Friday, August 5, 2016

Book Review: To Follow Her Heart

To Follow Her Heart. Rebecca DeMarino. 2016. Revell. 352 pages. [Source: Review copy]

First sentence: "Did you hear me?" Patience Terry stood silent, her mind awhirl. Had she not guarded her heart against this day? Against this pain that ripped through her like a thunderbolt?

To Follow Her Heart is the third book in the Southold Chronicles. Does it stand alone? Not really. Not if you want it to be emotionally rich and satisfying--as the blurb says. Is the trilogy worth your time? Probably. I'd add in one qualification: if you're looking for a little romance with your history, pick it up. If you're looking for a series that is 98% romance and 2% history, then no matter what the blurb says, chances are you won't find it satisfying.

Personally, I love, love, love history. And I like romance. So the balance worked for me. I found that the series, as a whole, focuses just as much--if not MORE--on the theme of friendship. It was the friendship of the women in this community across all three books that really stands out to me. That and the hardships of settling a brand new country. It was not easy or effortless. This is not a let's-dress-the-characters-up romance with an emphasis on swoon.

So this third book shifts the focus to Patience and Jeremy Horton. But most of the characters from previous books in the series (with the exception of those that are now dead) are still very much around and part of it all.

The "drama" of this third book is will they or won't they? Will Jeremy Horton and Patience Terry ever actually get married?! The book promises drama, and, in a way, it delivers--though perhaps not in the way you might expect if you depend on the summary from the back of the book.

Do I like Jeremy? He's okay. I think he's a bit blind when it comes to matters of the heart. Do I like Patience? That's tough. I think she's really stubborn and uncompromising. I think her friends show a lot of patience with her. Do I think they belong together? Yes.

© Becky Laney of Operation Actually Read Bible

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