Can a rejected wife conquer self-doubt, trap a criminal, and win love? She might...if a patron saint helped.
Thirty-something Joan Nelson has more to contend with than a biological clock or an identity crisis. Despite her ardent belief in a conventional marriage, she finds herself deserted for a younger, slimmer woman. Lacking any skills or education, she's thrust unprepared into the nightmare challenge of making a living for the first time in her sheltered existence.
A job as a receptionist in a law firm is the first rung on the ladder to her independence. Yet the taste of success sours when Joan considers the emptiness of her personal life. How can she reconstruct her damaged life and heal her bruised ego? Ill-equipped for the singles scene, she embarks on a confusing, sometimes frightening, new lifestyle.
When Joan stumbles on a crime perpetuated by a charming cad, she must defy her boss, jeopardize her newly won stability, and reject her friends. Her namesake, Joan of Arc, provides a model of courage and insight. If she risks danger and uncertainty, will she discover that independence and adulthood can be both enjoyable and fulfilling? Does optimism beat pessimism? Who would have dreamed her final victory could solve a childhood puzzle while it brings her true love?
Ms. McCune's debut novel is brilliant! I stayed up later than I intended to finish this romantic, laugh out loud story. It is a page turner that simply captivated me. I warmed to Joan and I felt she learned and grew throughout the story. My heart went out to Joan as she has some sad things happen in her life that she has to heal from and come to terms with. She also made me laugh so much. I loved it. Kevin the guy is a saint! Oh the things he puts up with. I like that he also wants what is best for Joan. I enjoyed the crime/ mystery aspect as well. I would highly recommend this delightful read. It has handful of swear words. But other than that it is clean. I wish Ms. McCune all the best in her career as an author!
I'm not generally a reader of romance, but this was an absorbing novel. I was captivated from the beginning and eager to discover what mess Joan would stumble into next--and how she would extricate herself. Like watching a teetering tight-rope walker, I wondered if she would catch her balance before she fell--or, if she fell, who would be there to catch her. I like the fact that Joan isn't your typical "anorexic, drop-dead gorgeous" heroine, but has to struggle with a weight problem like many of us. She is also a realistically naive female who married her high school sweetheart, so was little prepared to face the world when he left her for a slimmer, prettier model. This story is about Joan's growing belief in herself, but her hard-won confidence may dissolve when a twist of a mystery threatens her newly found identity. A well-written and crafted story, totally entertaining, whether you're a romantic soul or not.
Bubbling with humor and replete with growing pains of a divorced woman, A Saint Comes Stumbling In takes the reader on a vicarious journey with Joan Nelson. She goes from a stay-home wife with limited marketable skills, whose self image is in the cellar, to being a capable, confident, much loved lady. The zigs and zags, stumbles, falls, and scrambling back up to try again make the reader keep turning pages just to see what will happen next.
Joan's almost manic-depressive personality has her operating at "sky high or dirt low" most of the time. Her stages of grief, her self-deprecation, and her self-improvement projects keep her emotions on a roller coaster ride. In her self-centered world, she seems blind to both her mother and her longtime friend, Kevin's unfailing support.
Dolores, her ever optimistic friend, coaxes Joan out into the "hunt-for-a-man" world where Joan is exposed to segments of society alien to her way of life. The descriptions of these encounters tickle the funny bone.
Joan's obsession with Scott Clark, the young, handsome lawyer, sets her on a self-improvement phase that her friend Kevin organizes for her and helps her to stay on target. As they interact, the reader soon realizes Kevin has one agenda and Joan has another--fun to see how things evolve.
A few of the episodes in A Saint Comes Stumbling In are a little too-far-out, yet ridiculously funny. Overall the story is a rite of passage story about a "late-bloomer" who is slow to recognize her own worth and see the true love that's been waiting in the wings for her to mature.
Bonnie McCune entertains with a special charm. She writes in first person that fits the self-centeredness of Joan at this stage in her life. The multitude of funny events, disasters, and the metamorphosis of Joan make the reader's journey with her delightful. It's like riding on waves of both subtle and blatant humor with an undertow of the devastation divorce can bring to a woman. Good Reading!
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