Can Hanna and Will Find True Love Amid the Bright Lights of Reality TV? Perfect for the fans of The Bachelor and The Bachelorette! Six months ago, William stole Hanna’s heart and shattered it in front of millions of people on a reality TV dating show. And now the big-wig CEO is back on Hanna’s home turf in Minnesota and wants her to forgive him? Fat chance of that. But life is swirling around … But life is swirling around faster than snow in a blizzard, and despite her objections, teaming up with William seems like the only option to rescue her reputation.
William has never regretted anything more than the day he gave that ill-fated interview for the reality show, The Price of Love. But while he can’t change the past, he’s determined to fix the future. He just needs to convince Hanna to forgive him—and pretend to be engaged with him. Simple, right?
When the media erupts with even worse accusations, teaming up and pretending to be engaged seems to be the only way to salvage their reputations. Despite the media frenzy that swirls around them, an attraction neither of them can fight off begins to surface. Could this love run deeper than a scandal, or will old wounds tear them apart once and for all? When all seems lost, it’s only with help from above that Hanna and Will may find their happily-ever-after.
more
I expected a dippy boring romance but was pleasantly surprised to discover a very interesting book — romance, yes, but a great story to hold my interest.
This is the first book by Krista Phillips that I picked up. And, boy, am I glad I did. I heard such great things about this book so I went into this reading experience with high expectations. I’m pleased that the rave reviews have been quite correct; I could not put the book down. Anyone who enjoys a good contemporary romantic comedy would love this book.
It is a well-written book with a fantastic plot. Oh, my goodness, the comedy and humor in this book kept me laughing until tears rolled down my face. Yet, underneath all the funny and silly moments, there was an incredibly tender and poignant yet fragile romance ready to surface. Will and Hanna’s love story had so many twists and turns that I wasn’t sure, even towards the end, if there would be a happily-ever-after. The heartache they both faced made my heart hurt, too.
Will is a young, handsome, capable CEO of a large company who goes on a reality TV dating show to boost up the sales of his company. He has a wonderfully supportive family but has made some big mistakes and guilt and pain from the past haunt him to the point where all he works for is money. Hanna is a beautiful small-town kindergarten teacher who goes on the same reality TV show and gets her heart trampled, along with her reputation and faith. Forgiveness is not easy. Love is even harder. Yet both find their way, though the road be strewn with boulders and rocky cliffs and thorns and hideous creatures waiting to harm them. Both mature and evolve throughout the book. As the book progresses, the reader realizes that Will is not just a shallow player but someone with deep thoughts, feelings, and hurts. Hanna becomes less self-righteous and more like Christ. Both learn important and dear lessons about God’s grace, mercy, and sacrificial love.
The secondary characters were just as wonderful. I fell in love with Hanna’s dad and Will’s parents. Oh, to be like them in parenting…. willing to admit faults and mistakes, willing to love that child no matter what.
I am now totally hooked! I can’t wait for the next book Ms. Phillips will write. She has definitely become one of my go-to authors when I need a good inspirational rom com.
I received a copy of this book from Barbour Publishing via NetGalley. I was not required to write a favorable review. All comments and opinions are solely my own.
I enjoyed reading The Engagement Plot. It is an awesome modern story of forgiveness enveloped in a love story.
The Engagement Plot
Krista Phillips
Hanna has a broken heart, a very public broken heart. She was content with her life as a school teacher, living on the family’s small farm and helping her father after the death of her mother several years earlier. When her best friend encourages her to enter the popular The Price of Love, a reality show, she throws caution to the wind, entering the show.
Enter William, the tall handsome bachelor and CEO, destroyed her life with one ill fated comment during an after-show interview. Having chosen Hanna from two of the remaining contestants, William proposed on the last show presenting Hanna with a rather large diamond engagement ring. Hanna said yes.
Then it happened during an after-show interview; William answers one of the emcee’s question with what he thought was a vague and innocuous comment, a comment that the press twists and turns until it doesn’t even hint at William’s comment or his intent.
Having been very upfront about her Christianity, Hanna was very vocal about remaining chaste until her wedding night. William’s comment, or perhaps the rumor-mill has ruined her reputation, leaving her devastated and jobless.
Now William is stuck on the family farm, during a blizzard that goes on for several days. What was he doing in Embarrass, Minnesota anyway?
I very much enjoyed this fun and quirky love story. From being stuck in snow mounds and the resulting mud to the mid night snack attacks that end on the floor this story made me chuckle. I highly recommend it.
I received a complimentary copy of this book from Barbour Publishing and was under no obligation to post a review.
