's falling for her mystery editor. If she only knew who he was.

My Review:

Incredibly quirky and funny...and yes, even cringeworthy at times. In other words, Meet Me in the Margins has all the clever twists and turns that make Romantic Comedy such a joy to watch, or in this case, read! With just the right mix of slapstick and poignancy because Savannah is kind of a mess and so is her family and work is...aggh, so much scope for hilarity but with sharp pangs of pathos too.

And what a brilliant title! And eye-popping cover art! Both set the tone for the story a reader will find inside. We are catapulted into the chaotic mind of the heroine from page one. Ferguson uses first person, present tense POV (which usually isn't my favourite) but it really works here. I became Savannah, heart racing, mind running in countless amusing tangents, sometimes feeling like an outsider looking in as catastrophe strikes. And it does, over and over again because Savannah has a propensity for klutziness and trouble seems to dog her heels in all aspects of her life. I laughed till I cried, winced in sympathy more than a time or two and just plain enjoyed the rollercoaster that is Savannah's life.

And the notes in the margins add a special epistolary flare to this engaging rom/com. As well as keeping me on the edge of my seat as Savannah makes all kinds of errors concerning the identity of her mystery editor! Oy, but I had heart palpitations! No worries though, as in all Romantic Comedies, this one ends on a high note with a delightfully fitting (and funny) happily ever after.

Please note: Though published by Thomas Nelson this book isn't Christian Fiction. It is, however, a perfectly splendid clean read!

  GIVEAWAY OPPORTUNITY:

This giveaway is for a paperback or e book copy -- winner's choice.

If you would like a chance to win a copy of Meet Me in the Margins, leave a comment below or email me at kavluvstoread AT yahoo DOT ca. If you add your email to a comment, remember to use AT AND DOT instead of @ and . in order to protect yourself from spammers. If you enter the draw via email, please add the title to the subject line so it's easy to spot your entry. Draw will be held and winner announced on Saturday March 19 2022. Offer open to International Readers. Good luck

The Dating Charade

GIVEAWAY

FERSUSON, MELISSA
THE DATING CHARADE

Just when you think you've met your match...the charade begins

Cassie Everson is an expert of escaping bad first dates. And, after years of meeting, greeting, and running from the man who try to woo her, Cassie is almost ready to retire her hopes for a husband -- and children -- altogether. But fate has other plans, and Cassie's online dating profile catches the eye of firefighter Jett Bentley. In Jett's memory, Cassie Everson is the unreachable girl-of-legend from their high school days. Nervously, he messages her, setting off a chain of events that forces a reluctant Cassie back into the dating game.

No one is more surprised than Cassie when her first date with Jett is a knockout. But when they both go home and find three children dropped in their laps -- each -- they independently decide to do the right and mature things: hide the kids from each other while sorting it all out. What could go wrong?

Melissa Ferguson's hilarious and warmhearted debut reminds us that love can come in very small packages -- and that sometimes our best-laid plans aren't nearly as rewarding as the surprises that come our way.

My Review:

Charming and funny with a surprising serious undertone.

I was expecting Rom/Com but I wouldn't technically categorize The Dating Charade as a romance. It has the beginnings and endings of one but the middle is something else entirely. Not quite women's fiction either. I think chic lit might suit this book best -- even though we get the hero's point of view and usually chic lit is all from the heroine's perspective.

Despite being difficult to classify, Cassie and Jett's story makes for a captivating read with plenty of ups and downs. The first few chapters are full of classic comedic flare fueled by miscommunication. Still grinning over some of those scenes. But when both the hero and heroine are faced with  the challenge of temporary parenthood things become more serious. Especially since they both decide to keep their unexpected charges a secret from each other which leads to even more communication problems and the story quickly slips into a heart-tugging drama centered around child abandonment, family dysfunction and addictions.

Through it all, Ferguson delivers a nice mix of humour and poignancy as she untangles the complicated lives of two characters who definitely deserve a chance at their very own happily ever after...even if it looks entirely different then they imagined!

The one thing I really missed in this story was an inspirational thread. This is another Thomas Nelson publication (a Christian Publisher who is becoming known for it's faith-free fiction.)

I enjoyed listening to the audible version of this book. Loved that there were two narrators -- one for each point of view. Kevin Kilpatrick and Liz Stanislawski made a great team, delivering an easy-to-listen-to style that held me captive right to the very end.

GIVEAWAY OPPORTUNITY:

If you would like a chance to win a copy of  The Dating Charade, leave a comment below or email me at kavluvstoreadATyahooDOTca. If you add an email to your comment, remember to use AT and DOT instead of @ and . in order to protect yourself from spammers. If you enter the draw via email, please add the title to the subject line so it's easy to spot your entry. Draw will be held and winner announced on Saturday February 22 2020 . Offer open to International Readers. Good luck!