The Innkeeper of Ivy Hill by Julie Klassen

The Innkeeper of Ivy Hill by Julie Klassen

Book One in the Series: Tales from Ivy Hill

I’ve enjoyed Julie’s books in the past, so I was excited to see this first book of a new series release. 

Let’s begin with the summary:

Welcome to the English village of Ivy Hill, where friendships thrive, romance blossoms, and mysteries await. . .

The lifeblood of the village of Ivy Hill is its coaching inn, The Bell. When the innkeeper dies suddenly, his genteel wife, Jane Bell, becomes the reluctant landlady. Jane has no idea how to manage a business, but with the town's livelihood at stake and a large loan due, she must quickly find a way to save the inn.

Despite their strained relationship, Jane turns to her resentful mother-in-law, Thora, for help. Formerly mistress of The Bell, Thora is struggling to overcome her losses and find purpose for the future. As she works with Jane, two men from her past vie for her attention, but Thora has promised herself never to marry again. Will one of them convince her to embrace a second chance at love?

As pressure mounts from the bank, Jane employs new methods, and puzzles over the intentions of several men who seem to have a vested interest in the place, including a mysterious newcomer with secret plans of his own. With the help of friends old and new, can Jane restore life to the inn, and to her empty heart as well?

And now, my review:

I really wanted to love this book.

As I mentioned, I’ve enjoyed Julie’s earlier books. Unfortunately, this one seemed to drag. There were multiple characters, though the author wisely introduced them slowly over many pages. The story lacked a romantic thread (to the point where I read), which would have helped keep me engaged. (This lack was especially disappointing since the book’s summary included a mention of romance.)

One of the themes in the story was that sometimes we can limit other people by labeling them and then never expecting change. People grow and change. We can’t assume: 1) they won’t change or 2) they haven’t changed since we last interacted with them. I liked this theme. We also got to watch the characters begin to evolve (by the point I read), which was the perfect way to prove this theme.

There were a lot of historical facts and terms that were interesting as I read.

But overall, this book has very slow pacing. The MC (main character) (not really a heroine, as she didn’t act heroic from the opening pages) was passive and self-absorbed and so deep in grief she wasn’t an active character. She doesn’t receive the call to action (part of the “hero’s journey”) until about a third of the way into the story and then, when she finally accepts, I’d lost interest. I found I couldn’t sympathize with her or care to keep reading to see how things turned out for her. It was also difficult to picture her. There were a lot of unanswered questions (the “mystery” aspect mentioned in the summary), but since I didn’t care about the characters I didn't keep reading.

It was obvious the author had developed a layered make-believe world and peopled it with varied characters, but while reading the novel I felt I’d missed an earlier book in this first of the new series because of all the characters and unknowns. I felt the book could've begun with the final days of the late husband's life so we cared about the main characters, and then skipped a lot of the preamble to the Call, shaving off about one-quarter of the words for length. Then, we would have sympathized with the MC and understood her plight, especially if she had her own goals in life, her own dreams she was already chasing. This would have meant conflict/tension between what she'd rather do (some other noble cause) and what she was called to do after his death. As it is, we don't have deep enough emotional motivations for her choices, so we don't feel their impact, or relate with the MC.

I made it to about 29 - 30 percent (location 2148 out of an unusually lengthy 7342 for length) before I gave up in favor of the next book on my TBR pile. (I read the e-book version. The book has 448 pages.)

I wish the author the best, and I’m sure I’ll pick up another of her books in the future, hoping for the same strength of writing/pacing/characterization I’ve found in her previous books.

The Painter's Daughter by Julie Klassen

The Painter's Daughter

I so enjoyed this author’s early novels, so I was very glad to read this book for review.

Let’s begin with the summary:

Sophie Dupont, daughter of a portrait painter, assists her father in his studio, keeping her own artwork out of sight. She often walks the cliffside path along the north Devon coast, popular with artists and poets. It's where she met the handsome Wesley Overtree, the first man to tell her she's beautiful.

