Title: With These Shoes I Thee Wed
Series: Marriage Series Book 1
Genre: Adult Contemporary Christian Romance
Blurb:
Shoes are like life-partners: they either fit perfectly or they don't.
30 year old Adetoke is an up-and-coming fashion designer who enjoys the thrills of colours and frills. She's always loved the idea of creating unique designs that match the eclectic tastes of her clients. But there's one thing missing in her life; her perfect match. Or rather, her missing shoes.
A marriage proposal crossed her path several years ago with a man she loved, but back then, marriage was the farthest thing on her mind. Did she miss out on love? Do her poor connections in relationships mean she's cursed?
She gets pulled into one date after the other with men who have one poor feature or the other. In between garlic breaths, poor dentition and height flaws love once again knocks on her door. And he's perfect-ish! What happens if her best friend's brother is who God wants for her? Even worse, she never considered getting married to a man younger than her!
Toke admitted it to herself-she was attracted to him. She was scared. What if she was in-over-her-head and it was too good to be true?
Even much worse, will she have to choose between her friendship and the man she loves?
This was the first book I read of the author and when I read that it was going to be about dating, and relationships in modern day Nigeria from a Christian point of view, I knew had to join the ARC team.
I had the opportunity to receive an advance reader copy of the book and be part of the launch team and I loved reading this book.
The book follows five characters- Toke, Mayowa, Dayo, Jadesola, and Jumoke as they navigate the dating world. Each of them have different characters, and unique experiences which drive their motivations for wanting a relationship. It took me a while to get used to the different characters and their unique voices but I got the hang of it in the end. I think the author did a good job in making the character's voices unique, especially since it was written in third person. However, I found that I was only able to connect to three out of the five characters-- Toke, Mayowa and Jadesola because their character arcs were more fleshed out as compared to Dayo and Jumoke.
I quickly fell in love with Mayowa's character and he was definitely my favourite. He was a kind, gentle, and a morally upright man. I learnt a lot from his wise words about relationships and marriage and I love how he was a good example of Christian men who don't compromise their faith because of relationships and who also value purity.
I felt sorry for Jadesola. There were so many instances where I felt like jumping into the book and shaking her so she could wake up. She was just so desperate to get married that she compromised a lot for a man who could not care any less about her. Even though it was frustrating to read from her point of view, I loved that this character was included because sadly, there are a lot of women who need to learn from this book. There are a lot of young women who need to let go of people who treat them like trash and walk in their identity as daughters of God.
My least favourite character was definitely Dayo because of the way he treated Jadesola and by the end of the book, his character arc didn't really suggest that he had learnt anything or was serious about taking necessary actions to undo all the hurt he had caused.
I loved how there were many instances where I couldn't predict what would happen next, however I loved how the character's lives intertwined and I loved discovering revelations as I progressed further into the story.
I loved the author's writing style and a few lines made me smile. However, I did think that the ending seemed a bit rushed for me and I would have loved to savour every moment till the end. It definitely left me wanting more which is good because this book is the first of a series.
I would definitely recommend this Christian fiction romance. It is packed with so many lessons that will help you understand more about marriage, and dating. The biggest lesson I learned was that marriage is about purpose first before anything else. This book gives you a lot to think about so I'd definitely recommend.
The sequel to this book is called "Now You Know Where It Pinches" and I'll be posting the review when I finish reading it.
What book have you read recently?
Will you be picking up With These Shoes I Thee Wed?
If so then you can get your own copy on Amazon, Okada Books, and Bambooks.
Thank you so much for reading
Have a lovely day
God bless you.
Joanny :)