Book Review: Unrivaled

Synopsis:  Just back from a trip to Europe, Lucy Kendall is bursting with new ideas.  Her father's candy company, City Confectionery has been suffering ever since Standard Manufacturing "stole" their famous Royal Taffy recipe, along with their candy business.  City Confectionery's specialty, Fancy Crunch, is popular, but not quite as much as Royal Taffy.  But upon arriving home, Lucy discovers that her father is bedridden following a heart attack, and her mother has plans to sell City Confectionery.  Lucy is determined to do something to save the family business--maybe she can create a new candy, reminiscent of those she sampled in Europe, to boost sales!  Or maybe she can find a rich bachelor to marry, so his money can save the company!  Or if all else fails, perhaps she can come up with a scheme to destroy the rival company, Standard, owned by the Clarke family.

But she reckoned without Charlie Clarke--in fact, she didn't even know there was a Charlie Clarke!  The "long-lost" son of Warren Clarke, Charlie has come to St. Louis to help his father run Standard Manufacturing.  When Charlie and Lucy first bump into each other (literally), the each have no idea that the other belongs to the rival company.  And they're attracted to each other right from the start.  But when they discover each other's true identity, sparks begin to fly!  Lucy is determined to destroy Standard and save City Confectionery, even if she has to stoop to underhanded measures . . . and Charlie isn't about to let that happen!

Add in a lot of talk about candy, a "prim and proper" bachelor who gets engaged to Lucy but elopes with someone else, an air show, an annoying friend who turns out to be a true friend, a Queen of Love and Beauty, and lots more talk about candy, and you have a winning recipe for a very enjoyable book!

Unrivaled was my second Siri Mitchell read, and I may have liked it even better than The Messenger, which I reviewed last year.  Unrivaled was set during a less somber and difficult time period, and that probably added to my enjoyment of it!  It was also very funny, as the storytelling shifted back and forth between the two main characters, Charlie and Lucy, so you get the chance to get inside both of their heads and see what they're thinking about each other (which is often not very complimentary!).  In spite of the fact that the book was lighthearted in many ways, there was also a serious undertone as the author explored themes of forgiveness and God's love.  

I appreciated that this book was a fun, clean read, with an important message, and a sweet (pardon the pun!) love story to boot!  Just a warning: reading Unrivaled may cause you to crave candy . . . I found myself really wanting to taste both Fancy Crunch and Royal Taffy! :)  Thanks to Siri Mitchell for another great read . . . I give Unrivaled 5 out of 5 stars.

**Disclosure: I received a free copy of this book from Bethany House in exchange for my review.  I was not required to give a positive review, and all opinions expressed are my own.