A cute story -- 4 women get together over scrapbooking and support each other in the variety of struggles they face (new romance, stale marriage, adopting a child, and having an older child in trouble). A happy ending, feel good book.

Prints Charming
I loved this book and couldn't put it down. It's a wonderful book of friendship and love. It's a must read!

ane Sandburg has never believed her best friend's suspicions about her husband...until now. Devastated by his betrayal, Jane reaches out to three women for support ~ Lydia, Mac and Mari. Each woman has her own unique struggles but their shared love of scrapbooking, an innovative idea and their creative talents cement their friendship.

When problems arise ~ a lackluster marriage, infertility, a rebellious child and an apologetic husband ~ these friends encourage, challenge and piece together each others spirits as they would a page in their scrapbooks, creating something beautiful.

Rebeca Seitz's first foray into writing is entertaining, enlightening and constructive! Ideas abound throughout the book on scrapbooking and expert tips are provided at the back of the book. Despite not being a scrapbooker myself I still enjoyed this story of friendship as Jane restarts her life and contemplates where her friendship with her appealing neighbour might lead. Lydia, Mac and Mari each experience heartaches and frustrations that easily connect with the reader. Rebeca's authenticity and humour shine through. I felt that dealing with each of the woman's particular circumstances in one book constrained some of the story lines but it does not change my recommendation. Prints Charming will appeal to women who know the true value of their friends whether they are the kind to rush to a sale at their local scrapbooking store or not!

If you're a Christian fiction fan who enjoys The Yada Yada Prayer Group series, books about women and crafts, or chick-lit, then check out PRINTS CHARMING, Rebeca Seitz's debut novel. Numerous Christian novels have developed plot narratives around quilting, but this may be the first to use scrapbooking as its motif.

The plot begins as we meet self-employed publicist Jane Sandburg, who has expected to marry her Tennessee sweetheart, Bill, since junior high. They have the perfect wedding, right down to the correct shade of gold ribbons on each pew. But two years later, his cheatin' heart has caught up with them and Jane is forced to face the truth about her less-than-dreamboat husband. "What do women do with all the things they acquired during their marriage when it ends? Post them on eBay?" she muses. After their divorce, her Sisters, Ink scrapbooking friends and her faithful dog, Wilson, are all that keep her holding on to her sanity.

Using multiple points of view, Seitz introduces us to the carefully chosen, diversely ethnic characters who will form the spiritual and relational backbone of the novel (here's where The Yada Yada Prayer Group faintly echoes). Lydia is Jane's best friend and the happily married mother of twins. But the zing has gone out of her marriage, and even wearing lingerie with the logo of her husband's favorite sports team isn't getting his attention. McKenzie "Mac" is the African-American mother of Tabby, a young single mom and former drug addict who is in and out of jail and always in trouble. Seitz does a nice job portraying the Latino Mari's sweet romantic relationship with her husband, John. The couple has a little girl, Emmy, but after experiencing "secondary infertility" they are adopting another from Chile. This provides some of the more dramatic moments in the novel.

Non-scrappers will find themselves confronted with a whole new world, complete with its own language: "Click-its," "vellum" and "die-cuts." Those who love scrapbooking will enjoy details about scrapbook supply sales, creating the perfect scrapbook page, and the ins and outs of recording life's memories.

Readers will see the romance coming from the earliest pages in the form of Jake, a handsome newcomer to Jane's neighborhood who, of course, she can't stand. "...There's no way on God's green earth I would consider that man for one second. Scratch that --- one millisecond." Romance novel veterans won't be surprised what this foreshadows. However, Jake has a hidden past that may put their newfound romance in jeopardy. Or is it Jane who is harboring a secret? When Jane's ex, Bill, returns, wanting to resume their relationship, things start cooking. Keep reading....

Any woman whose husband has fooled around with an Internet romance will cheer when Jane bashes a pile of AOL disks with a hammer (courtesy of her new romantic interest). As with most first novels, there are a few glitches, including some missing transitions and a strange paragraph where Lydia seems to think Emmy is her daughter (she's really Mari's). The African-American and Latino dialogue seem a little forced ("You best be makin' sure you ready to be courted"), and there's also a blatant plug for the author's friend's novels. The Christian lingo gets a little heavy when the characters start recommending Gary Chapman's book, THE FIVE LOVE LANGUAGES, to each other, complete with an explanation of each. This is good stuff for nonfiction but feels out of place in a novel.

Although the book doesn't say it's a series, the way readers are left hanging on the last page invites a sequel. Those who enjoy PRINTS CHARMING eagerly will await the next installment.

--- Reviewed by Cindy Crosby

Rebeca Seitz rocks! Her story is all about facing problems with good Christian women there to support you.