The Marriage of your dreams: A woman's guide to understanding her man by Rick Johnson

Men are fairly simple creatures with fairly simple needs. Yet women often find themselves frustrated trying to understand those needs in order to improve their marriages. Many wonder, "What does he expect from me? I'm doing everything the best I can. Doesn't he know I'm at the end of my rope here?" Relationship expert Rick Johnson ends the guessing game, giving women an open and honest look inside the world of a man's needs and helping them understand how best to use their influence to have a satisfying and exciting relationship.Rick delves into the not-so-mysterious-after-all world of a man, highlighting his need for respect and admiration, his sexual desires, his communication style, his work, his emotions, and even his relationship with the "other woman"--his mother. Women will appreciate Rick's candor, humor, and insight as they discover that the marriage of their dreams is closer than they ever thought it could be.



I've read a fair amount of relationship books and thought this one was a nicely paced, easy to understand, and generally accessible, addition  to the self-help genre.

I liked the length-just over 200 pages-because too much wordiness or over explanation of key points, tends to frustrate my attention span. Mr. Johnson has an engaging, straightforward, way of expressing himself but still manages to keep a sense of humor throughout. While he doesn't go into inappropriate detail about  certain subjects like sex, he also doesn't shy away from answering some of those burning questions women have always wanted to know about guys:

his need for respect and admiration
his sexual desires
his communication style
his work
his emotions
his relationship with the "other woman" in his life (his mother)

Being able to get an  honest "inside" perspective on what men think and feel is a valuable asset to any relationship, and I appreciated the observations shared. The question and answer sections at the end of each chapter were also great, as what was asked seemed to be what most women  usually want to know.

As I said, this book isn't super long and I was able to finish it in one sitting, so if you're looking for a quick, yet insightful read, The Marriage of Your Dreams should be right up your alley.


"Available October 2012 at your favorite bookseller from Revell, a division of Baker Publishing Group."

I received a complimentary copy of this book from Revell Publishers in exchange for my honest opinion. 

A Love Surrendered by Julie Lessman

Orphaned in Iowa, Annie Kennedy moves to Boston to stay with her spinster aunt. She longs for romance to fill the void left by her parents' death. But when she falls hard for Steven O'Connor, the man who broke an engagement to her sister, Annie is worried. Will he break her heart too when he discovers who she really is?With heart-pounding romance, intense family drama, and emotional twists and turns, A Love Surrendered is everything Julie Lessman's many fans have been waiting for.


A Love Surrendered is book three in the Winds of Change Series, and you definitely don't want to read it out of order or you just might be scratching your head over who's who and what's what in the O'Connor clan.

If you have read the previous 5 books-the first three being part of The Daughter's of Boston series about the same family- then you'll know that this one's about Steven, the youngest son.

If I'm already confusing you, it's because this is one big group of Irish/Catholic relatives we're talking about. (And, not to worry, plenty of that infamous passion/temper to go with it.)

As A Love Surrendered starts, we're introduced to Susannah, who prefers to be called Annie, and more than anything wants to land her first kiss. So with the encouragement of her friend, Peggy, she sneaks out at night hoping to meet a cute guy, up for some canoodling.

Well, she does meet a handsome man, but not in the way she planned and, needless to say, the circumstances leave her kinda mortified. Because Steven O'Connor, straight laced lawman, thinks of her as nothing but a naive, brainless, "kid" in need of saving from herself. Not exactly the image she's looking to cultivate as a mature, kissable, woman of the world.

Despite, or perhaps because of, their lack luster first encounter, Annie is determined to make Steven see her as more than a child, because his "brotherly" instincts to protect her from those who would take advantage, initially irritate her. Since Annie is only seventeen and Steven twenty five, he tells himself she's too young for him-plus he already holds enough guilt over the ruined innocence of a girl from his past. He can't stand to think the same could happen to the sweet Annie, so he distances himself. But he can't seem to shake her from his thoughts, even though he knows he's only asking for trouble by even contemplating a relationship...

Whew, what a finale to the whirlwind O'Connor saga! After six books of them, it's hard not to feel as if you're family, and Julie does an incredible job of seamlessly involving us in the stories of each of their lives. I so love the continued updates we receive on other siblings who we've previously read about, and how they are handling relationships, kids, marriages, work, etc. rather than just ending at the typical "happily ever after."

In terms of Steven and Annie's saga, it definitely kept my attention throughout-maybe a little too well at times. At one point near the end, I dropped my book on the floor after a major spoiler occurred and said, "You've got to be kidding me, Julie!" (I won't tell you if she was or not.) But, yes, I was angry, tense, and in shock for a full minute at least before I could continue on. And weirdly enough, that's a good thing because I LOVE an angsty read, despite near constant worry for my poor, sky rocketing, blood pressure.

I so didn't see that particular twist coming, along with several other ones, so kudos for some great plot planning!  I would have liked to see more of Steven and Annie's dating/relationship moments, as I felt like I didn't get quite as deep of an overall connection between the two of them as I was hoping for. I suppose, a few trivial, "down time," fun, couple interactions may have been what I missed to completely cement their feelings for each other in my mind. For me, it seemed as if most of their scenes together were tense/emotionally draining, and I definitely love some good tension, but appreciate the softer, romantic, stuff to balance it all out as well.

I'll admit, I was sad to pick up this book knowing it was the beginning of the end, but I couldn't resist because Julie is really a phenomenal writer who I can always tell  puts her heart and soul into every page she types. That passion comes across vividly in each character, phrase, setting, and detail-straight down to the smell of chili mac simmering on Marcy's kitchen stove. She immerses her readers in a world so realistically drawn, that you emerge back into real life reluctantly, not wanting to leave behind your book friends mid conversation.

I can't say enough about how blessed, uplifted, entertained, challenged, and honored I've been to share in the O'Connors' journey from Faith all the way to Steven. I feel as if I've come to know and care about each of them intimately which is a gift I'll forever cherish. And, you better believe, I'll be re-reading these classics in the future, and passing them down to my kids one day.

If you want a series that's passionate about relationships-both spiritual and emotional-then these are the books for you.

P.S. Just to help you out, I'm including the reading order and a link to each book:


The Daughters of Boston


-A Passion Most Pure

-A Passion Redeemed

-A Passion Denied


The Winds of Change


-A Hope Undaunted

-A Heart Revealed

-A Love Surrendered



I received a complimentary copy of this book from Revell Publishers in exchange for my honest opinion.