Salutations! Biscuits and Slashed Browns by Maddie Day will be available on January 30. It is the fourth book in A Country Store Mystery series. Liza's Second Chance by Molly Jebber will also be released on that day. It is the first book in An Amish Charm Bakery series. So many delightful books and not enough time to read them all.
The Lacemaker by Laura Frantz
takes readers back to 1775 in the Virginia Colony. Lady Elisabeth Lawson is the only child of
the Earl of Stirling who is the lieutenant governor for the area. Lady Elisabeth is betrothed to Miles Cullen Roth
which was arranged by her father. Lady
Elisabeth has led a privileged and sheltered life with her path laid out before
her by her dictatorial father. The night
before her wedding, she wakes up to glass breaking and a crowd of men (rebels) in
her home. The revolution has started, and
her father has fled along with the Lord Dunsmore (his wife, children, and their
servants). The one bright spot is Miles
calls of their engagement (the cad). Elisabeth
must now find a way to make it on her own.
Patriot Noble Rynallt takes Elisabeth into his home while she decides on
her next move. She changes her name to Liberty
and obtains a position as seamstress at the Raleigh while selling her handmade
lace at the local market. When an
opportunity to aid the war effort presents itself, Liberty must make a
decision. Will she stay loyal to the
British or will she side the Patriots?
How will Liberty fare during these tumultuous times?
The Lacemaker is nicely written and
the author captures the time-period with her descriptions of the town,
clothing, mannerisms, attitudes and speech.
You can tell that Ms. Frantz did her research for The Lacemaker. The author provides vivid and detailed
descriptions. It allows me to picture
the scenes in my head. While I enjoy the
historical details, it does slow down the pace of the novel (she needed to find
a balance). I was happy to see the pace
pick up in the second half of the book. I
thought the characters were realistic and well-developed. I liked how the author incorporated her
fictional characters with famous historical figures (Patrick Henry, George Washington). Liberty found herself in a difficult
position. She is caught between two
worlds. One wrong move and Liberty could
have found herself in jail (or much worse).
The romance between Liberty and Noble does not progress beyond
friendship until later in the book. The
attraction between them is visible from the moment they meet, but circumstances
prevent them from moving forward until later in the story. The romance between the pair is heavily
featured in the latter half of the novel. My rating for The Lacemaker is 4 out of 5 stars. The ending felt incomplete and rushed.
We live through each day with Liberty and then in the end months go
by. Also, the historical details are
missing. I found it deficient (the ending). It seemed like the author ran out of steam. The end did not live up to the rest of the
book. I was delighted with the descriptions of lace making. It is an intricate process that requires a pattern and many bobbins (but yields beautiful results). The cover for The Lacemaker is
just lovely. It caught my attention right
away which led me to read the excerpt and ultimately, the book. Readers who enjoy historical romance novels
will be delighted with The Lacemaker. You can follow Laura Frantz on Amazon, Bookbub, and Goodreads. They will send you notifications of new releases (and answers to reader questions).
Thank you for reading my latest review. I will be featuring A Daring Escape by Tricia Goyer next time. I hope that you have a charming day. I am off to fix a plumbing leak. Wish me luck! Take care and Happy Reading!
Kris
The Avid Reader
No comments:
Post a Comment