By Design

De: J Boykin Baker

Narrado por: Hallie Ricardo

Anne is a young, Southern professional with just the right connections and a privileged point of view. Confident in her innate value, she has complete faith in her power to control her own future. After all, even with the challenges that come with working at a high-profile interior design firm located in the heart of Atlanta, she knows exactly where she’s headed. What she doesn’t expect is Dr. Brad Young, Jr.

Sparks immediately fly between the handsome young doctor and Anne when she’s assigned to troubleshoot for his surgical practice, but chemistry can only get you so far. As their relationship develops, so too does a burgeoning conflict and confusion over the uncommon roles their mothers play in their lives. Over the course of an emotional weekend and the exposure of a secret lurking in his past, Brad is forced to make a life-changing adjustment as Anne discovers the devastating betrayal of a trusted plan.

By Design is an emotional romance guaranteed to warm the hearts of anyone who has ever experienced the breathtaking intensity of new love.

©2019 J Boykin Baker (P)2019 J Boykin Baker

Easy Listening!!!! Fantastic!

Loved!!!! Hated to see it end. Can wait to get book 2and 3 to hear more!!!!

By Design

This is a sweet romance with Christian undertones and one I had passed on at first but when asked again to review I took it and glad I did. Anne is a designer who just moved to Atlanta and one of her newest conquest will be working with updating doctors and hospital areas and this is where she meets her prince charming...or is he? Dr. Brad is considered a player, a ladies man who has a reputation as a love 'em and leave 'em but after meeting Anne he cannot get her out of his mind and she settles into his heart. This is a sweet and faithful book that had me emotional at times because of where I am in my life but they were good tears. I am glad I took on this book and in audio form and recommend it.

**Received this for review**

Meh

Christian romances, by their very nature, have little or no sex in the story. I was expecting that. This particular listen lived up to that parameter but at nearly 11 hours, not much else really happened either.

Amy meets Dr. Young, they fall in love (rather quickly I might add), they have some problems, they get past those problems, and then they get married. That's pretty much it.

While the author gave us wonderful details into Amy's design ideas, her clothing choices, and her penchant for hats. it failed in basic story elements. There was a very pivotal story arch and we never get to glimpse the dialogue between the major characters. Never. There is a secondary story that keeps popping up but never goes anywhere. Never.

This story did not need to be nearly 11 hours...

Southern design

This should be categorized as a Christian romance. Very spiritual getting quite preachy at times which is not my style. It does have some familial moments that tug at the heart strings. Author does a good job with descriptors.

I received a review copy

LOVED IT!

I absolutely loved it! The narration is excellent! The author did a great job with the character builds and plot. This was my first book by this author but definitely not my last! I look forward to reading more books from this author. I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review.

A Sweet Christian Romance that is very timely

This was a beautiful Christian story about a young woman whose mother dies when she is young. Prior to her death, she put together and explained her three step plan to guide her daughter to make the right decisions for her life and values. As Anne grows and matures, she sticks to the plan. She gets a good job, meets a man she loves and deals with some questionable situations. Such a powerful story about being true to yourself and your values, even when it might be easier to give in. I enjoyed this book a lot. There were times that it got a little bit preachy, but not overly so to overwhelm the story. Anne and Brad are a great couple. He was a bit of a cad at times, but he stuck it out with Anne as he learned to truly care for her. The cast of characters range from those on the seamier side of life (ponzi scheme, affairs, sex for gifts etc.), those who gossip and destroy reputations, and those, like Brad and Anne, who are concerned about helping others and using their talents to the best of their abilities. Brad's family has some secrets that Anne finds out about and is determined to help Brad move forward with forgiveness and truth. This is a sweet romance that deals with family relationships, secrets, health, jealousy, revenge, greed and Christian values that help Anne and Brad find each other. A very enjoyable story.

I listened to the audiobook narrated by Hallie Ricardo. She has a very easy voice to listen to. She did not use voices for the characters, but her tone, expression and intonation gave the various characters an identity. I enjoyed listening to this book and will listen to others narrated by Hailie Ricardo. I received a copy of this book upon request for Caffeinated PR. The rating, ideas and opinions shared are my own.

Soooo long and nothing ever happens

To start this is definitely a Christian story. I wouldn't even call it a romance. It's very spiritual and gets to the point of being preachy. While this is not my style I wanted to give it a fair try and I was disappointed and bored. The story never got started for me and the narration was beyond boring. It was a really fast love story that could have been condensed into two hours. There was a lot of detail of non-essential story items; yet no substance in the real story which, in my opinion, is what made the story so hard to get lost in or even finish.

I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review.