I have long been a fan of Eva Marie Everson. Her novels include women’s fiction and romance, both contemporary and historical. I think her strength as an author is writing authentic female characters her readers can easily identify with — those facing real life struggles. Her latest book is Miss Beth Bettencourt. I thoroughly enjoyed it! Find out all about it and my thoughts below.
Will an unlikely romance tear down Beth’s walls of indifference?
It’s 1962 in Bynum, Georgia, and Beth Bettencourt’s world is turned upside down when she wakes to a man snoring in the guest bedroom.
She’s home alone; her parents are traveling abroad, grieving her twin sister’s unexpected death. Instead of accompanying them, Beth stayed in Bynum to tend to her kindergarten and closely guard her own heart.
A beautiful and beloved member of the community, Beth is an unusual specimen for her time as she nears thirty and remains unmarried. She holds deep-seated unforgiveness toward her twin, Elise, who ran off with Beth’s beau. To make matters worse, Elise took their grandmother’s ring, which had been promised to Beth.
But now a stranger enters her home and her world. David Patrick Martin seems ready to break down her walls of indifference and find the core of Miss Beth Bettencourt. But can he be trusted with Beth’s past, her present, and more importantly, her future?
Eva Marie Everson is an ECPA bestselling and multiple award-winning author and speaker, including an ECPA Gold Medallion. She is a Christy finalist, and a Silver Medallion winner. She has won a Carol, several Maggie and Golden Scroll awards, and an Inspirational Retailers Choice Award. Born and reared in Georgia, Eva Marie and her husband make their home in Central Florida where they are owned by one very spoiled cat and two hearts full of grandchildren.
My Impressions:
Everyone knows everyone in the small town of Bynum, Georgia. And they certainly know your business, all in the matter of a few hours! Beth Bettencourt knows this full well as she seeks to live a quiet, purposeful life in the face of past heartache. Little does she know that on one fateful night (in a life derailed by another fateful night), just how much her world will change. Miss Beth Bettencourt by Eva Marie Everson is a quiet novel set in an ordinary Southern town in 1962. It seems not a lot happens there, yet below the calm surface lie regrets and grief. Beth has a lot of those until Marty enters to break down the walls she has built around her heart. Marty, a newly discharged soldier, makes a mistake when he sleepily stumbles into Beth’s home, but it is soon apparent that God has His hands all over the breaking and entering. The book is told through the first person perspectives of Beth, Marty, and Molly, the Bettencourt’s longtime housekeeper, giving the narrative a completeness. Beth and Marty discover forgiveness, redemption, and a chance at a future neither expected. I loved how trust and respect slowly develops between the two. This is just such a sweet story! There’s a bit of a mystery, and of course no fictional (or real-life) relationship exists without a few obstacles. But by the end of the book the two have grown in profound ways. I also loved secondary character, Molly, as she guided Beth with her wisdom and wit. Molly cooks throughout the book, and I was delighted to find her recipes shared at the conclusion. Yum! Can’t wait to try those and make a return to Bynum.
If you like well-developed characters facing real-life challenges wrapped up in a charming setting, then Miss Beth Bettencourt is a book for you!
Recommended.
Audience: Adults.
(Thanks to the author for an ARC of the novel. All opinions expressed are mine alone.)
Tags: Eva Marie Everson, historical fiction, romance fiction
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