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
With an intriguing premise and a beautiful cover this book is sure to capture the attention of readers! The idea of trying to find the author and intended recipient of a lost love letter definitely held promise and made me really interested in seeing how the story played out. To say that it played out in unexpected ways would definitely be an understatement, there were constant surprises along the way. To be honest though I felt like the story would have benefited more from having less of the side stories/“mysteries”, none of them really drew me in and there were some discrepancies that took me out of the narrative. I think the story would have been more cohesive with less focus on those aspects.
Willa was also not the most likable of characters, her high view of herself and kind of selfish tendencies made it hard for me to really engage with this story. Gabe was sweet and I wish his character would have been fleshed out a little more and gotten some more page time.
Overall this just wasn’t the story for me but I know readers are loving it and I can definitely see how it will hit home with other people! If this sounds like your kind of book I encourage you to check out other reviews and not just take my personal opinion.
Joanna Davidson Politano is the award-winning author of Lady Jayne Disappears, A Rumored Fortune, and Finding Lady Enderly. When she's not homeschooling her small children, she spends much of her time spinning tales that capture the colorful, exquisite details in ordinary lives. She is always on the hunt for random acts of kindness, people willing to share their deepest secrets with a stranger, and hidden stashes of sweets. She lives with her husband and their two children in a house in the woods near Lake Michigan and shares stories that move her at www.jdpstories.com.
I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher. I was not required to write a positive review. All opinions expressed are my own.
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