Book Revier: Smitten

Smitten by Colleen Coble
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

The story takes place in a town called, what else, SMITTEN! The town just went through an economic downturn and the women banded together with a plan to save the town. Each is opening a new business but still making time to find love along the way.

This was such a sweet, fun read! And it was CLEAN!!! The four main characters are Natalie, Reese, Julia and Shelley. The four authors each tell one of their stories of falling in love, finding their perfect mate, who in most cases happened to be there in front of them all along. Each story is separate but intertwined with the others. So wonderful!

I have to say my favorite couple was Natalie and her beau. Their story was so sweet! Actually all of them were sweet. Even though the stories are traditional in the romance sense, I love how the story lines were clean. There was some mention of faith, enough to know it was important to the couples but not enough to sound preachy to the non-Christian reader. The sub-stories were wonderful as well! I really enjoyed this book.

I received a copy of the book from Thomas Nelson for the purpose of review. Opinions expressed are my own.

Love and Blessings!

Margaret

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Book Review: A Sound Among the Trees By Susan Meissner

A Sound Among the Trees by Susan Meissner

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


About the book:
A house shrouded in time.

A line of women with a heritage of loss.


As a young bride, Susannah Page was rumored to be a Civil War spy for the North, a traitor to her Virginian roots. Her great-granddaughter Adelaide, the current matriarch of Holly Oak, doesn’t believe that Susannah’s ghost haunts the antebellum mansion looking for a pardon, but rather the house itself bears a grudge toward its tragic past.


When Marielle Bishop marries into the family and is transplanted from the arid west to her husband’s home, it isn’t long before she is led to believe that the house she just settled into brings misfortune to the women who live there.


With Adelaide’s richly peppered superstitions and deep family roots at stake, Marielle must sort out the truth about Susannah Page and Holly Oak— and make peace with the sacrifices she has made for love.   


My review:

I was drawn to this book because I love Historical fiction.  I know war is not romantic, but to be able to find love amongst the rubble just makes me ... SIGH!  I really wanted to LOVE this book.

Overall the book is very slow moving, I really struggled to get through it. The most engaging part of the book is the letters.  I found out so much about the character writing them and really felt a connection with her. 

As for the characters, I have to say I wanted to really like Marielle but even after reading the book, I don't feel like I know her or Carson.  Also, Adelaide, who I would have thought was a main character was more an "accessory" until the very end.  I felt in the epilogue is where I had the most connection with her.

This wasn't an unpleasant read, I think I learned a little more about the time period.  I recommend it for readers who like Civil War era fiction. 

If you would like to learn more about this book, take a peek at Chapter One here.


Disclaimer: Thank you to  WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group for providing this book for review.

Love and Blessings!

Margaret

View all my reviews