Whirlwind

Millicent Fairweather lost her nannying position for 2 little girls after 4 years when their father sent them away to school in 1892. She was devastated since they were like her own, so she determined to avoid nannying again and decided to emigrate to America from England with her sister and brother-in-law. Widower Daniel Clark has determined to begin a new life in America and to spend more time with his toddler son, since his traveling business kept him from home too much. He blames his absence for the death of his wife and unborn child from a fall. When his nanny deserts him as the ship is about to sale he seeks a replacement among the passengers. Millicent agrees to do it hoping not to become attached to the child in the week show more passage. Arrival in America and an unexpected tragedy changes the future for each of them. This Christian romance had some interesting historical looks at sea travel at the end of the 19th century and the processing at Ellis Island. show less

A story set in the late 1800's that kept taking me by surprise. From the very beginning the story went in a direction I wasn't expecting, and I liked that. It was a story 358 pages long, but time went by very quickly and before I knew it, the book was finished. I gladly anticipate and look forward to reading the next story in this series, "That Certain Spark". This story will take you many different places, but flowed very smoothly and I really got to know and appreciate each of the main characters. Well done Cathy Marie Hake!

Millicent Fairweather pours her heart and all her energy into her job as a nanny. You can see this in the beginning chapters of this book. Because of certain circumstances though she will find herself jobless and show more suddenly unsure of where life is leading her next as she boards a ship heading to America with her sister and brother-in-law. While on board she will meet widower Daniel Clark, who finds himself sailing to begin a new life in Gooding, Texas as the new owner of a mercantile, along with his young son. Unfortunately for him his wife has died and his nanny leaves the ship right before sailing. Millicent is hired to help him out until they arrive in America. Tragedy will strike again, and without giving away too much more of the story, you will find the pretty bundle of energy, Millicent, agreeing to marry the very structured and orderly Daniel Clark and moving to Gooding, Texas. It is there in Gooding, that these two will realize their differences, except each other for who they are and learn to fall in love. The journey is fun to watch, but does have its moments of tender sorrow. This is a Christian historical romance story, no doubt about it, and the way these people rely on prayer and God's direction, makes it all that more enjoyable to me. Be prepared to set sail on a delightful adventure. show less

Maybe the problem was that I read it as an ebook but, despite an interesting plot, the flow of the story was exceedingly disjointed and choppy. I kept rereading parts thinking I had skipped a paragraph. There was no spacing between paragraphs that skipped to new settings and characters. It felt like whole sections of the book had been cut out, dropping you in the middle of one scene after another. That's alright as a plot device once in a while, but not over and over again. A very frustrating read. I wish the author would rewrite this one. I have enjoyed a couple of her other books. 4 stars for the idea, 2 stars for the execution of the idea.

Another good romance, after Fancy Pants. Well-developed characters, kept me wrapped in the story all day yesterday. But still: Millie, Daniel, Isabelle- they seem a little stereotypical. Sweet ending. I'd reccommend it, but Fancy Pants was, I think, a little better.

When nanny Millicent Fairweather meets widower Daniel Clark on their passage to America, neither could imagine what was awaiting them in the new world. When tragedy strikes, whirlwind decisions forever change their futures. Raising a small boy, running a mercantile and looking out for others keep the two busy...and constantly butting heads!

Hake writes with a nice blend of fact, emotion and humor. The characters are loveable and real, while the situations they find themselves in are anything but easy. Great book, great author, highly recommended!

Very Christian and not for the non-Christian. There is frequent Bible reading, asking for God's guidance, and prayer.

OK, this review is totally ignoring the Christian aspect of this book that might be off putting to non-Christians. When I ordered it, I didn't realize that it was Christian Historical Romance. Half of the emotional turmoil is dealt with, with pray and asking for God's guidance. Still I decided to read it because it had been in a friends TBR wishlist and well reviewed. I'm not reviewing the grammar or the accuracy. Just the story line and romance. Saying that... this is coming from a non-religious perspective, not anti-religious.

I liked the story overall. There is a bunch of very coincidental things that happen putting show more these two characters together. These may be unbelievable unless you suspend believe (or rather have faith) and think that God is directing these lives. So the first thing is that the long time Nanny literal leaves right before setting sail without a by-your-leave. Next is that the only perfect Nanny in steerage is Millicent, as the others all have some problem. Millicent seems like the perfect woman for the little one and the father obviously is attracted to her, so this should have been thought by both to be divine intervention. But both have their beliefs that they are destined for something else. OK this was mainly in the description so the rest is spoilers...

**************WARNING SPOILERS*********************
So after finding Millie, the boat is delayed by engine failure. Millie proves herself more than competent and resourceful. The father shows that he is trying to be a good, loving father and be there for his son. They both see each others faith as a plus and are attracted but mainly the man avoids this because he believes his inattentiveness to his first wife was the cause of her death. This really far fetched because she fell down the stairs while pregnant with her second child. He was not home at the time, frequently away for business, and thinks she was doing too much and he wasn't there enough. I don't see this as they were very well off and had servants so she was well taken care of... So, the boat is delayed and the little boy, Arthur, gets sick and she shows her competence once again. The little boy seems to really be attached also. Does he see this as a sign that he should marry her, no, instead it is a sign that he should higher the brother-in-law and sister-in-law once in the States so he can keep Millicent as a Nanny.

The brother-in-law agrees and so now Millicent has put off her dreams of designing dresses with her sister in favor of becoming a Nanny again even though that direction has led to heart break in the past. So they then get detained in Ellis Island. Daniel is finally thinking of Millie as a possible wife but has to ask God. He talks to the brother-in-law about this and they pray on it. During that night, the brother-in-law is killed by getting in between a knife fight. OK, this is another of those far fetched coincidence that you know are putting these two together. I see it, so why doesn't he see it? To him it should be the sign from God. So the authorities at Ellis Island won't let the women in without a male family member vowing to care for them financially. Daniel insists on marrying her and taking responsibility for her and her now widowed sister. At this point, I cannot see how both Daniel and Millicent don't see this as faith or God putting them together. Really they are both attracted to one another, like one another on a friendly way, and want to care for one another's families. Why would either think that this is a marriage of convenience.

But no we are only 1/2 way through the book and there is a whole new story in Texas waiting to be told. Although I liked the rest of the story, the romance from here, and the asking for God's guidance seemed very redundant and the two characters had to be knocked over with even more... what? proof? more guidance? They are married, they are running a business and household together, they like (even might love each other), they care dearly about each other's family, they should not be questioning whether their marriage is real. Since the characters were ignoring the obvious, I just had to go with it and get annoyed at any emotional or religious turmoil from here on. I would have been happier if they treated it as a real marriage emotionally and then had the emotional turmoil due to getting married too fast and coming to know each others personalities. I liked the other people in town. It is a very socialistic, neighbor helping neighbor, attitude, very Christian, the way they should be.

There are many more plot twists, side stories, and things going on that I didn't mention but the relationship is the main story. Those side stories, from midpoint, make the story enjoyable, the relationship aspect is drawn out and peters out. It is sweet but that is about it. show less

I haven't read any inspirational fiction in a long time. But this was not that bad. Usually they are really overbearing but not this one. It was really cute.