Customer Reviews

Hearts Awakening

5 star:		(33)
4 star:		(30)
3 star:		(8)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

"Every wrong should be made right, and no right should be forgotten." (Gram, page 97)

Oh, my!! Oh, my! Oh, my!! I love, love, love it when a book sweeps me away and carries me into the heart of a thoughtful, realistic, heart-struggling faith and then tenderly shows me the Father's hand in the midst of the trial. Heart's Awakening is a precious, tender historical romance that reveals the true meaning of forgiveness and grace, and I am so very happy to recommend it to you!

Ellie Kilmer is a character your heart aches for the moment you meet her as she is struggling through the woods. When you learn of her true circumstances, you just want to hug the poor woman to your heart and take care of her. Well, then you add a handsome, wounded man with two precocious children to the picture, throw in a dash of scandal, a pinch of gossip and finish with a sprinkle of a long-ago first love you have the recipe for an unforgettable historical romance that will leave you full and satisfied! You'll have to pardon all the talk of recipes, and you'll have to read the story to discover a very unusual challenge Ellie faces in her kitchen, and most of all, you just have to have to read this book! You will love it!!

I think what spoke to me most clearly and honestly was Ellie's faith. Her unwavering ability to go to the Father even when her feelings were crushed, her determination to cling to Him when her faith felt incredibly fragile, and the utter completeness and calmness with which she spoke directly to the heart of whatever emotional challenge faced her within very unusual and uncertain circumstances was powerful! She quickly became a hero of the faith in my eyes, because she understood and offered forgiveness and unconditional affection even when she didn't have to. While this might sound a bit over-the-top, believe me when I tell you it isn't. Ellie's character is very real and very memorable, and you will be so glad you met her!!

Oh and don't forget those two precious boys, Ethan and Daniel! And then Gram is such a godly soul too! There are just some exceptional characters to love in this story, and love them you will. Heart's Awakening has the power to awaken faith, and I highly recommend this story!!

Amazing work!Amazing author! Amazing cover! I love it! A heart-wrenching story of faith tested and struggles only God can help with. HEARTS AWAKENING is a sweet, meaningful historical that I would read again and again!

Delia Parr knows how to truly make her readers feel apart of the story. Through her breath-taking story line and magnificent characters, she teaches a lesson of romance, secrets, God's amazing grace and forgiveness. It creates an unforgettable story. This book is filled with every emotion from heartache to humor to anger and love.

I recommend everyone who loves historical fiction to take a trip back into time and meet Ellie & Jackson. Reading their captivating story will take your breath away and strengthen your faith. So grab a copy of this 5 star, charming story about a marriage of convenience and fall in love with new faith and new friends!Get ready to hunger for reading more of Delia's work, which we will get the chance to do so in September of 2010 with the release of LOVE'S FIRST BLOOM!

An unconventional heroine and an unusual setting make for an interesting novel.

I enjoyed the island/orchard setting. I'm not familiar with Pennsylvania and the Susquehanna River, and the setting was curious, but easily pictured. As far as characterization goes, I loved that Ellie wasn't a beautiful young woman, but a plain spinster with no prospects. What a refreshing heroine. However, I found Jackson too angry and often mean to Ellie as he jumped to erroneous conclusion after conclusion. Yes, both had their baggage, and I see the point of each needing to work through their issues so they could fall in love, but there were several times when I just wanted to shake some sense into them both.

Ellie is the one with the common sense, wisdom and compassion for others and her inner beauty shines through and is what draws others to her. She struggles a bit with her own faith, but still moves forward, never giving up on God.

I thought that the issues of adultery and death of a spouse were well handled, nothing heavy handed. Overall, an easy book to read. I enjoyed it, I didn't absolutely love it. It's light Christian fiction with some life lessons thrown in for good measure.

Thanks to Bethany House for the opportunity to review this book.

Being comfortable in life sometimes causes people to be lazy. Desperation however can be a very powerful motivator. Elvira Kilmer is desperate. She has no hope of ever having a family of her own. She has to find work to keep from being on the streets and being destitute. She finds a widower, Jackson, who needs a housekeeper and someone to take care of his young sons. Elvira is plain. Jackson is handsome. Jackson also has a secret about his former wife. Will Elvira accept a most unusual arrangement? Will Jackson and Elvira find peace?

The book seems very formulaic. Girl is destitute. Man needs help. They meet. Make an arrangement.... blah, blah, blah.

