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Beauty for Ashes by Dorthy Love

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Book Description

She’s a beautiful young widow. He’s a Southern gentleman with a thirst for adventure. Both need a place to call home.
After losing her husband in the Civil War, Carrie Daly is scared she will never have the family she longs for. Eligible bachelors are scarce in Hickory Ridge, Tennessee, but Carrie Daly has found love. Not the weak-in-the-knees kind, but something practical. Still, she isn’t quite ready to set a wedding date with Nate Chastain.

Griff Rutledge is a former member of Charleston society, but has been estranged from his family for years. He’s determined to remain unattached, never settling in one place for too long. But when asked to train a Thoroughbred for an upcoming race in Hickory Ridge, he decides to stay awhile.

Despite objections from the townsfolk, and her fear that true happiness has eluded her, Carrie is drawn to Griff’s kindness and charm. It will take a leap of faith for them to open their hearts and claim God’s promise to trade beauty for ashes.

My Thoughts on Beauty for Ashes

I’m such a sucker for Southern, historical, and Christian romance novels. While Beauty for Ashes was in fact a very sweet book, it wasn’t my very favorite. I connected right away with the town and the landscape, I pictured the details the author gave of the area and time. I loved the cover, I feel like it was exactly what Carrie looked like. However, I felt the characters could’ve been developed a bit more, so that the connection between Carrie and Griff would’ve been more believable. I feel like their relationship grew too quickly without much of a foundation, so I didn’t really buy it. Also, in the very beginning, I was introduced to so many characters, I had a hard time keeping up with who was who.
I will say that this is a second in a series called Hickory Ridge Romance (which I didn’t know when I began reading it), and I have not read the first book yet, so that may have helped me connect more with the characters if I had. It’s not a 100% stand alone book, I think I’d have enjoyed it more if I’d read it in consecutive order.

I did enjoy the ending of the book, which I won’t go into because I don’t want to spoil it, but it definitely ended the way I felt it should have. There is a third book that will be out soon, and I will read it because I am interested in the lives of the people in the town, and want to see what happens next. But first, I plan to read the first book of this trilogy.

Personally, this book did speak to me about rising up from hardship and life’s difficulties by putting my faith in God no matter what the circumstances, and I enjoyed that message from it. Because of that, I would recommend it to my friends and family, but definitely to read it in order and not jump in without reading the first book.

Beauty for Ashes (A Hickory Ridge Romance) is available for purchase at Amazon.com

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookSneeze®.com book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

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