The Substitute by Denise Grover Swank

     "Megan Vandemeer meant to tell her parents about her broken engagement, but a month and a half later she finds herself boarding a plane home to her wedding. Having stretched avoidance to its limits, it's time to come clean - a terrifying prospect since her mother is sure to blame her rather than her cheating, emotionally frigid ex. A couple of drinks and two Dramamine later, Megan finds herself spilling her sob story to the tall, dark, and handsome stranger in the seat next to her. 
      With only one week left to save his business, Josh McMillan boards a plane to Kansas City in a last-ditch effort, leaving the details to chance. An unexpected answer is delivered in the form of the beautiful brunnette beside him. Though she's completely loopy, her honesty, openness, and humor charm him. So when she passes out before landing, he helps her off the plane - a good deed that leads to a colossal misunderstanding. Her parents assume he's her fiance. In a twist of fate, the mix-up might help Josh save his business, so he plays along, figuring he can help Megan too. All he has to do is stage a public break up convincing enough to appease her mother.
      Josh is only supposed to be a substitute groom, but the more time he and Megan spend together, the more their pretend engagement start to feel real... and the less they want to break it off. Can a relationship that began as a farce turn into happily ever after?"


      This novel with two fun, charismatic characters definitely keeps you on your toes. However, there is some language that is inappropriate, as well as there is quite a lot of sexual references and descriptive scenes that would also be inappropriate for a younger audience. I would not suggest this as a clean read.

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The Little Wedding Shop by the Sea by Jane Linfoot

      "Brides by the Sea, the cutest little wedding shop in all of Cornwall, has it all, including cake baker Poppy who lives upstairs. But wedding planning is not the piece of cake Poppy thought it would be, and when her best friend Cate's wedding planner walks out, Poppy has to tie up the loose ends so her bestie can tie the knot. 
       Double-booked venues, 'rustic' locations and gorgeous but grumpy farmer Rafe have this wedding pro feeling like she could be Cate's 'something blue'.
       Will the wedding, the shop and the cake all come crashing down on her? Or will Poppy pull it off to give Cate - and herself - the happy ever afters they deserve?"






       While a cute wedding romance, this novel has a little too much for younger audiences. There are multiple uses of crude language, but also a few descriptive sexual references. Though the main sexual scene is cut out, there are still sparks that reference an adult relationship. This ultimately causes me to not want to suggest this book for those wanting a clean read.

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Bon Bons to Yoga Pants by Katie Cross

      "Lexie Greene has always had such a pretty face.
       Unfortunately, that's where it seemed to stop. She's grown up hearing her Mother constantly remind her that she needs to lose weight. And twenty-two-year-old Lexie knows she's overweight. 
       With her younger sister's wedding on the horizon and a crush to stalk on Facebook, Lexie's had enough. She gives up her constant daydreams about food and joins a dieting group. As the pounds melt away at the gym, she finds that life on the other side of junk food isn't what she thought.
      Bon Bons to Yoga Pants is an inspirational hit about a girl coming to terms with herself, and her past, all while navigating a world of food and fitness."







This book was a very good read. The language was kept clean, as well as the romance. It also inspired girls to stand up for who they are and to take care of their bodies, while dealing with emotional stress head-on. I found this a very fun, enjoyable read and perfect for an inspirational, clean read!

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Dare to Love by Carly Phillips

      "She arouses his dominant and protective instincts
       And he will do anything to possess her...
       And does.
      When billionaire Ian Dare gets one glimpse of the sensual and irresistible Riley Taylor, he knows that he must have her. But any future he might have with Riley means he'll have to confront his past - a past he'd rather forget. And that's something this NFL team owner won't dare to do - not even for love."




This romance novel was very sexually graphic and contained many sexual scenes from start to finish. It would definitely not be good for those wanting a clean read.