Captain Stephen Overtree is accustomed to taking on his brother's neglected duties. Home on leave, he's sent to find Wesley. Knowing his brother rented a cottage from a fellow painter, he travels to Devonshire and meets Miss Dupont, the painter's daughter. He's startled to recognize her from a miniature portrait he carries with him--one of Wesley's discarded works. But his happiness plummets when he realizes Wesley has left her with child and sailed away to Italy in search of a new muse.

Wanting to do something worthwhile with his life, Stephen proposes to Sophie. He does not offer love, or even a future together, but he can save her from scandal. If he dies in battle, as he believes he will, she'll be a respectable widow with the protection of his family.

Desperate for a way to escape her predicament, Sophie agrees to marry a stranger and travel to his family's estate. But at Overtree Hall, her problems are just beginning. Will she regret marrying Captain Overtree when a repentant Wesley returns? Or will she find herself torn between the father of her child and her growing affection for the husband she barely knows?

And now, my review:

This was a multi-layered story. Once again, evidence of Julie’s extensive research manifests in well-written prose and descriptions. I also liked the varied settings—one of which was near the sea. That made for a great escape as I was reading.

I like reading romances where the man and woman are pretty much strangers, but get married early in the story. We get to watch them begin to like and then love each other. This story provided that journey.

I found several fun passages and even some sections where I laughed aloud. That’s part of what makes for an enjoyable read, in my opinion. Though the author tackled some deeper subject matter, this occasional lightness provided a balance.

The story contained subtle romance. That understatement makes for a strong impact, in my opinion, and we had that here. But there were other aspects (also attributable to genre?) that didn’t work for me—telling before showing. These out-of-order moments jarred me from the story, as did the POV missteps.

As a critique, I found some places of missed opportunity. Like the opening. I wondered why the author didn’t build up to the meeting of the hero and heroine by showing the effect that carrying her portrait (without knowing who she was) had had on him during battle. If we’d had that going in, we might have felt the impact of their meeting more keenly. Also, they share a picnic a little later in the story, but because we don’t have a buildup of mutual attraction with anticipation, some aspects came off as a bit… creepy. Later, when we do have this attraction with anticipation, the story heats up while remaining wholesome. These two are married after all.

I despised the villain in this story, which is probably the point. (smile) But I cheered when he began to see his own treachery and allow that to begin to change him.

Overall, I felt the story went on rather long, with some contrived conflict and a few predictable elements. All that said, I haven’t changed my mind about this author. I’ll be watching for her next book.

Everlasting Light: A Civil War novella by Andrea Boeshaar

Everlasting Light

Sometimes novellas are the perfect length for a reader’s busy schedule. This one was a just-right read recently.

Let’s begin with the summary:

Travel back in history and discover how acts of faith, love, and kindness between the young lovers in this novella establish blessings that will be passed along to generations to come.

Fresh, vibrant character thrown into impossible circumstances, who demonstrate genuine, heartfelt emotions. This is a passionate, masterfully woven romance that will cause your heart to sing as you shed a few tears.

And now, my review:

The heroine, Alaina, longs for her husband to reappear. He went to war and hasn’t come back, and there hasn’t been any confirmation of his death. She’s holding out hope. As readers wait and wonder what will happen, the author deftly takes us into satisfying flashbacks that depict earlier times and keep the romance  moving. This kept the pacing steady and wasn’t confusing as we bounced back and forth. 

I’m fascinated by the undercurrents during the Civil War. This was no cut-and-dried war. And neither side’s methods were perfectly noble. Our heroine is a Southerner who wonders if God sympathizes with the North. All around her, many have lost their homes in the aftermath of the soldiers burning through the region. She honors the black man in their lives, even considering his advice. This story confronts some stereotypes, demonstrating depth and complex layers.

Andrea is an experienced and adept author whose strong prose and pacing kept me flipping screens. Great read!

Recommended.

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