Should I review this book? ( )

4.5 stars.

Married 'til Monday is the fourth and sadly, final, installment in Denise Hunter's charming Chapel Springs series featuring the McKinley siblings. This newest release is a second chance at love romance for brother Ryan as he tries to win back the love of his life, his ex-wife Abby.

Ryan and Abby have been divorced for several years, but Ryan has never stopped loving her. The two met in college and married soon after graduation but after a tragic loss, their marriage began to fall apart. Their once loving and close relationship was torn apart by numerous fights and when Abby finally called it quits, Ryan respected her request to leave her alone. When Ryan learns Abby never told her parents about their divorce, he jumps at the chance to attend her parents' thirty-fifth wedding anniversary party with her. He hopes that their enforced time together traveling to and from their house, in addition to the weekend at her parents' house will give him the opportunity to convince her to give them another chance. But Abby is stubborn and she refuses to even discuss their failed marriage but she eventually sees the benefit of clearing the air between them. While this gives Ryan hope she will be open to a reconciliation, she quickly distances herself from him both psychically and emotionally. Ryan refuses to give up hope, but will Abby decide to risk her heart again?

When Ryan and Abby first met, Abby was not looking for a relationship. But she found it very hard to resist Ryan once she realized he was very different from the men she had dated in the past, and slowly but surely, he slipped past her defenses and into her heart. Despite their rather hasty wedding, the two were deliriously happy at first, but after an unexpected loss, Abby's grief gave way to anger and she turned her back on God while at the same time pushing Ryan away. Their last fight led to her walking out the door and filing for divorce. She has built a new life for herself and she loves her career as a private detective, but she has not really delved too deeply into the reasons why their marriage failed until after she and Ryan go their separate ways after the anniversary party. Abby is stunned to discover that her unresolved issues from her childhood are the impetus for her behavior that led up to their divorce. Of course, Ryan is not entirely blameless, but most of the fault lies with Abby and it is up to her to decide what she wants to do with this newfound knowledge.

Ryan's childhood was fairly idyllic and he is still very close to his extended family. Abby never confided anything about her past to him, but from his brief introduction to her parents at their wedding, he knew that things between them were strained. During their weekend visit with her parents, Ryan begins to get a better idea of what her childhood was like, but he is still shocked (and angry) when he learns the complete truth about her past. This helps him understand why Abby finds it difficult to let anyone in, but he still does not fully comprehend how much her past continues to affect her. Ryan refuses to give up on her but he does come to the realization that their future is in her hands.

In the beginning, there is a lot of tension between Ryan and Abby. She is very antagonistic but Ryan is unfailingly cheerful and he is very patient with her. In spite of her animosity toward him, it is still obvious that she is attracted to him but she does everything she can to keep Ryan from getting close to her. Even when they return to their regular lives, Ryan tries to keep in contact with her, but Abby is very skilled at not letting anyone in. Although Abby won't discuss her past, it is clear that her childhood was dysfunctional, but the whole truth is not revealed until almost the end of the story. Once she begins to make peace with her past, will Abby decide to give Ryan another chance? Or will she continue to protect herself from further heartache?

Married 'til Monday is a very sweet but incredibly realistic romance. Abby's part of the storyline is very emotional and heartbreaking. Ryan's problems center more around trying to reconcile with Abby but he also has an issue with his family that he finally decides to address. As always, Denise Hunter weaves some very important lessons of faith that are sure to resonate with anyone who has struggled with their spirituality after a loss.

Married 'til Monday is a marvelous addition to the Chapel Springs series. Like the other novels in the series, it can be read as a standalone, but I highly encourage readers to pick up the previous books as well.
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Apart from being an enjoyable romance with a happily ever after ending, Ms. Hunter also explores the effects of trauma and abuse on other relationships and how only true healing can make for a happy ending. Abby & Ryan are divorced but Ryan uses an anniversary party to force his way back into Abby's life. It's obvious that they both still love each other but equally obvious that there are serious problems with Abby and her ability to trust and even to understand how those around her feel. I liked watching Ryan come to their relationship with more maturity. And it was heartbreaking to see Abby deal with the brokenness her childhood abuse had caused. But it made the ending more rewarding and real. ( )

Very sweet and made me cry. I enjoyed reading this book about understanding and forgiveness. ( )

What a great series of books written by Denise Hunter! I loved them all!. Each book deals with one of the McKinley siblings and each story can be read as a stand alone story, but you will miss out on so much if you don't read them all, in the order they were written.

Ryan McKinley (the oldest) has tried to move on with his life since his divorce from Abby several years earlier. But he can't seem to let go of his memories, and ends up buying the house in Chapel Springs that Abby always wanted to live in. That didn't help him get over his feelings for Abby at all. Then her parents call him about driving out to Maine for their anniversary party and Ryan discovers that Abby never told her parents she was divorced. Ryan sees this as an excellent opportunity to take a road trip with Abby and try to figure out what went wrong with their marriage.

Abby never told her folks about the divorce because she didn't want the strained relationship with her dad to get any worse than it already was, so she begrudgingly agrees to travel with Ryan to the party in Maine, and pretend to be married until Monday, when they travel back home. From Indiana to Maine and back Ryan and Abby will have to learn to get along, talk it out, and openly share their thoughts and feelings.

The chemistry between these two was very fun to watch and enjoy. Abby had a lot of 'baggage' she brought into their marriage that Ryan never understood. It was an eye-opening trip for everyone and the underlying romance throughout was enough to make me want to revisit this series again sometime. Go ahead, take the road trip and enjoy. ( )