Book Review: Hidden Affections by Delia Parr

Excerpt: Annabelle Tyler may have hoped she would marry again someday, but she never dreamed she would be wearing handcuffs during the ceremony when she did. Hidden Affections, pg 7.

Back Cover: The tale of an unlikely couple trying desperately not to fall in love.

Annabelle Tyler longs for a fresh start. Yet she cannot reveal what brought her to these circumstances.

Harrison Graymoor plays the role of Philadelphia's most eligible, yet elusive, bachelor. His preference is to remain single . . . alone.

Quite unexpectedly, Annabelle and Harrison are forced into an undesired predicament. What happens when two determined individuals resolve against marriage . . . but their hearts tell them otherwise?

My Review: Delia Parr weaves together a story of mystery and love. I really enjoyed the built in conflict between the two main characters and how that dynamic crackles during the entire story. There was enough mystery and suspense to keep me turning the pages, and enough romance to keep me guessing what the final chapters would bring. Parr's characters are wonderfully believable, and uniquely flawed. They possess a life of their own, and I enjoyed getting to know them through the pages of this book.

My Rating:

My Recommendation: I recommend this book to readers who enjoy historical romance.

(I received a complimentary copy of this book for the purpose of review.)

Book Review: Love's First Bloom by Delia Parr

Excerpt: "Seems like the good minister mighta murdered somebody else, too. Anyway, I'll be back the end of the week with more newspapers. Maybe by then they'll have found the other body."

"Wh-what other body?" she managed before her throat tightened with fear.

"Accordin' to those papers, none of the officials or reporters have been able to find his daughter since the trial started, so they decided he musta killed her, too. They're lookin' hard, but they say she's got no family to take her in. One newspaper claimed she's just hidin' out somewhere. Not that I blame the poor woman. I'd hide, too, if that wicked minister was my father." Love's First Bloom, pg 26.

Back Cover: Life changes drastically for Ruth Livingstone the day her father puts a young child in her arms and sends her under an assumed name to a small village in New Jersey. There she dutifully awaits his acquittal, certain that her father, Reverend Livingstone, soon will be cleared of the outrageous accusations against him.

When tragic events transpire, Ruth finds solace tending a garden along the banks of the Toms River - a place where she can find a measure of peace amid her growing heartache. It is also here that she meets Jake Spencer, a man who both frustrates and intrigues her. Fearful of the newspapermen intent on tracking her down and unsure of whom to trust, Ruth knows she must carefully maintain her identity as Widow Malloy. But as love begins to slowly bloom, can the tenuous affection growing between Ruth and Jake withstand the secrets that separate them?

My Review: Delia Parr weaves a tale of lies and deceit. I was faced with the question: is it alright to lie to protect your identity or the identity of an innocent person. Another question that I was forced to face was: When is it worth lowering your principles to get what you really want. Parr characters struggle through these questions in their own lives. There is no easy answer to either.

One thing that I really liked about this book was the character Ruth, and her determination to obey her father, no matter the cost to herself. She gives up the life that she has known to assume another identity and help a child that she had never met. Her love for her father, and her father's love for the former prostitutes of New York, put Ruth in a dangerous and uncomfortable position.

To add to Ruth's problem, there is the growing attraction for a man whom she hardly knows. Jake Spencer is a carpenter recovering from a fall off a roof, or at least that is what he says. Can their young love survive the lies that they both tell to each other? Will love cover a multitude of sins? To know the answers to these questions, you'll have to read the book.

My Rating: 


My Recommendation: I recommend this book to lovers of historical romantic fiction.

(I received a complimentary copy of this book for the purpose of review)

Book Review: Hearts Awakening by Delia Parr

"She lowered her gaze, and salty tears that flowed freely now warmed her flaming cheeks. Jackson Smith's unexpected proposal, which played on her plain looks and reduced circumstances, simply added more fuel to the flames of resentment she had tried so hard to extinguish these past few months.

He knew that no other woman would ever consider such a proposal. He had even admitted as much, which made his proposal to her all the more hurtful.

She tasted her tears and swiped at her lips, but the yearning for a family and home of her own resurfaced - a yearning she had set aside willingly for years." Hearts Awakening, pg 43.

Elvira "Ellie" Kilmer never expected widower Jackson Smith to be so young and handsome. When she takes the job of housekeeper for the widow and his two young sons, Ellie's heart is drawn to the heart broken little boys, but she is not prepared for the unlikely proposal of marriage that Jackson gives to her. Frustrated that he would use her plain looks and reduced circumstances as a reason to safely propose, Ellie tries to see the Lord's hand at work in this awkward circumstance. Could God really be giving her the desire of her heart, a desire for a home and family of her own?

Hearts Awakening takes us to Pennsylvania in the 1840's. The story takes place on a small island in the middle of the Susquehanna River. The seclusion of the island and the life in the apple orchard gives the perfect backdrop to this novel. It is a story of truth, second chances, forgiveness, family and love. I appreciated the way that Delia Parr led me through the complications of the plot line, giving the backstory slowly, so that I could feel the frustration of the characters as they try to sort out the past and make way for the future.

(I received a complimentary copy of this book for the purpose of review.)