Oh, if she could only be Eve again, a new creature in Paradise. Before the Fall. 
 3.5 stars. I had a full review typed out and accidentally closed my window without saving. Take 2 will have a couple of thoughts (and a very awesome quote) missing. 
 Michael and Sarah/Angel are destined to be together. Michael's prayers have led him to Angel, and when he sees her, he knows that she is the one he has been praying for. However, Michael is having a hard time convincing Angel of this. For Angel is a prostitute - a woman who knows nothing of love. She was raised to be an object for men. No man has ever shown her love or respect, which makes Angel wary of Michael's good intentions. 
 Even though I ended up with the less-descriptive version of this story (the intimate scenes were cut back), I didn't mind the lack of sex. What I did mind was the way that the editing was done, in such a manner that I felt like there were pieces missing from the overall connection between the couple. If I'd had the original copy, I'm sure this would be a solid 4 star (or higher) book for me. 
 Will non-inspirational readers like this book? I think in many cases, yes. The message was more about patience and perseverance than anything. Michael had to wait years for his beloved Sarah (Angel) to let him into her heart. Fans of stories such as Love Comes Softly will appreciate the love and effort put forth from Michael in his wait for Sarah. 
 "You and I are not an accident." 
 If I had to nit-pick anything, I would say that I was not a fan of the excessive inner dialogue. I was fine with God speaking to Michael and Sarah, but adding in the "dark" voice only made for a dueling-banjos (or classic cartoon with the devil and angel on each shoulder) effect. I feel like the story would have had more impact if there had been a few moments of quiet prodding from God, vs. the "we hear everything from everyone" thing going on here. It got a little noisy in the characters heads with the question and answer sessions. 
 The best part of this story was going on the entire journey with Michael and Sarah, from start to finish. The love might have been inspired, but getting the Happy-Ever-After was no easy feat. This is 1850's Gold-Rush California, where the times are hard and you have to work to carve out a life for yourself. I love frontier and pioneer stories, and getting to see how people survived in these times. I rooted for these characters and empathized with their struggles. It made the love story that much sweeter. 
 An extra bonus was seeing the lives of friends and people close to the main characters achieve their own happy-ever-afters. Paul and Miriam's story was lovely (and a great tribute to Boaz and Ruth, one of my favorite Bible stories). 
 All in all, I came away from this read content and inspired. I would love to take in something else from this author at another point in time.