I have to admit I wasn't impressed. It was a book. Something to read. I wish a better something. I read a quote somewhere last week (I wish I remember where) that said something to the effect of "When a scene becomes boring, make the characters fight over something..." The author of this book, Delia Parr seems to employ that strategy, and the characters fight a lot.

Not my favorite.

Hearts Awakening is a novel by Delia Parr. The novel follows the story of Elvira Kilmer, an unattractive woman who long took care of her elderly parents only to be left alone and at the mercies of her cousins. Her "loving" cousin places her with Jackson Smith as a housekeeper. Jackson is busy fighting his own demons as he mourns the loss of his first wife and tries to raise his young sons. But as they get to know one another Elvira begins to realize that all is not as it seems. Jackson's first wife was not devout and her cheating left Jackson with many scars and trust issues. I don't know if that accounts for his cranky behavior which got really old over the course of the novel, but I digress. Elvira is also a little too meek as a character. She made me mad at times because I felt she was playing the "weak woman" character that is all too typical of Christian women in historical novels. It just made me a little sad. All in all, the love story between Elvira and Jackson is one of redemption and second chances. It was a good read even if it was a little on the depressing and meek side.

I give it 4 out of 5 stars.

Note for Full Disclosure: While I do not receive any monetary compensation for my book reviews, I am provided with free complimentary copies of each book. That being said, this review is completely my own, and free from the influence of Bethany House Book Publishers.

Elvira Kilmer, a spinster who is past the marriage age, looks for a place to work so she can support herself. Elvira ends up on Dillon's Island as a housekeeper for Jackson Smith. However, Jackson has another idea for Elvira that may be one of the best changes for Elvira, Jackson and his two kids.

This is an engaging and warm story.


FTC: I received this book through Bethany House.

A spinster with exceedingly plain looks and nowhere to go.

A handsome widower with two young sons, a broken heart and spirit, and apple orchards needing his full attention.

An insulting proposition...only a business deal...nothing more...

A challenging cookstove...blistered hands and burned bread...

Gossip...Scandal...Secrets...Storms...

Yearning...Faith...Prayer...

Misunderstandings...Assumptions...Hurtful words...Unbridled anger...

Carved initials in a family apple tree...

"Poor Thing"...Griddle Cakes...Apple Fritters...

River Stones...a Sunday House...

A second chance with a lost love?

Inward beauty always shines through.

A quick read that is a somewhat predictable, but sweet story.

Hearts Awakening is the story of a plain spinster and her less than likely encounter with love. Based from an island in the Susquehanna River, Hearts Awakening introduces the reader to a beautiful story in a beautiful setting.

Bethany House sent me this complimentary copy to review for them.

Life has left few choices for Elvira Kilmer. Her hopes for marriage and a family of her own have long since passed her by, and her arrival on Dillon's Island, nestled in the Susquehanna River, is not of her choosing, either. She needs work. And Jackson Smith needs a housekeeper.

Yet Ellie never imagined the widower would be so young... so handsome.

Jackson, on the other hand, has never met anyone quite so... plain. But he quickly comes to realize that Ellie's presence may solve his own problems--both the rearing of his young boys and the scandal that surrounds his first marriage.

When Jackson offers her something quite out of the ordinary, will Ellie look beyond mere necessity and risk opening her heart?

Set in the mid-1800's, this book speaks of love from the inside out. Not based on a young, beautiful woman, but of a plain woman past the "prime" marrying age. One who was scorned and thought of as a thorn in the side by her extended family. One who has to find work on her own but yet stands up for herself. It's also about a man who loved a woman he couldn't have and married a woman he didn't love, but found out about what true love really is. True love of God and those he created.

A good book that will be read again in the future.

Hearts Awakening was a story of faith, love, grace and forgiveness. Ellie is a spinster in the 1840's left with few options after the death of her mother. Jackson is a recent widower that is jaded and wants nothing to do with women. They both have their share of baggage, and two young boys without a mother add to the drama.

Ellie's faith is real and makes you think. Jackson is irrational and untrustworthy for the most part, leaving you to wonder if this would have really panned out the same way in real life. However, Ellie was in a desperate situation so I suppose it was possible.

The story is interesting and doesn't resolve until the very end. Definitely worth the read.

Thanks to Bethany House for the opportunity to review this book in exchange for my honest opinion.