A Girl’s Guide to the Outback
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5.0 • 2 Ratings
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- $9.99
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- $9.99
Publisher Description
How far will a girl go to win back a guy she can’t stand? This funny, sweet, and romantic story proves that opposites do attract—and that God has a sense of humor.
Samuel Payton is a passionate youth pastor in Virginia, but below the surface, he’s still recovering from the blow of a failed business and insecurities he can’t shake. His coworker, start-up expert Kimberly Foster, is brilliant, fearless, and capable, but years of personal rejection have left her defensive and longing for a family. Two people have never been more at odds—or more attracted to one another. And every day at work, the sparks sure do fly.
When Kimberly’s ambitious plans for Sam’s ministry butt up against his risk-averse nature, Sam decides that obligations to family trump his work for the church. He quits the ministry and heads home to Australia to help his sister, Jules, save her struggling farm. As Kimberly’s grand plans flounder, she is forced to face the truth: that no one can replace Sam. Together they strike up a deal: If Kimberly comes to work on Jules’s dairy farm and lends her business brains to their endeavor, then maybe—just maybe—Sam will reconsider his future with the church.
As Kimberly tries her hand at Australian farm life, she learns more about herself than she could’ve ever expected. Meanwhile Sam is forced to re-evaluate this spunky woman he thought he already knew. As foes slowly morph into friends, they wonder if they might be something even more. But when disaster strikes the farm, will Sam find it within himself to take a risk that could lead to love? And will Kimberly trust God with her future?
“Original, heartwarming, full of lovable characters amid a fast-paced plot. Romance readers will love the bicontinental adventure of a sassy, strong-willed woman going across the ocean to win back the Aussie man who holds the key to her career dreams—but also, as it turns out, so much more.” —Melissa Ferguson, author of The Dating Charade
“Combining breathtaking realness, natural humor, and scorching romantic chemistry that leaps off the page, author Jessica Kate has given us a thoroughly modern tale about risk, acceptance, and the true meaning of home. Crackling with electricity and overflowing with heart, A Girl’s Guide to the Outback is one you won’t want to miss. Fair dinkum!” —Bethany Turner, award-winning author of The Secret Life of Sarah Hollenbeck and Wooing Cadie McCaffrey
“A Girl's Guide to the Outback is as charming as it is hilarious! Jessica Kate’s fresh and unique voice is both humorous and endearing, leaving you no choice but to abandon all personal responsibilities so you can devour every page. This is one of those stories that leaves you looking around for the characters after you’ve finished reading, because they just had to be real.” —Betsy St. Amant, author of The Key to Love, coming October 2020
Contemporary inspirational romance novelIncludes characters featured in Jessica Kate’s debut Love and Other Mistakes but can be read as a standaloneBook length: 90,000 wordsIncludes discussion questions for book clubs
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Kate (Love and Other Mistakes) delivers an endearing inspirational romance that spans continents. Headstrong business expert Kimberly and risk-averse youth pastor Sam cannot seem to get along as they attempt to launch a youth ministry in Charlottesville, Va. After three years of little progress, Sam learns his family farm in Australia is at risk of bankruptcy and decides to return home to help save his family's legacy. However, once there, he and his sister realize they need a professional to help ensure the farm's long-term survival. Meanwhile, Kimberly is unable to secure a new pastor for the ministry. When she receives an offer from Sam to help hire his replacement in exchange for her business expertise, she accepts and travels to Australia to assess the farm's needs. As Kimberly learns a new way of life and starts to trust Sam, she thinks she might have found the family she never had. She also helps Sam begin to believe in himself and God's plan. Their story is paralleled by Sam's sister's relationship with her on-again, off-again boyfriend, and everyone experiences spiritual growth and contemplates the bonds that bind families. With its dramatic descriptions of the Australian landscape, this sweet romantic inspirational will please readers of Katherine Reay.
Customer Reviews
DELIGHTFUL!
Jessica Kate is quickly becoming one of my favorite new young authors! Her latest release, A GIRL’S GUIDE TO THE OUTBACK, is my kind of book! The two main characters Kimberly Foster & Samuel Payton are easy to grow to love and you’ll quickly want to know more of their story. **Part of their introduction is told in Kate’s first book LOVE AND OTHER MISTAKES.**
Although Sam is Australian, he’s been working with WILDFIRE, an organization that provides opportunities for students to hear the Gospel and then get involved in some type of small group to help them continue to grow. Kim is the behind-the-scenes girl who makes sure everything runs smoothly so all Sam has to do is speak to the people the Message of Life! You’d think it would make for a beautiful relationship, right? Not so much! Why? Well, there’s her secret crush on him, his total insecurities about every single thing about himself, the struggling ministry, the guilt of him feeling needed at home and him always seeming as though Kim is on his last nerve.
Sam heads back to Australia to work on his family’s farm, causing the ministry to nose dive. The governing board decides the best idea is to send Kim over to come up with a Master Money Plan to save the Family Farm in exchange for Sam coming back to the ministry to find and/or train his replacement. What ensues is one of the most entertaining and endearing books I’ve read in a long time! Kim is used to an office, not out mucking a cattle stall or hooking a cow up to a milking machine! Readers will find many moments of pure hilarity but the two characters also come to understand and appreciate each other in all manner of new ways. There are also moments of great inspiration as well.
While going about their chores, Sam and Kim had been asking each other the question, “What would you do if you could do anything?” Sam’s response, “Mine’s what you’d expect. Preaching or talking to the kids one on one. Getting to articulate the ultimate truths of the universe and put them into people’s brains. Nothing better.”
Kim was quick to reinforce his gift set. “I don’t think you realize how good you are at it...Talking to people the way you do. When you listen to someone, it’s like you forget the rest of world and they’re the most fascinating thing in the universe to you. That’s why the kids love you so much.” She continued, “You don’t know how much it means for someone who doesn’t have anyone in their corner to really be listened to. It changes everything.”
That really spoke to me as I have been involved in some type of youth ministry for 44 years. I could relate to so much of the lives of these characters and the entire storyline.