Title: Sweet Contradiction
Author: Peggy Martinez
Genre: NA Romance

Synopsis:

When Beth Michaels high tailed it out of the hole-in-the-road town she grew up in, she only had two goals. One—get as far away as quickly as possible, and two—never set foot in her parent’s home again. But when she receives a heart breaking call from her childhood best friend, Jen, she has no choice but to turn her ’56 Ford pickup back in the direction of Salem, Missouri to attend a funeral.

There’s a new local in town when Beth arrives, and suddenly, it ain’t all that easy for her to remember her rules for dating. #1. Cookie-cutter-perfect guys ain’t her type. #2. Tie wearin’ and church frequentin’ is an automatic dismissal. #3. Most importantly, never date anyone from small minded, conservative, Bible-thumping towns like Salem. Unfortunately, Matthew Wright breaks all her rules and then some.

Matt might be from a small town and have small town values, but that doesn’t mean he fits into a little slot of Beth’s preconceived notions. After all, ever so often good guys are good. Now if he could just convince Beth to let go of her past and give him a chance, he’s pretty sure there’s a whole lotta sweet under that prickly exterior. His own … Sweet Contradiction.

Author Bio:

Peggy Martinez is a homeschooling mom of one boy and four girls.
She has been married to her soul mate, Omar, since January 2000. She enjoys reading, writing, soap making, all things aromatherapy, and Twizzlers- lots of Twizzlers. She dreams of one day owning a small homestead, raising some chickens along with her children, growing a large garden, and eventually taking a dream vacation to Greece. It isn’t too far fetched to think you could happen upon her and her husband having a conversation about religion, political conspiracies, a zombie apocalypse, or gangster movies.

Be sure to visit her blog for the chance to win a giveaway associated with the blog tour!

Sweet Contradiction by Peggy Martinez

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

From the opening lines of this book, I was completely engrossed in this book. The opening pages were some of the hardest I have had to read. When religion is used to abuse others, I really get incensed. I was absolutely certain that this book was going to be a winner. And I was right!

Let’s get the negative issues out of the way first. There is some mild profanity sprinkled throughout the story, but there is nothing hardcore. There is some implied sexual encounters, but there are no details given. There is a minor gay character, but I did not find myself offended in any way in this situation or any other. I felt that everything was narrated in such a way that the story was the focus rather than the peripheral issues. And what a story it is! But I always feel I must provide cautions, especially if your teenager wants to read the book.

I absolutely love Matt and Beth, and I found myself running through the whole gamut of emotions–sorrow, anger, humor, excitement, terror, and true joy. This book is short, but it packs one powerful punch. In fact, I was pretty sure that I knew how the book would end, but the author threw in a couple of curve balls that kept me guessing. I would absolutely love to read the sequel in order to discover what is next for Jenn and Hunter.

The most noteworthy portion of the book for me concerned the religious issues. This is not a Christian book, and it never purports to be so. I have read many innocuous “Christian” books that have no real message or significance. This book’s view on religion and Beth’s “heart to heart” conversation was full of more depth than so many traditional Christian books. I am not saying that I agree with the premise put forth by the author in the book, but it was a more positive view of religion and faith than so many Christian and secular books put forth. It was refreshing, and it gave me hope that maybe there are those out there who are still open to the message of the gospel even in this growing atheistic age.

I was sent a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. I was not financially compensated, and all opinions are 100 percent mine.

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