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Love Handles (A Romantic Comedy) by Gretchen Galway

      "The world of fitness apparel isn't ready for Beverly Lewis. She hates the gym, is nice to everybody, and shops at Ross Dress for Less. When she's not teaching preschool, she's wearing yoga pants... to nap in. So when she inherits her estranged grandfather's fitnesswear company in San Francisco, nobody expects her to keep it. Fite Fitness needs a heartless suit to save if from bankruptcy, not a thirty-year-old woman who cries when her students leave for kindergarten.
      Someone like Liam Johnson. A former Olympic swimmer, Liam is Fite's executive vice president. Unlike Bev, he's devoted his life to Fite's success. Managing one little preschool teacher - and his attraction to her - shouldn't be an issue. Right?
      But Bev's tired of being underpaid and underrated, and refuses to step aside as an obedient figurehead. To everyone's shock and horror, she moves up to San Francisco, sets up an office, and dives into the business. Nothing - not mockery, not exercise, not sabotage, not a disastrously hot night with her aggravating VP - is going to scare her away. As Liam realizes she's tougher than she looks, he discovers that losing Fite might not be nearly as bad as losing her...
      A story about the pursuit of love, happiness, and the perfect yoga pants, Love Handles will speak to anyone who's ever had to face what scares her most.
      Warning: contains at least two love scenes and a happy ending."


      This was a cute chick-lit. However, there were some instances of language, as well as the romance was not kept clean. There were several scenes with not only sexual references, but very plain sexual language as well. I would not recommend this book for anyone wanting a clean read.


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Letters in the Jade Dragon Box by Gale Sears

      Truth. In mainland China from 1949 to 1976, truth is all but eradicated, suppressed and supplanted by the iron will of Mao Tes-tung. Millions of people suffer untold anguish as their history, their culture, and their lives are brought under communist rule. Many flee to Taiwan and Hong Kong.
      As a child, Chen Wen-shan was taken from her family home in mainland China and sent to live with her great-uncle - a former general in the Nationalist Chinese army who had become one of the first converts to the LDS Church in Hong Kong. For ten years, Wen-shan has carried the sorrow of abandonment in her heart, with few memories of her life before. But at the death of Chairman Mao, fifteen-year-old Wen-shan receives a mysterious wooden box that holds a series of beautiful paintings and secret letters that reveal the fate of the family she has not heard from in more than a decade. 
      As Wen-shan and her great-uncle read the letters in the jade dragon box, they discover an unbreakable bond between each other, their family - both past and present - and the gospel of Jesus Christ. 
   

      This novel was beautifully written. It is an LDS christian novel and tells a lot about the faith and miracles that were happening at that time. It was very enlightening as to the condition of the Chinese people under the rule of Mao Tse-tung, and it was a very enjoyable, clean read.

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The Leavers by Lisa Ko

      One morning, Deming Guo's mother, Polly, an undocumented Chinese immigrant, goes to her job at a nail salon - and never comes home. No one can find any trace of her. With his mother gone, eleven-year-old Deming is left mystified and bereft. Eventually adopted by a pair of well-meaning white professors, Deming is moved from the Bronx to a small town upstate and renamed Daniel Wilkinson. But far from all he's ever known, Daniel struggles to reconcile his adoptive parents' desire that he assimilate with his memories of his mother and the community he left behind. 
      Told from the perspective of both Daniel - as he grows into a directionless young man - and Polly, Ko's novel gives us one of fiction's most singular mothers. Loving and selfish, determined and frightened, Polly is forced to make one heartwrenching choice after another. 
      Set in New York and China, The Leavers is a vivid examination of borders and belonging. It's a moving story of how a boy comes into his own when everything he loves is taken away, and how a mother learns to live with the mistakes of the past. 

This is a very eye-opening novel of many different aspects. From cultural acceptance, to finding acceptance, to learning of one's own path, there were many different things to learn. However, this novel did have a large amount of swearing and some sexual references. The sexual references were kept very discreet and non-descriptive. But the high amounts of language alone would make me not recommend this book to anyone wanting a clean read.

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