After his duplicitous girlfriend left, Dan Malone spent six months in a tailspin of despair and destruction: emotional, physical, and spiritual. Just when his life seems to be back on track, he meets Emily Kowalski, younger sister of his new best friend.Emily’s the kind of girl he’d always dreamed of—sweet, smart, and sincere. But he’s made a mess of his life and ruined his chances for earning … earning the love and trust of a woman like her.
Could Dan be the man Emily’s been waiting for? How could he be when every time they get close he pulls away? And will he ever be free from his shady past and the ex-girlfriend who refuses to stay there?
An inspirational Christmas romance that spans every season.
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*Review*
When I received Ornamental Graces, I’ll admit I was befuddled. Christmas in June? Not usually my standard, but I remained open minded, and I did indeed enjoy the story after all. Poor Dan. Virtuous and godly, yet thoroughly beaten in every way by a treacherous beautiful snake. He’s got a long road ahead that is dark and full of pitfalls.
And, Emily, lonely, lost and low in self esteem. It’s an uphill climb for her to reach the summit of self acceptance and actualization of self. The story is inspiring and heart breaking at once. These flawed characters are loveable and endearing in a manner that lends itself to a very realistic feeling. I was glad to read a romance that walks a crooked path. Their journey is not typical or easy, and that is refreshing to read. Serious and heavy issues are broached with respect and acknowledged in ernest. This is not a Christmas story as I first thought, rather a span of a few years are covered. It’s appropriate for any season. Though obstacles are placed, Dan and Emily grow and overcome hurdles while learning life lessons about themselves and each other. Overall, I found the story engrossing and satisfying, full of warmth and laughter and reality.
I received a complimentary copy from Just Read Tours. All opinions expressed are my own.
This is the second novel by Carolyn Astfalk I’ve read, and although I liked the first one, I loved this one. I’ll enumerate the reasons.
1. While this is a Catholic novel, it is subtly Catholic and stands strong, simply as a clean romance.
2. The writing is very good, well-crafted, each word doing its job, with no extraneous text.
3. The characters are endearing. I love Emily. She should be my daughter, sister, or new best friend. That brings me to Dan and …
4. The story made me laugh a lot. I don’t know if all the humor I found was intentional, but Dan made me want to grab him by the shoulders and say, “Get. Over. Your. Self.” I laugh as I write this. Dan is the guy who wishes he wanted women to want him to wish for what they want. Or something like that.
5. The secondary storylines are sweet and interesting. I won’t give away any more about those.
Of course the two will end up together, this is a romance novel. but there sure were a lot of difficulties for Dan and Emily to overcome first! Both were fairly strong Catholics. I am Christian, but not Catholic. It was interesting to see the differences in how to handle problems.
Ornamental Graces shows romantic relationships authentically and powerfully.
Not enough of a story here to sustain the number of times the couple went from almost kiss to “stay out of my life”.
This is a truly inspiring contemporary Christian romance. Dan Malone comes into the story with some baggage. Mistakes from his past and rejection from the woman he thought he loved has built a wall around his heart that blinds him to the possibility of a happy life. Then he meets Emily.
Smart, strong-willed and virtuous, Emily Kowalski is tired of waiting for life to happen to her. After learning that the only boy she’s ever loved is about to marry—and after a quart of ice cream and a prayer–she’s ready for a change. Dan and Emily meet in a Christmas tree lot. And Emily’s heart knows at once that this man is special. But it takes Dan awhile to feel worthy of another chance, especially when his past keeps coming back to remind him of his failures.
With flawed but loveable characters, this story delves into the real-life consequences of the choices we make in relationships. It brings out the importance of offering and accepting forgiveness, and gives hope to those who find it hard to let go of past mistakes and to forgive one’s self. Ornamental Graces is a story of love, faith, and passion that you won’t want to miss. This story will take you on an emotional rollercoaster and leave you with hope.