Oh My Gosh! With every book Steven Manchester writes I become a bigger and bigger fan of his. He always manages to touch my soul and make me get pulled totally into every story he shares. Pressed Pennies is no exception.

Abby starts out as a character that I felt sorry for, having to live with a mean alcoholic husband and fighting constantly while their daughter hears it all is such a hardship for her. Quickly she shows her strength by leaving him and making a safe and healthy home for Paige. When she finally meets Richard again, after a brief childhood “romance”, I could feel the life come back into her body. She had a reason, other than Paige, to get up each day, she had someone who would cherish her and protect her. I immediately began loving the relationship between Richard and Abby, while also keeping Paige and Abby’s relationship in my thoughts. How a mother and daughter interact is so important.

Paige is a typical young girl struggling with her mom moving on with her life. While Abby does everything right, keeping Paige in the loop of the relationship and also talking to her about her feelings and what she needs, it made me sad to hear how Paige was so disrespectful to Richard and her mother. I knew the space had to be given for Paige to come to terms, but seriously that girl was rude so many times. Richard did everything he could to win her over, giving her the space she needed and including her in most of their “dates.” I loved Paige’s friends, especially the ones that shook her up trying to make her see how happy and loved Abby was with Richard.

I cannot complete my review without talking about Richard. He was absolutely perfect. Through all the frustration with Paige and with Abby having to put Paige first, he kept his calm. He managed to show his feelings without losing his man card. The fact that Richard never really gave up on winning Paige and having a real relationship with Abby made him truly the best man.

This is a sweet and lovely story about second chances, blended families, and lost loves. If you miss this story you will be sorry. I highly recommend it.

I didn't enjoy the writing style of this piece. For me it was hard to keep myself involved in the story from the very beginning.