Love's First Bloom by Delia Parr ~ 3 stars

Love's First Bloom

Delia Parr

Bethany House Publishing

About the book:

She must conceal her past, her identity. What hope can there be for love?

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:
I’m giving this 3 stars, not because I disliked the book, but because I didn’t really enjoy it. The writing was interesting, but I wasn’t wowed by it. However, I couldn’t really find anything to fault it for, either. (Except for a couple of places where a character’s name would be misspelled into a different name.) It just wasn’t my cup of tea. I liked the characters and setting, but the story didn’t keep me engaged. I wasn’t flipping through the pages as fast as I could to see what would happen next. I’m sure that there will be people who love this book, but it just wasn’t for me. I hope that others who read it find it more to their liking than I did.

Thanks to Bethany House for my free review copy of this book.

Hearts Awakening by Delia Parr ~ 4 stars

Hearts Awakening

Delia Parr

Bethany House Publishing

About the book:

Two people in desperate circumstances. One unlikely proposal.

Life has left few choices for Elvira Kilmer. Her hopes for marriage and a family of her own have long since passed her by, and her arrival on Dillon's Island, nestled in the Susquehanna River, is not of her choosing, either. She needs work. And Jackson Smith needs a housekeeper.

Yet Ellie never imagined the widower would be so young... so handsome.

Jackson, on the other hand, has never met anyone quite so... plain. But he quickly comes to realize that Ellie's presence may solve his own problems--both the rearing of his young boys and the scandal that surrounds his first marriage.

When Jackson offers her something quite out of the ordinary, will Ellie look beyond mere necessity and risk opening her heart?

My review:
Hearts Awakening is a book that made me cry, scoot to the edge of my seat, growl in frustration, and, in the end, sigh. Ellie is the kind of woman that I try to be like: patient, forgiving, insightful, kind even when she doesn’t feel like it, and she puts others first. She isn’t naturally this way. She just tries her best because she knows it’s the right thing to do. Her determination to keep on loving Jackson, even when he sorely did not deserve it, emulates true love. She encouraged him to be better, by example and by word. The book itself was easy for me to get caught up in, but it was a little lacking in romance between the characters, in my opinion. All in all, I would recommend it.
Thanks to Bethany House for the reviewer copy of this book.