Secrets have the power to ruin lives. Faith and love have the power to disarm those secrets.

Failure isn’t an option for Faith Fuller, She wants to prove to herself and her very successful parents she can stand on her own, even if it means accepting a job offer from someone she wanted to forget. To add to the problem, that job means facing her biggest fear.

Caleb Gaines is looking for a manager for his coffee shop. He’s in over his head running his successful river outfitters business, and being a single dad to a preschooler. But the perfect candidate wants nothing to do with him. Risk-taker Caleb is up for a challenge and wants to convince Faith to help him.

If neither one relies on faith and learns to trust, any chance at love will be washed downstream.

An out-of-work chef and successful river outfitter are both hiding secret tragedies. How much faith will it take to learn to trust in each other, overcome obstacles, and find love?

My thoughts: I enjoyed this sweet romance tremendously! It was enjoyable to get to know Caleb and Faith as their paths lead them to one another and they had to work through their pasts. The setting is lovely, with it being a quaint town that one will immediately fall in love with! I look forward to reading more by this author!

I received this book from Celebrate Lit. This is my honest review.

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About the Author

stacy Stacy T. Simmons writes uplifting fiction that delights the reader’s romantic sensibilities. Thirty-four years of marital bliss is a great contributor. She is a mom of two grown children, and she and her family have a menagerie of pets she likes to call “Noah’s Ark.” You can find her working on her next manuscript with a piece of dark chocolate and a cup of coffee nearby. She loves to connect with her readers via her website at www.stacytsimmonsauthor.com

More from Stacy

Why did I write this novel? I’ve had both friends and family members ask me this question over the years it’s taken to craft this story. The reason I decided to write it was my family has experienced some job transitions in the past.

A Promise for Faith Briar Creek Love Book One has a talented chef Faith, who undergoes some of the similar things my family faced. When you dive deep into your faith, it makes you stronger as you head toward the “water’s surface.” This novel has some romance, heart-tugging moments, a few cups of coffee and delicious baked goods woven into the storyline.

Like Faith, I enjoy baking, and trying new recipes. As a trained chef the treats mentioned in the novel are a bit more time-consuming than I usually make. I’ve included one below from “Faith’s kitchen.” It’s raspberry twists, and you can make your own puff pastry or purchase it. That’s half the fun of baking, you’re able to do what you’d like to do with the recipes.

I hope you enjoy both my upcoming novel, and this recipe. Soon I’ll have two more novels which will release that are nestled in the gorgeous Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina as well in a cozy little town named Briar Creek.

Below is the promised recipe.

(Makes eight twists)

Puff Pastry Directions:

You will need:

Large mixing bowl

Pastry blender

Rolling pin

Whisk

Ingredients:

2 ½ sticks unsalted butter cold (cubed into ¼ in squares)

2 c all-purpose flour

½ tsp salt

2/3 cup cold water

In a large bowl, combine the flour and cubed, cold, butter, and salt, work with a pastry blender to cut in the butter. It should end up being pea-sized and the mixture blended enough to press with a hand into a clump. (About 8 minutes total).

Make a well in the middle, and pour in the cold water, mix with a whisk gently until the ingredients become combined with the water. (6 minutes). Shape into a ½ inch thick square and place in plastic wrap. Chill dough for an hour.

Place the dough on a floured surface and roll out to a rectangle that is ten inches in length.

Fold over the bottom third of the dough to the middle, fold the remaining top portion to the middle. Then, fold it lengthwise in half. Turn 1/3 of the way and roll out again to another ten inches in length. Fold bottom and top and in half lengthwise. Turn another ¼ and roll out. Repeat process five more times. Shape the dough into a round and put in plastic wrap. Refrigerate overnight. (Dough can be kept for three days in the refrigerator before use).

To make Raspberry filling:

You will need:

Greased baking pan

Pizza cutter

Rolling Pin

Ingredients:

2 pints fresh raspberries

½ c sugar

2 tsp lemon juice

Powdered sugar (optional)

Filling cooking directions:

Place ingredients over medium heat, stirring constantly. Cook for about eight minutes, set aside to cool.

To prepare twists:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Place cold dough on floured surface and roll to ¼ inch thickness and ten inches in length.

Cut the dough into 1 ¼ inch strips, place a thin layer of raspberry filling along one side, filling one-half of the strip. Then, fold the other part of the dough strip over the side covered with raspberry filling. Twist three times and place on the greased pan.

Put the remaining filling in a container to enjoy later. It lasts five days in the refrigerator.

Bake the twists for 28 minutes and cool. Sprinkle powdered sugar over the twists and serve. Enjoy!