Delia Latham's Destiny's Dream Review/Contest/Giveaway

I asked to review Delia Latham's book, Destiny's Dream--Book One in her Solomon's Gate series--because I loved the premise.

Here's a blurb: 

Is a little respect too much to ask at a parent’s funeral?


Apparently it is for Destiny May. Clay Gallagher is built like a small mountain and far more vocal than is fitting when he shows up late to her mother’s “going away party.” When it turns out he’s not even at the right funeral, Destiny demands retribution in the form of an escape from the day’s dreary proceedings. Spending time with a handsome stranger who makes her laugh is more therapeutic than fighting with her overbearing family.


Clay finds Destiny beautiful, charming...and intelligent. So why is she stubbornly determined to open a Christian dating service? Clay has little respect for such a frivolous profession, and doesn’t think the small, conservative town of Castle Creek will welcome such a progressive business. But when Destiny is threatened by an anonymous caller who deeply resents her and what she does for a living, Clay makes it his business to keep the saucy redhead out of harm’s way.


Trouble is, spending time in her company weakens his defenses, and Destiny may be the one thing Clay can’t escape...if he even wants to.
 
The funeral scene had me laughing out loud at the ludicrousness of it. What a fantastic and fresh way for the hero and heroine to meet! Well done, Delia! :)

My main reason for wanting to review this book was because of the Christian dating service Destiny founds, called Solomon's Gate. I've got an interest in the mechanics of these types of businesses, and I loved how Delia portrayed such a new version. It's different from eHarmony or Match.com. Destiny's is more personal, and she spends a lot of time in prayer of her applicants, anointing the applications with oil as she does so.

I appreciated how she felt it was her calling from God to open this business. Even in the face of adversity, Destiny comes across as rock solid in her faith and this calling. It's a great reminder of how strong the Lord's work in our lives can be when we're working together with him instead of against him. Even the prejudice the hero has against the business is dealt with credibly. There are many people out there who are extremely uncomfortable with this type of business, and I thought it great tension-building fodder for the hero to have an issue with it.

For those romantics out there, you won't be disappointed, although Delia doesn't wait until the very end for you to know who's ending up with who. She throws in some delicious curve balls, though, which I enjoyed. (Hello, CJ!) I also appreciated the suspenseful aspect of the threatening caller. It was realistically done because Delia didn't paint a pretty picture of this side of humanity. Sadly, I know people in my practice who would do the same thing.

Delia is running a contest on her website for those interested in winning a beautiful decorative bottle and anointing oil to fill it. Check it out here! The more entries you leave at various stops on her blog tour, the greater your chances of winning.

Also, she's agreed to give away one .pdf copy of her book to one lucky commenter today! You have to be a follower to be eligible. Leave a comment and tell me if you've had any experiences with dating services, Christian or not. Include your email in a non-spam format (yourname at hotmail dot com) to enter. That's it!

To connect with Delia, you can find her at her website, blog, Facebook Reader Page, or newsletter.