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It is less about starting a relationship and more about staying together.
It is for people who are willing to take responsibility for life's choices and deal with the consequences. It will not be helpful to you if you believe that true happiness will come when you finally transform your partner into an ideal mate. If you spend your life whining about your bad luck or mistreatment by everything or everyone, you will find our book frustrating and irrelevant. If you are preoccupied with the past, you may dismiss this book as simplistic. If you count on fate, luck, divine plans, spirit guides or the positions of the stars for understanding, you may rebel at the idea that working to maintain 6 Values and to accomplish 9 Goals will lead to a fulfilled and rewarding relationship. Our mission is to highlight these values and goals as guidelines by which to enjoy your relationship.

"My upbringing was a mess- the textbook 'dysfunctional' family. I had no model for what a marriage should be and went through a lot of relationships based on trial and error. The Werles lay out a solid model with plenty of room for individual differences, so instead of guessing, I am able to find myself and make good choices in dealing with my partner.
Couples Enlightenment is a very good, reliable compass for navigating through relationship difficulties."

A Psychotherapy Patient.

"Finally a book for couples written by "experts" who are not afraid to be themselves in writing a practical and very readable manual for building a long term committed relationship. They put their marriage right in the middle of things, and just when you are afraid that they will go over the top with personal revelation, they pull back leaving the reader to rethink assumptions about his or her own relationship. There is humor, pathos, and lightheartedness. This is a book that even a man can take seriously."

M.E. Sloan

"Couples Enlightenment" is polished, clear, and will find it's audience. However, this reviewer is in shock over the Werles' honesty. As a stoic surviving with defensive humor, this reviewer felt uncomfortable with the open flow of thoughts and emotions throughout the book. It will take me awhile to rebuild my walls. This being said, the clarity of the writing shows how wonderfully at ease the Werles are with one another!"

Henry Brousseau

Book Review by DON FOWLER from the Warwick Beacon/Cranston Herald
Having lived through the sixties, sensitivity training, and more than one approach to relationship manuals, I was reluctant to tackle another book on "How to stay in a relationship and be happy", especially after 40 years with the same woman.
***Then Mike Werle asked me to review his draft of a book that he and his wife Lilyanne had written, make a few comments and suggestions, and I was hooked. Couples Enlightenment is a new and practical approach to relationships that centers around both partners taking responsibility for the relationship, while exploring and better understanding each other and their lives together. Together they bring a fresh and honest approach to the subjects of relationships and "loving for a lifetime". There is much wisdom, humor, and practical advice in the book, which gains its strength from both the collaborative effort and the occasional different points of view of its authors.
There are values and goals to talk about, but the authors never get "preachy", allowing the reader to learn from their mistakes, sharing douts, concerns, and their own weaknesses, and coming across as real human beings who just happen to be trained in couseling.
There is an opportunity for the reader to assess himself or herself before trying some interesting and stimulating relationship exercises. The book is helpful to anyone in a relationship, regardless of age, background or sexual orientation. The key element is in the exploring and understanding of a committed relationship, with its values and goals.
The authors talk about the importance of covenants, rather that the current buzzword, "contracts". The emphasis in on the bonding relationship, rather than a desire to change or perfect your partner. There are wonderful analogies on how couples can cope with crises. The book stops short of therapy, offering many practical suggestions on staying in a relationship and being happy...
" if that is what you want".

New self-help book for couples eliminates 'psycho-babble'- by Jennifer Doo -Warwick Beacon
"Marriage is made in Heaven, but divorce is right here on earth," write Micheal and Lilyanne Werle in their recently self-published book, Couples Enlightenment. - The greatest challenges were to share the creative endeavors, " and how stubborn we were, " they agreed. Both knew little about the publishing world at the beginning. Lilyanne was designated to send out copies of the book to several publishers. After receiving rejection letters from all five publishers, they decide to self-publish through the Internet. " I didn't know how it worked ...eventually I learned that most people sent copies (of their books) to hundreds of publishers before they get published, " she said.
Throughout the book, Michael's opinions are in bold while Lilyanne's are in italics- emphasizing the important point. The distinctiveness of the print suggests that different opinions can peacefully co-exist. With so many self-help relationship books found on the shelves at bookstores, one might wonder how this one sets itself apart. " This book is not intended to be clever, ...it is more like a workbook.