The Divine Proverb of Streusel by Sara Brunsvold is filled with tasty sounding recipes and sage advice. You can’t judge a book by its cover, but this one is really well done. The author weaves a tale full of introspection and heartache. It causes readers to think about their own lives and how they can improve relationships with those around them. There are plenty of interesting characters to relate to, but more importantly, readers actually care about these characters.

This story takes place in modern times, but the characters often write or share stories that happened in the past. Some of the best parts of this story are the things that are not included. (For example, the classic themes of the heroine realizing she is dating a selfish person all wrong for her and the main character falling head over heels for a person she has only known for a few days are not part of this book.) Rather readers are invited to grow and learn alongside Nikki as she learns about her family heritage and the delicate art of forgiveness.

Romantics don’t despair! There are some very sweet romantic moments, but they are just a little briefer than one might expect. The story is well crafted and the experiences of the characters feel very real, but some things were lacking. Many of the characters could have used more development of their stories. Perhaps you would like to visit small town Missouri along with Nikki. The story does tend to drift along slowly like a hot, humid Missouri day.

Review of Advance Reader Copy provided by the Publisher

 Profanity/Language: None

Violence/Gore:  Character wants to smack sense into someone; character recalls a father who was abusive to his children; person recalls another punching a bully in the face.

Sex/Nudity: Report of a character having an affair; non-married characters kiss and embrace

Mature Subjects:

Death of a friend, emotional abuse, marital infidelity, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, divorce.

Drug/Alcohol Use:

None