No man can resist her charms. Or so she thought.
Charity O'Connor is a woman who gets what she wants. Her stunning beauty and flirtatious ways have always succeeded with men. Until Mitch Dennehy, that is. Brilliant and dangerously handsome, Mitch is a no-nonsense newspaperman who wants nothing to do with her. Charity burned him once, destroying his engagement to the only woman he ever truly loved. He won't play with matches again. But Charity has a plan to turn up the heat, hoping to ignite the heart of the man she loves. And she always gets what she wants--one way or another.
Or does she? Will her best-laid schemes win his love? Or will her seductive ways drive him away forever?
My Thoughts
When I read this for the first time I was very wary. Charity was, to put it plainly, awful in A Passion Most Pure and I was a little scared that I would hate this book since she was the main character. But I shouldn't have been worried, this is after all a Julie Lessman novel and I ended up loving it!
Charity was still a little hard to like at the beginning but we were also given the chance to see what made her act the way she did. I loved watching as she grew into a wonderful heroine that you can't help falling love with! She goes from a snotty little brat to a woman of God and it was a beautiful thing to watch!
Mitch was once again amazing. His had been a hard road of rejection and my heart truly broke for him. But I loved how he let God change his life and lived as He would have wanted. I also loved how despite how he felt about Charity he didn't give in to her and instead helped draw her closer to God even if at first it was more to get him rather than truly let God transform her (that came later)! He was always trying his dead level best to do the right thing no matter how hard it was and that was what made him so great!
The other side characters were fantastic too! Mrs. Lynch with her mothering of Mitch and her no nonsense ways, and Charity's grandmother and great-grandmother with their love and guidance. I also loved Emma with her gentle ways, and her love for God and Charity. And Bridie and Kathleen from the Irish Times! Bridie with her teasing of Mitch and the way she would talk to him, and Kathleen with her sweet ways! Ooh and I can't forget John Brady! We got to see a little of him in APMP but we got a lot more in this one and he is awesome! I love how close his walk with God is! And of course I can't forget all the other O'Conners and the McGuires!
There were lots of hard times in this book where you wanted to either smack characters or give them a hug! And then there was the character that you wanted to strangle for all the evil things he did! I laughed, I almost cried, and all in all thoroughly enjoyed this second book!
Meet the Author
Julie Lessman is an award-winning author whose tagline of "Passion With a Purpose" underscores her intense passion for both God and romance. Winner of the 2009 ACFW Debut Author of the Year and Holt Medallion Awards of Merit for Best First Book and Long Inspirational, Julie is also the recipient of 14 Romance Writers of America awards and was voted by readers as "Borders Best of 2009 So Far: Your Favorite Fiction." Chosen as the #1 Romance Fiction Author of the Year in the Family Fiction magazine 2012 and 2011 Readers Choice Awards, Julie was also awarded #1 Historical Fiction Author of the Year in that same poll and #3 Author of the Year, #4 Novel of the Year and #3 Series of the year. She resides in Missouri with her husband, daughter, son, daughter-in-law and granddaughter and is the author of "The Daughters of Boston" series--A Passion Most Pure, A Passion Redeemed, and A Passion Denied. Book 1 in her "Winds of Change" series A Hope Undaunted ranked #5 on Booklist's Top 10 Inspirational Fiction for 2010. You can contact Julie through her website at www.julielessman.com
P.S. She's just an all around amazing person!
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26 comments:
Charity sounds like a very interesting character to meet. I personally don´t get some of these attractive and flirtatious types of women, so I am more than glad to understand them on a deeper level and see what´s behing the difficult facade !
Its different how the author has made one of the hardest-to-like characters the heroine in a sequel. I hope she grows on me when I read her tale, because she just wasn't my favorite. :-P
I absolutely LOVE Charity's turn-around in this book! I didn't hate her in the first one, so I was looking forward to seeing what Julie had up her sleeve for her. I loved watching her and Mitch (who I think is so amazing) together, and even though I ached seeing everything they both went through, I smiled by the end. =)
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Janka-I'm the same way and it made a world of difference to see what was going on inside!
