Book Review: A Promise To Love

Author: Serena B. Miller
Publication Date: October 1, 2012
Publisher: Revell Books

Ingrid Larsen, a young Swedish immigrant, arrives in Michigan in 1871 to search for her brother who has disappeared into the woods to work the dangerous lumber camps.

Destitute and barely hanging on to hope, she encounters a newly-widowed farmer who is struggling to raise five children on his own. Marriage would solve both of their problems, and so Ingrid proposes to a man she barely knows. She will fight to protect her new family--but the hardest battle of all will be winning the heart of her new husband.

Readers who loved "The Measure of Katie Calloway "will be pleased to find more of Miller's emotive and descriptive writing here--and to discover that love is more than words.

This cover really caught my attention. First of all, I love cherry blossoms; I believe they are such beautiful flowering trees and yet so simple. The woman on the front cover is just as naturally beautiful; her skin almost looks like porcelain. I love covers that are beautiful because of the simplest touches.

At the beginning of this novel Ingrid Larsen, our heroine, is one that readers definitely feel sorry for because of the circumstances that she is facing. Ingrid has to make some tough choices and it put in some pretty uncomfortable situations. I loved Ingrid and I loved how hard she fought and how much she pushed through, being a Swedish immigrant. She was part of a planned marriage, a convenient one so to speak, and I have read so many of these that I really need something different when it comes to that department. I like the way that the story was told through Ingrid, but I just wish there had been some outstanding twist that set this book apart from so many others like it.

 

Ingrid was so strong and determined for a woman of her time, and by that I mean in a time when women did not have much of a say. I liked Ingrid’s character far more than I liked her husband, Josh. There was just something about him that I was not crazy about it. I mean it could be the fact that they didn’t really have a wonderful romance; I never even sensed a lot of romantic feelings between them.

 

I loved all of the secondary characters as well. I would say that some of the secondary characters I enjoyed more than the two main characters. You already know how much I loved Ingrid and I believe that is because Serena gives her characteristics that make her so admirable, just like she does with the secondary characters. Ingrid is so protective over her family and I think that is the reason that she has such a strong drive and this drew more to her even more. Some of the best secondary characters included Agnes and Hazel who add a little humor to an otherwise emotional story.

 

I love the time period, the 1800’s. The author did a superb job of reeling me into the action and making me feel accustom to the times. The author even included historical facts that I was able to learn from. I love when that happens! The author is either very knowledgeable or passionate about this time frame; she writes it so well.

 

Available October 2012 at your favorite bookseller from Revell, a division of Baker Publishing Group.

 

***A copy of this book was provided in exchange for an honest review***