For today’s review, I’m highlighting Karen Witemeyer’s Head in the Clouds for a very exciting reason: it’s currently only $1.99 on Kindle!
I could really relate to Adelaide Proctor because she’s a clumsy, daydreaming bookworm. She’s also a romantic, and her naive fantasies about love find her alone and humiliated in a new town. Desperately needing a job, she takes a governess position on a sheep ranch. There she meets Gideon Westcott, a handsome Brit who became a father to five year old Isabella literally overnight. Adelaide’s biggest challenge will be breaking through Isabella’s silence: the child hasn’t spoken since her mother’s death on the ship to America. Gideon’s relationship with his adoptive daughter is one of my favorite things in this book. How he came to be her father is a heart-tugging story that will make you fall in love with this gallant sheep rancher right along with Adelaide. Adelaide herself is a breath of fresh air in Gideon’s and Isabella’s tragic lives. The humorous situations due to Adelaide’s daydreaming and her bubbly personality reminded me of Maria in The Sound of Music and had me laughing out loud. However, Gideon is far from stoic and serious. He’s worried about his daughter, yes, but he’s a charmer and a bit of flirt. He and Adelaide are attracted to each other from the start, which is a refreshing change from most romance novels. One warning to readers, however. There is an attempted rape scene in this book. Frankly, I felt it was handled poorly. It was used as a plot device to set certain things in motion. Afterwards, the victim brushes it off (though it’s pretty violent, with her thrown onto the ground and her clothes ripped), and it’s never mentioned again. The woman has no long term effects from this experience, and that really bothered me. In all fairness to the author, I think that media has long treated attempted rape in this manner, and it isn’t the first time I’ve seen it. Of course, that’s another post entirely. Overall, I just felt that the scene took away from the tone of the rest of the book. Despite the scene I mentioned above, I still highly recommend this book. You’ll get completely invested in the characters, and the drama surrounding Isabella’s unconventional adoption will have you on the edge of your seat. You’ll also swoon from the get go as Adelaide and Gideon fall in love.
1 Comment
Marta
10/14/2020 08:01:43 am
I have this book on my shelf at home not read yet, and you have made me want to pick it up and dive in as soon as possible! It really sounds great. :)
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Melanie TillmanI am a former English teacher turned homeschool mom of three who writes Christian romance novels on the side. You know, in my huge amount of spare time. Archives
August 2022
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