REVIEW: Redemption

Redemption
by Carolyn Davidson

Publisher: Harlequin
Page Count: 379
Release Date: Jan. 1, 2006
Format: Mass Market Paperback

How got: personal library

First attention getter: a bigger than average heroine and sweet-sounding romance

Synopsis:

From Amazon:

Jake McPherson
Needed a bride . . .

He was a Civil War veteran, wounded in body and soul. And when his wife died unexpectedly, he retreated from life, craving only solitude and his happy memories. But his young son needed a mother's love and guidance -- even if Jake wanted no woman himself. So who better to choose than the town's spinster schoolmarm?

Alicia Merriweather
Wanted so much to love . . .

She had come to warn Jake his son was running wild. But she stayed because beneath his gruff exterior she saw Jake's pain and loneliness. Having borne the brunt of ridicule all her life, tall, plain Alicia understands both all too well. But could Jake ever learn to share his home and his heart?

My Thoughts:
Star Rating - 5

Another refreshing HR with a lead heroine that’s a bit older, plainer, and bigger in body proportions than your usual lead. It’s nice to see this as it says that women can find true love and happiness in her relationships and in life no matter her outer looks. I liked seeing Alicia’s personality and strength of will shine out as she butts heads with Jake.

I also liked that the main struggle in the book was the building up of these guys’ relationship. There weren’t any murky individuals from the past or another person trying to break them up. Overcoming stubborn pride and low self-esteem to create a beautiful romance and family was the star of the book. Even the bits with Jason trying to accept Alicia as his new mother didn’t detract from the main focus of the relationship building; it just added to it.

And I gotta say the emotions in this book are something else. I don’t think I’ve cried more while reading a book in a while. It was painful to read about Jake’s struggle to overcome his body issues from his war experiences and Alicia’s to see herself as a beautiful women just as she is. I liked that they started out their relationship as a practical arrangement to meet mutual goals and that it grew into something truly beautiful. Watching that growth in my mind’s eye was quite a journey.



I wish more historical romances were like this: characters more true to life and emphasis more on emotions and relationship building rather than outside conflict. I’ll be looking for more HR’s by this author as I think she’s done a swell job in creating a fantastic one in this book.