Lyn Cote

I really enjoyed the characters in this book. Everyone had such depth, from the main characters of Honor and Samuel to the secondary like Tuck and Zeb. I think I was especially impressed how the author portrayed the slave catchers. They’re vile men who will do anything to profit, including kidnap and selling children. Yet, in the latter half of the book, the reader gets a view into a side that respects women (at least the white ones) and will stop to help a stranded traveler on the road, show more all the while keeping their slimy natures. It’s an interesting characterization dichotomy that I felt the author did fantastically. And that’s just one great example.

The time frame portrayed also fascinated me. The author brings to life the opening of Ohio and Illinois for full settlement and the beginnings of the Underground Railroad. She does a great job in exploring the societal issues of the day, how free blacks are viewed even in supposed free states and the status of women after marriage. Seeing how society portrayed the deaf also made for interesting reading; people’s reactions to sign language and the abandonment of children due to a characteristic they have no control over tugged at my heart and made me really feel this book. I liked that the author paid attention to the research and details, all the while exploring some very meaty subjects.

Overall, this was a very enjoyable novel, more than I was expecting going in. The characters shine vividly with life, and the story itself made for engrossing reading. The author took the time to get the details right; it shows in her writing to fantastic effect. I’d definitely recommend this novel to any lover of historical fiction, Christian romance, or just a dang good story.

Note: Book received for free from the publisher via the Good Reads First Reads program in exchange for an honest review. show less

Honor the name of the book and main character was a story I never wanted to end, and became absorbed in the time before the Civil War. Being a woman during this time, was really not having an identity, and being black was being subhuman.
We observe Christians interpreting the bible to fit their needs and owning slaves, the cruelty they displayed towards their fellow man was atrocious. Of course, not all Christians felt this way, thank God, and thus we have Honor, and her Quaker religion, as show more she personally fights the injustices of slavery.
She is forced to give up everything, and end up penny less, but could hold her head high by maintaining her beliefs. We learn about some very deep and dark secrets, and I felt she was better off leaving Maryland, but she was raised to do nothing but be a lady, a not marketable skill.
We travel with her to the Quaker community in Pittsburgh Pennsylvania, and it takes weeks to get there, of course we are in the early 1800’s. Loved the family who takes her and her maid Royale in, and felt it was not by chance, but by God’s hand. A life changing stop for her, she meets her future husband. What you think, just met and gets married, life has strange twists and turns.
We find both Samuel with his deafness, and Honor with her loss of all she knew, fighting their demons. Will they both be able to accept their marriage as more than a convenience? Will they be able to make a difference in the world as far as slavery and the brutality that came with it? As I said I didn’t want this book to end and cannot wait for the next book in this series. A must read!

I received this book through Edelweiss and the Publisher Tyndale House, and was not required to give a positive review. show less

Dangerous Upheaval in Cincinnati!!

Having read "Honor," book one of the Quaker Bride series by Lyn Cote, I was very excited to find "Blessing." Blessing is the Quaker daughter of Honor and Samuel, who fell head-over-heels in love with a high society Cincinnati brewer. Marrying against her family's wishes and that of the church, Blessing learns some very hard lessons and gains a formidable enemy as she rescues prostitutes, their unwanted children, and escaped slaves.

Pompous, self-righteous, show more "keep women in their place" Gerard meets Blessing when he follows his cousin, Stoddard, and tries to prevent Stoddard from marrying another woman suffragette.In keeping tabs on Stoddard and Tippy, Gerard is often thrown into Blessing's company. Gerard can't abide Blessing's unconventional ways, but when the hard times come, he can't keep himself from aiding Blessing and protecting her.To complicate matters, one of Gerard's goals is to build a racetrack in Cincinnati, diametrically opposed to everything Blessing stands for. Which appetites will Gerard feed, and can he and Blessing hope to find common ground?

I very much liked this book. With inclusions of the underground railroad; the difficulties of free blacks around 1850; the women's rights movement; and the double standard society held for gentlemen as opposed to women; this book is chock full of exciting history!! There were a few times things slowed as characters thought more than acted, but overall, this is a very satisfying portrayal of the upheaval of the times. Kudos to Lyn for the historical notes afterwards. This book could be read alone, but is sweeter when it follows its predecessor. show less

I am sure that some people read this book and loved it. I was not one of those people. The book's pacing was sluggish, the plot was unrealistic, the writing smacked of 21st century revisionism, and there was no chemistry between the couple. (I know it's a Christian romance, but still, that doesn't mean that it has to be dowdy and without sparks.) I had to force myself to finish it, and then I wondered why I had even bothered.