Last circle of love A novel

All Souls Lutheran Church, situated in the charming Minnesota town of Kittleson, is in a bind. The congregation competes with another local church, Prince of Peace, and All Souls needs to come up with a big fundraiser to keep it solvent. Enter the Naomi Circle, a women's group determined to top "Price of Peace." Along with their new, young pastor, the Naomis decide to create a book of erotic essays to sell--it'll be more interesting than a cookbook. Of course, it's controversial, but many church members are thrilled to contribute. Readers learn the stories of Marlys, whose marriage is no longer sexual but still erotic; Velda, who's exploring her identity as a bisexual person; Charlene, the youngest of the Naomis, who's spicing up her marriage; and many more. The novel is light on plot and packed with characters, but their voices are charming, and the vignettes are engaging. Landvik is funny, and despite the term erotica, the content is not overly sexual. With a setting reminiscent of Lake Wobegon, it's a feel-good read for book clubs.

A women's group at a struggling church is at the heart of this new novel from Landvik (Angry Housewives Eating Bon Bons). All Souls Lutheran has a newish, young pastor, Mallory "Pastor Pete" Peterson, but a declining population, while the newer, richer church across town is thriving. Determined to raise needed funds, the five loyal members of the Naomi Circle from Pastor Pete's church ditch their usual bake-sale and church-cookbook fundraisers. Instead, they'll write and try to sell a risqué book tentatively titled The ABCs of Erotica, to which each of the women will contribute, along with anyone else they can wrangle. Their ABCs of Erotica entries are more sweet romance than they are erotica, but the title alone gets people talking. VERDICT Landvik usually excels at creating novels with quirky characters and small-town charm, but there are so many characters and subplots here that the charm gets short shrift. Nonetheless, Landvik is popular, so buy accordingly. Should delight fans of Fannie Flagg and Debbie Macomber.--Stacy Alesi