Bittersweet Surrender by Diann Hunt

Book Description:  Carly spends her days at a spa (okay, so she owns the place), she’s dating a hunk, and she’s surrounded by chocolate. She’s living the dream . . . or is she?

The last few years have been tough, but now Carly Westlake’s life seems picture perfect. Business at her spa is up thanks to her famous chocolate facials. And Jake Mitchell—her dreamy, teenage crush—has moved back to Spring Creek, Vermont, with his daughter in tow. Carly’s nearly floored to learn that Jake has his sights set on winning her heart. But when long-buried secrets threaten her business—and her friendship with her best friend and business-partner, Tom—Carly has to fight like crazy to keep her plans afloat. Can it be that her dream of marrying Jake Mitchell isn’t the plan God has for her life? What if God’s plan requires something totally unexpected . . . a bittersweet surrender that Carly must make before she can discover true love?

My Review:  Sometimes when life seems ever so tough...only chocolate will do!  Such is the case of Carly's life in Bittersweet Surrender by Diann Hunt.

Love the title of this read because Bittersweet Surrender seems to describe Carly's life exactly.

After dealing with and beating breast cancer, she loses her husband, runs a successful spa and loves chocolate {okay...chocolate is a girl's best friend!} But when her best friend and spa manager passes away life seems somewhat bittersweet...life is bitter and sweet at the same time  for Carly and life has produced a mixture of pain and pleasure...pain with death and sweet with the return of a love, Jake.

But can old secrets cause more "bitter" than "sweet?" and will Carly recognize the "sweet" in front of her?

This is one of those light reads that actually holds more than a fluffy sweet taste with Magnolia bringing a humorous light to Carly's world and reading about the spa client's and their escapades brings a smile to the reader.

Other serious subjects like cancer, divorce, gambling and the tangled web that lies will bring are the tough topics in this fun read.  

This was a nice change from the 20 year old viewpoint as this read deals with the 40 and over crowd.  So, if you enjoy christian fiction with a twist and an "older" crowd then you'll love this read!

*This ebook was provided by BookSneeze/Thomas Nelson Publishing*

Meet the Author: 

I've been happily married forever, love my family, chocolate, my friends, chocolate, my dog, and, well, chocolate. When my husband and I were faced with the empty nest, I rolled up my sleeves and started writing. I entered a dream world, and I'm still dreaming--so please don't wake me.

God is first place in my life with family and, okay, chocolate following closely behind.