The Love Note by Joanna Davidson Politano

Imagine writing a love note that you never delivered, and instead tucked it away and forgot about it. But many years later, someone else discovers this mysterious letter and is determined to solve the mystery of this undelivered love letter. This sweet story, The Love Note, is about such a letter. A letter that makes it way throughout the house in which it was written making it's mark on each heart. But will it ever be delivered to the intended recipient?

From the Back Cover:

A forgotten letter. A secret love. A vast estate.

Focused on a career in medicine and not on romance, Willa Duvall is thrown slightly off course during the summer of 1865 when she discovers a never-opened love letter in a crack of her old writing desk. Compelled to find the passionate soul who penned it and the person who never received it, she takes a job as a nurse at the seaside estate of Crestwicke Manor. 

Everyone at Crestwicke has feelings--mostly negative ones--about the man who wrote the letter, but he seems to have disappeared. With plenty of enticing clues but few answers, Willa's search becomes even more complicated when she misplaces the letter and it passes from person to person in the house, each finding a thrilling or disheartening message in its words.

Laced with mysteries large and small, this romantic Victorian-era tale of love lost, love deferred, and love found is sure to delight.

My Thoughts:

I loved this story! The idea for the book, a mysterious hidden love note, was so clever. I loved seeing how Miss Willa Duvall's character changes throughout the story. She's so self-assured and determined that she doesn't need the love of a man in her perfectly planned out life. Yet, this letter affects her so much after finding it, that she must find out who wrote it. I also loved how the note after being misplaced by Willa was picked up by different people affecting each one deeply. "Words have power" is the message throughout this story, and that is certainly the truth. Words do have the power to shape lives for good or for bad, so choose them wisely. This story's mystery is fun to try and solve. The twists and turns are not easily figured out, and the outcome at the end satisfies all curiosity. I have been impressed with Joanna Davidson Politano's writing. Her stories are always interesting and let the reader's mind search and wander as Joanna weaves her tales. Each reader is left fully satisfied at the end for having read a book that exercised their mind and gave them something lasting to think about. She has quickly become a favorite author for me. So make sure to pick up this newest novel and check out her other books too!

My Rating: ★★★★★

About the Author:

I’m a work-from-home mom of two fun and adventurous littles and we’ll soon be homeschooling. I married my hero Vince, who is my love and my polar opposite. I write, he tears it up with the red pen. I break cars and other mechanical things, he puts them back together. He’s nailed the “speak the truth” thing, and I bring the “in love” part. But the real spark to our marriage is that he does not like chocolate and I…  like it a normal amount. We love and live from our little house in the woods near Lake Michigan.

Find the book here: 

Baker Book House

Amazon

***I received this complimentary copy from Revell (a division of Baker Publishing Group). I was not required to write a positive review. All opinions are my own.

A Haven for Her Heart by Susan Anne Mason (Redemption's Light 1)

 

Imagine finding out a choice you have made has led to a situation that will change your life forever. Susan Anne Mason has written a story about a young woman, Olivia Rosetti, who experiences a life changing situation that leads her down a path that seems insurmountable. Can she overcome the evil she has been dealt?  This new series by Susan Anne Mason is called Redemption's Light, and A Haven for Her Heart is the first book in series.

From the Back Cover:

Upon her release from a woman's reformatory in 1941 Toronto, Olivia Rosetti wants nothing more than to forget the horrors of her time there and return to normal. But with her family unwilling to forgive and employers wary of hiring her, she quickly ends up desperate and homeless--until a chance encounter with well-to-do widow Ruth Bennington. The two discover they share a painful history and together decide to open a maternity home for troubled women.

Greek widower Darius Reed is determined to protect his daughter from the prejudice that killed her mother and hopes to marry into a prominent Toronto family. But when his employer orders him to persuade Ruth Bennington to sell them her property, Darius soon becomes conflicted over his feelings about the home and his attraction to Olivia.

Despite finding fulfillment in her work, Olivia must fight not only bitter memories and the community's negative reaction to their mission, but also feelings for the man who is trying to close her home. can love prove stronger than prejudice and societal pressures, or will past mistakes destroy her chance at true happiness?

My Thoughts:

This was an interesting story. I liked how the author had a note at the beginning of the book to share how this book came about and about the real life person, Velma Demerson, that inspired the character of Olivia Rosetti. Who knew that Canada had a law that an unmarried, pregnant woman could be cast into prison? The characters each had their own baggage to work through, Olivia with her family and incarceration, and Darius Reed with the death of his wife from racial violence. Each situation brings about the reminder that one never knows what another is truly facing. Many situations in life are not tied with a neat bow, but are often complex. This story will remind you to look past the outward appearances and to strive to learn more about a person before judging them.  While this book isn't a light read, it is a story worth reading. So, take a trip down a road that will show you what life was like 80 years ago in Toronto, Canada where prejudice ran high.

My Rating: ★★★★

***I received this complimentary copy from the author and publisher. I was not required to write a positive review. All opinions are my own.