This is such a good novel, so much more than a romance! Hanna is from Embarrass, Minnesota, an apt-named town for this young woman who totally humiliated after one fateful interview. Hanna’s best friend and at that time, boss, Carly, talked her into being on a reality TV show, Price of Love. The premise is that the bachelor is a man who has spent his time building his career and had little time to find a wife. Will Preston is the bachelor on the show Hanna is on. He is a 35-year-old CEO, having been promoted at a young age.
Hanna is a Christian. She felt she could be a contestant on the show and practice the purity she professed, to not be with a man before she is married. While she was the viewer’s choice, when narrowed down to just two contestants, “Sultry Stephanie” had the social media vote over “Holy Hanna”. Against the odds, Hanna is the one whose hand in marriage Will asks for, and it seems like a dream come true. At least until they had a weekend alone to get to know each other. In the post-weekend interview, on national television, Will thought he was doing Hanna a favor by alluding that they shared a bed even though they hadn’t. The humiliation, the letters (including those from well-meaning and not-so-well-meaning Christians), and horrible magazine articles didn’t end.
Just as she was getting over him, he had to pick Embarrass, Minnesota to face-plant a rental car into a snow drift in a blizzard, and she had to be the one to find him. He thinks he needs her to help him with a faux engagement to settle things down with the folks in his company and the media. Sales were down because he left Hanna in his dust. Perhaps it will restore her dignity, and at some time in the future they would quietly break the engagement. All she wants is to return to a “normal” life, including finding a new full-time position as a kindergarten teacher again. Having a faux rich life is not what Hanna felt comfortable with, even short-term. Especially when something is going on behind the scenes, possibly in his company, that is playing with both of their lives and futures.
The characters are portrayed very well as fits each role. I like Hanna very much! She has the same self-doubts about herself as many women, young and older, and a faith strong enough to withstand the challenges she faces. She is also strong enough to see her shortcomings and seek to change for the better. Her father’s charm is in his integrity, faith, and even in his Scandinavian accent. Will’s parents adore Hanna and continue to hope she will become a Preston, stabbing her through with guilt from the deception she is party to. Will’s lack of faith in anything other than himself is daunting; even when Hanna learns how he lost faith, there is nothing she can do to help change him.
This is a new twist on bachelor shows, especially one in which the believer thinks the other person will believe or return to faith instead of staying true to refusing to be unequally yoked. Being unaware of how huge corporations might be, Hanna didn’t see the landmine awaiting both her and Will. While I guessed what was going on behind the scenes, Will remained blind as he worked to fix the company. Until he couldn’t. I highly recommend this novel! It is more than a romance; there is suspense, betrayal, and more in this Christian Women’s Fiction novel that shows grace and faith in action.
From a grateful heart: I received this eBook from the publisher and NetGalley, and this is my honest review.
This is such a strange 5 star book for me. I absolutely loved it, but it’s hard for me to pinpoint exactly why. I liked the characters. They seemed real in a flawed way. They didn’t have it all figured out, they didn’t do everything right, but I liked them. I also really liked how important of a role faith in God played into the theme of the story. It’s been a while since I’ve read an author who has approached it this way, but I appreciated and enjoyed it. It was a thought provoking yet super fun read.
Reality
They meet on a reality show. He’s (Will) is the the bachelor, she (Hanna) is one of the contestants. But with his foul up on a talk show, she broke up with him. Now he is trying fix it.
This contemporary, Christian, romantic comedy was a tough start for me, but I’m glad I stuck with the story because it was a fun read and ended with a cute happily ever after.
excellent writing, interesting romance from a reality TV show
Oh my gosh, I so loved this book. It is so creative to spin a real tv show like this. This is a must read. I couldn’t wait to get back to it every night. The challenges faced by the main characters were unique compared to most books. The Heroine, oh my, you could just feel her angst. And our poor bumbling hero. He blows it big time. How will he redeem himself. You’ve got to read this.
Enjoyed reading it.
It ended as I expected, but getting there was full of different paths. Good read.
It was a little slow at times.
As a previous Bachelor viewer I liked the story line a lot. Easy to read, enjoyable and fulfilling.
This was a simple and fun quick read. It got a bit drawn out
at times, but overall was an enjoyable read and definitely got some chuckles from the reader. I like reality shows so this was a book reality show.
Superficial and unrealistic characters. Unable to complete reading it.
Fun, quick read.
Cute book. Enjoyed it.
Great
I enjoyed this book, but I felt the ending wrapped up too quickly. It seemed that all of the problems were resolved unrealistically.