Grace-I felt the same! She drove me crazy and I wasn't sure I could take her being the heroine but Julie did it and made her a character that you absolutely love!
Elyssa-Me too! It was so cool to watch it play out! Watching her and Mitch (who I agree is amazing) was so awesome and I felt the same-aching for all they went through but ending with a smile!
I have not read this one yet, but would love to get my hands on it. Sounds like another great Lessman book! :)
Micaela-It is! I hope you get to read it soon!
Charity, Charity, Charity ... I reread book 1 recently and was reminded on how ... witch-like she was. When you hear about it plain, like he doesn't want to, but is falling for his former fiancé's sister ... You think, "How will that relationship work out? Won't family gatherings be awkward?" But of course, it's the O'Connors and Mrs. Lessman is amazing because she's able to pull it off brilliantly and believably. I also like how Charity is such an example on how God can turn and completely change a life!
Lady DragonKeeper-Yeah it does make you wonder how it will ever work out but you are right Julie is so amazing that she does pull it off brilliantly AND believably! I love the example of how God can transform someone too!
Thanks for sharing your review! I'm looking forward to reading this one!
Heidi-You're welcome! Thanks for reading it! I hope you are able to read this book soon!
I loved A Passion Redeemed - and yes, Charity, truly, does redeem herself! I didn't hate her, in A Passion Most Pure, as a lot of readers did - because I am one of those women who "strayed" from her Christian upbringing, as a young woman, but years later - surrendered to His plan for my life. Because of this - I am aware of how situations from our past play a part in the choices we make, and the people we become. I am a living example of how a life can be changed - by the grace of God!
And - Janka, and Grace, I feel sure that you will not only, understand Charity - after reading A Passion Redeemed - but will like her, and sympathize with her!! ANOTHER wonderful book by Julie!!!
Bonnie-Thank you for sharing how God changed your life! He is good, isn't He?! It brought a smile to my face to read your comment-thank you!
Charity was really hard to like in these books. I struggled with her alot, and even though I love Mitch this book didn't capture me quite as much as the rest.
Salyna-Yeah I agree she takes a bit to warm up to! I hated her in APMP and she really did grow on me in this one! And rereading them it was easier to like her from the start since I knew how much I would love her in the end!
Oh, I didn't know who to pull for with Charity on this one. My heart bled for both men....
Melody-It was always Mitch!
I loved it when Miss Julie said Charity was her favorite character of all of her books because Charity is JULIE at a younger age! great review!
Wanda-I loved that too! Made me like Charity just a little more! Thank you!
Great review! I must admit, that I really didn't like Charity until about half-way through the book. She was a little easier to take on the boat with Mitch, when we finally start understanding why she acts the way she does. I really did want to slap her upside the head a few times! :)
~Sarah
Sarah-Thanks! She does take a bit to warm up too and you are definitely not alone in wanting to slap her at times!
Charity...that girl! How many times did I message Julie Lessman and tell her I wanted to smack the snot out of her character Charity! Oh goodness that girl gave me fits! But her redemption was so much more sweet after all of that :) Sometimes I still want to reach through the pages and throttle that girl though!
Julie-Haha yeah Charity can definitely make you want to strangle her but I agree that it made her redemption all the more sweet!
My emotions were at an all time high while reading this book for the first time!! I had never felt so many emotions raging through me while reading one book!! I felt anger, sadness, pain, and so much more. This story is so much more then just words on a page. It is truly an unforgettable book. I had found it difficult to like Charity in the first book but in A Passion Redeemed I learned some things about Charity that changed my opinion of her and made me love her character. Abbi, your review of this book was one of the best I have ever read. You made me want to read this book all over again!!!!
Thea-I agree with you, the emotions definitely ran rampant throughout this book! I had the same opinion switch on Charity. The things you find out about her definitely help to make a little sense out of her actions! Thank you!!!
It's always nice to read a book where the main character truly transforms.
LadySaotome-Yes it is!
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