Not What I Pictured

This sweet if silly romance from Kinzer (First Love, Second Draft) pairs an ambitious photographer with a handsome English teacher. McKenna Boston, 32, has looked out for her younger sister Bobbi since their mom died 12 years ago, so she’s excited to finally leave Nebraska and strike out on her own in Los Angeles, where she’s been offered a high-flying photography gig. First, however, she wants to see Bobbi get engaged to her longtime boyfriend, so she hatches a scheme to photograph the proposal at a local park. When McKenna’s plan to hide the ring in the bushes goes awry—she accidentally slips it into the pocket of the attractive man she forces to vacate the bench where Bobbi’s boyfriend plans to propose—she must track the stranger down at his mom’s bed-and-breakfast in Tennessee, the Happy Hiccup. But it turns out that English teacher Nate stowed the ring in a bag the airline has lost. While waiting for the luggage, he and McKenna bond over their shared feelings of abandonment—Nate by his deadbeat musician dad; McKenna, who’s adopted, by her biological parents—and their struggles to put their trust in God. While their banter can be cringe-worthy, the central premise is charming and the cast of side characters, like perpetually hungry Gus and spunky Georgie, two quirky locals who hang around the Happy Hiccup, are appealingly goofy. The result is a funny and fast-paced romp. (Apr.)