Love's Fortune by Laura Frantz
Book Description:Sheltered since birth at her Kentucky home, Rowena Ballantyne has heard only whispered rumors of her grandfather Silas's vast fortune and grand manor in Pennsylvania. When her father receives a rare letter summoning him to New Hope, Rowena makes the journey with him and quickly finds herself in a whole new world--filled with family members she's never met, dances she's never learned, and a new side to the father she thought she knew. As she struggles to fit in during their extended stay, she finds a friend in James Sackett, the most valued steamship pilot of the Ballantynes' shipping line. Even with his help, Rowena feels she may never be comfortable in high society. Will she go her own way . . . to her peril?
With her signature attention to historical detail, Laura Frantz brings 1850s Pennsylvania alive with a tender story of loss, love, and loyalty. Fans will cheer for this final installment of the Ballatyne saga.
My Opinion:
Amazing!!! I don't really want this series to end. I came into the Ballantyne Legacy late you could say, I started with the second in the series. I LOVED it SO much that I was sitting on the edge of my seat waiting for Love's Fortune! I was NOT disappointed, and Laura Frantz is fast becoming one of my favorite authors! The gift God has given her with words is nothing short of beautiful! Stringing them together as flawlessly as a a string of pearls! Her descriptions of the Autumn season, as well as all of her character's surroundings, is so accurately beautiful you feel as if you are right there with them! I was a bit confused with the start of this one, having been left with a heart racing sneak peek prologue from the last book it took me a little while to see we had jumped a generation and the female lead would rest on Ansel's daughter. Because it was a span of time between my reading Love's Awakening to my reading Love's Fortune I had to go back and re-read the prologue of the sneak peek in the back of Love's Awakening since the prologue in the sneak peek is actually different than the prologue in the actual book. So I recommend you get your copy of Love's Awakening back out and read the prologue in the sneak peek before starting with the prologue of Love's Fortune I think it might make the transition smoother, but that's just my recommendation. :) I think if I had also read the first in the series I would have known to expect a generational jump, not that these MUST be read in order, but you get more of a feel for the flow of Laura's writing! :) Plus is an AWESOME series so why not read them all! ;) But as soon as I caught up I almost couldn't put it down!!! Filled with all the characters I LOVED in Love's Awakening these characters are like meeting old friends again! Ellie is still a favorite and best loved character as is Jack, Silas, and Eden. Andra is chilly as ever, and new characters come out, some loved some not well liked... And I'm a little upset with some of the choices and actions of Ansel in this one, but I'm still fond of him as an overall character. Entering Pittsburgh's season I found the historical aspects highly interesting and entertaining. If I had to be a debutante in this day and age I would have sorely embarrassed myself and all around me I'm afraid! LOL! SO many rules and regulations that must be followed!!! And the SILVERWARE! But I digress. The fiddle is of coarse sewn into the plot, which I LOVE and have LOVED from the first time I read the series! I have a love for playing the fiddle so when Laura writes about them I can almost hear the music played and feel the instrument in my hands! :) I feel it has touches of Pride and Prejudice as well as a all little Midsummer Night's Dream while at the same time being completely and wonderfully unique in it's story and plot! This story grabs you from the beginning with the twists and shocks, and the relationships chemistry is fantastic all the way around! I REALLY love and feel a close to Wren's character! A girl you is used to working hard and doing things herself, but then she's suddenly thrust into situations that she has never been prepared for. Her emotions are painted on the pages remarkably! From uncertainty, to anger and fear, but also a little joy and love along the way. But as you read you start to ask, with this love quadrangle going on will everyone be happy by the end or will someone's heart stay forever broken? And can Wren come to terms with the changes in her life or will she forever find her life wanting from here on out? ...TO BE CONTINUED HERE:
Songs: "In The Garden" sung by Alan Jackson,
"Just A Closer Walk With Thee" sung by Patsy Cline,
"Highland Barn Dance Medley / John MacMillan Of Barra / Angus McQueen Of Uist" by The Scottish Fiddle Orchestra,
"The Gathering Storms - The Lowland of Scotland - Feadan Glan A'Phiobair" by Archie McAllister,
"The Quiet Man - The Solstice - The Silver Spire" by Gavin Marwick,
"The Sleeping Warrior" Gavin Marwick,
"Reel of Tulloch (arr. C. Norman)" by Chris Norman,
"Felix Mendelssohn: Wedding March - violin duo" by A Bride's Collection of Traditional Wedding Music - Will Taylor
Songs etc. May be changed and/or added in the future. ~ASC
Psalm 139:9
~ASC
*I requested and received this book from Revell for the purpose of reviewing it. This in no way affected my opinion and the above are my true thoughts and feelings about Love's Fortune. ~ASC
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