While in college, Cheney Reynolds made a life-altering choice that caused her to lose faith in herself and in her religion.  During this time of great misery and because she was so ashamed of her decision, Cheney cut all ties with her family.  The only person who knew what happened was her best friend Imani.  But after five years of solitude and being haunted by her nightmares, Cheney wanted, no needed, to reconnect with her family, so she decided to move back to her hometown.  She knew that it was not going to be easy; but she was willing to try.  Now, if she could only keep her elderly noisy neighbor, Grandma BB and the handsome, pesky Parke Jamison “whatever his number is” out of her business she will be able to focus all her attention on reuniting with her family.

Parke Jamison VI was on a mission to find and marry his African Queen.  She had to meet certain qualifications in order to become his wife because he was a direct descendent of a royal African Tribe.  Parke refused to deviate from his requirements.  So he couldn’t understand why he continued to seek Cheney Reynolds out.  She was totally opposite of what his queen was supposed to be – she was too tall and more importantly, too opinionated and smart mouthed for his taste.  Yet, he couldn’t stop butting heads with her.  The more time he spent in Cheney’s company, the more Parke wanted her to be his wife.  Will Parke be able to break down the painful wall that Cheney has built around her heart?  

Guilty of Love by Pat Simmons was my first experience with Christian fiction and I must admit that I truly enjoyed reading this novel.  I thought that Ms. Simmons did an excellent job of inserting the character’s spirituality into the dialog in such a natural manner that didn’t come across as being preachy and she was also able to interlace a multitude of rich African American history in the process.  I felt each and every emotion of the heroine and it touched me deeply within.  This story centered on a very difficult, heartbreaking issue and how Cheney dealt with it came across so incredibly real to me.  It was astonishing to find such strong characters in a novel, even with the weaknesses evolved from their past experiences.  I advise the reader to keep a big box of tissues handy because you will need them on numerous occasions.  Thanks go to Ms. Simmons for a truly inspirational story.