The Gift of Joy by Kristen McKanagh

 

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The Gift of Joy by Kristen McKanagh, book two in Unexpected Love series, tugs at your heart, holding you hostage until the very last page. This was a story I could not put down, reading it in one day. Through the years Joy Yoder's childhood friend, Joshua Kanagy, has been pulled into being an unwilling, and sometimes willing, participant in Joy's well-meaning schemes. Joshua loves working with horses and helping out at her father's horse business. While that arrangement has been working out just fine, it becomes a problem when Joshua's family needs him to work at their shop, fulltime. Joy knows how much Joshua would love to continue working with horses rather than work at his family's shop, and she knows that he needs a solution for his dilemma. Joy also knows that she needs a solution for her own situations, finding a way to do more with her quilting while doing her best to keep her mother's attempts of marrying her off to the minister's son from becoming a reality. Joy gets inspiration for an idea that she's sure will solve everything for Joshua and her; they should marry each other. Marriage would allow Joshua to continue working for Joy’s father and Joy could work at the store in his place; where she could sell her quilts and teach classes. However, things don’t always work out the way they are imagined, allowing people to learn from their mistakes, misunderstandings, and lack of communication.

 

Joshua and Joy make a really sweet couple and Joy truly is a joy. She has such a huge heart and genuinely wants to help people and her grand schemes, which can be somewhat impulsive at times, are just her way of helping. Even though Joshua is a little grounded, Joy manages to pull him into her schemes one way or another. That is part of what makes this story such a joy, pun intended, to read. Joy and Joshua's interactions, as well as interactions with the other characters, took me on an emotional roller coaster as they made me smile, sigh, hold my breath, laugh out loud at their shenanigans, and even get frustrated with them a time or two.

 

Ms. Kanagh wrote a wonderfully sweet and moving story that had me feeling all the emotions; smiling, tearing up, crying of heartbreak, and frustrated with some of the characters. The message of love, faith, and forgiveness stood strong; making this sweet and inspiration read one I could not put down, draw me in, making me forget it was fiction. I highly recommend The Gift of Joy to other readers.

 

I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book.