BOOK REVIEW - The Perfect Blend by Allie Pleiter

First, I have a confession to make... I don't like coffee. I love the smell, but have never liked the taste. And while I have been known to frequent Starbucks, it's only to get the hot chocolate. Which is what made The Perfect Blend such a sweet surprise.

Maggie Black knows what her purpose in life is - opening a coffee house in Seattle. And not just any coffee house. Hers will be a Christian coffee house, serving the most fab coffee in town, in an open, non-threatening environment where people can gather and discuss anything... even faith. It's an incredible idea, a God-inspired idea. You'd have to be a dolt not to see it.

Enter William Grey, III, a dedicated TEA drinker, and the loan officer who has to inform Maggie that her dream is the biggest financial gamble he's ever heard of. But there is a way that the bank will reconsider her loan application. She has to take a small-business course which is taught by none other than, as Maggie likes to call him, Earl Grey himself.

Writing physical comedy isn't easy, but Allie makes it look like it is. Her book is, may I say, the "perfect blend" of I-Love-Lucy style comedy and characters with genuine, relatable motions. The author has built up a reputation of delivering laugh-out-loud moments mixed with true spiritual insights, and this book lives up to that reputation.

The Perfect Blend is a Steeple Hill Love Inspried July 2007 release, so run to your bookstore now before it's gone from the shelves! Or, you can order it from the Harlequin website. Either way, don't miss this delightful experience, even if you don't know your espresso from your cappuccino.