Lilac Spring (Wild Rose Series #2) (Steeple Hill Women's Fiction #31) [Paperback]

Ruth Axtell Morren (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: December 1, 2005

Daughter of a prominent nineteenth-century Maine shipbuilder, Cherish Winslow had a deep love for ships, the ocean -- and her father's apprentice, Silas van der Zee. Once his childhood companion in Haven's End, Cherish wished Silas could see she was no longer a girl in pigtails but a woman in love.

To Silas, Cherish was a beacon of light, illuminating his lonely life . . . yet he doubted a lowly apprentice could win the heart of such an elegant young lady. A stolen kiss brought a moment's hope . . . but he soon found himself tossed out on the street, with no job, no home, no chance of a future. In his darkest hour, Silas must find the strength to fight for his life -- and for his beloved Cherish.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Lilac Spring blooms with heartfelt yearning and genuine conflict as Cherish and Silas seek God's will for their lives." -- Liz Curtis Higgs, bestselling author of Whence Came a Prince

"Ruth Axtell Morren writes with skill, sensitivity and great heart about the things that matter most." -- New York Times bestselling author Susan Wiggs

About the Author

Ruth Axtell Morren is the author of three historical romances for Steeple Hill. She currently lives on the "down east" coast of Maine with her husband and three children.

Product Details

• Paperback: 294 pages
• Publisher: Steeple Hill; Later Printing edition (December 1, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 037378550X
• ISBN-13: 978-0373785506
• Product Dimensions: 7.9 x 5 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,120,752 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Ruth knew she wanted to be a writer ever since she wrote her first story--a spy thriller--at the age of twelve. She studied comparative literature at Smith College, spending her junior year at the Sorbonne in Paris. After college, she taught English in the Canary Islands then worked in international development in Miami, Florida, before moving to the Netherlands, where for the next several years, she juggled both writing and raising her three children.
In 1994, her second manuscript was a finalist in Romance Writers of America's Golden Heart competition. In 2002, her sixth manuscript took second place in the Laurie Contest of RWA's Smoky Mountain chapter. The final judge requested her full manuscript and this became her first published book, Winter Is Past, which was spotlighted in Christian Retailing magazine. Since then, Ruth has gone on to publish thirteen historical romances and one novella. Her books have been translated into Dutch, Italian, Polish and Afrikaans . Her second historical, Wild Rose, was chosen by Booklist as a "Top Ten Christian Fiction" selection in 2005.
Ruth lives on the coast of Maine where she enjoys gardening, walking, reading romances and gazing at the ocean plotting her next romance.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Story with depth and emotion!, February 24, 2006

By 

Mrs Debarr (Maine USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Lilac Spring (Wild Rose Series #2) (Steeple Hill Women's Fiction #31) (Paperback)

Lilac Spring is just as compelling as her two previous novels. This is the story of Cherish (daughter of a very successful boat builder in the small community Haven's End Maine) and Silas (her father's apprentice in the business). They are briefly introduced as children and then the story resumes as Cherish returns from her education as a young woman. She has loved Silas from childhood but Silas is very aware of his place in society and in their household. He has had an emotionally barren adolesence and really made his love of building boats his world (as it has been). Cherish has a strong faith in spite of her pampered childhood, she is impetuous, vivacious, a little spoiled but overall just innocent and loving. She expects Silas to share her faith since they've gone to the same church since childhood but in reality it is only head knowledge. Ms Morren very skillfullly matures these characters and creates a very interesting story. We also meet Capain Phelps and Ginny briefly from her previous book.

4.0 out of 5 stars Really 3 1/2 stars., October 30, 2007

By 

R. Stoddard (Colorado) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Lilac Spring (Wild Rose Series #2) (Steeple Hill Women's Fiction #31) (Paperback)

Morren has quickly become one of my top authors. In a matter of months I have managed to get my hands on all of her books. While I still enjoyed it and couldn't manage to put it down, this is my least favorite of her books.

I liked the character of Silas. I found him to be honorable and steady. His even keel demeanor constantly reminded me of my husband. However, I felt that his character wasn't fully developed at the end. During the story it is mentioned that he seemed to hide his emotions within and it seemed implied that he had something from the past which caused it. However, while mentions of old love and family were made, nothing was really expanded upon and therefore I never felt he was able to overcome this particular weakness.

Cherish, on the otherhand, was very able to express emotion. I felt, like another reviewer, that she was a little spoiled and did sulk when she didn't get her way. But I didn't find her irritating. I still cheered for her because she seemed very sweet.

I went ahead and gave it 4 stars because it was very well written and had a good plot. On a scale of Morren books, however, I would really only give it a 3. But only because her other novels have left me with high expectations.

As usual, great characters, beautiful romance, realistic struggles. Thanks for another splendid story!! Write another soon!!!!!!!

2 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Highly disappointing, March 29, 2007

By 

Miss Courtadoo "imagineforever" (Florida) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Lilac Spring (Wild Rose Series #2) (Steeple Hill Women's Fiction #31) (Paperback)

I picked up this book with great excitement, only to be thoroughly let down. The plot was original, but very uninteresting and it seemed to go nowhere. Aside from that, the characters were also very poorly written. Silas was the only one in the story that I actually looked forward to reading about. Cherish to me was whiny and weak, and I found myself hoping she didn't win the love of Silas until she could change her spoiled ways. Her father did a complete 360 in the story, between paternal love and obsessive protection. He randomly over-reacted about Silas, which was not, in my opinion, part of his nature. The dialogue throughout the book was rushed and forced, the characters were extremely underdeveloped, and the end just left me unsatisfied. This one doesn't rank anywhere close to the author's first book, "WILD ROSE." There's such a drastic difference in the plot and characters that I'm somewhat leery to pick up the next one.