About the book:
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 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 give beauty for ashes.

About Dorothy:

Dorothy Love is an award-winning Texas-based author who brings her love of history to her fiction writing in well-researched novels depicting the lives of 19th-century American women.

Her latest novel, MRS LEE AND MRS GRAY illuminates the remarkable friendship between Mrs. Robert E Lee and Selina Norris Gray, a servant born into slavery at Arlington. The discovery of an 1872 letter from Mrs Gray to Mrs Lee became the catalyst for this compelling story of loyalty and courage that defied personal tragedies and the tumult of the Civil War.

Known for her historical novels of mystery and suspense that reviewers have called “beautiful” and “memorable” Dorothy has taken on a new challenge, painstakingly reconstructing a lost world in biographical fiction that touches readers’ minds and hearts.

She enjoys traveling with her husband, collecting antique ephemera, and playing Frisbee with Jake, the couple’s golden retriever. A native Southerner, she currently lives in the Texas hill country.

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Beauty For Ashes by Dorothy Love
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I was practically determined to not give this a 5-star rating–I have been giving so many lately.  I also was not sure that I truly liked the characters or the story.  But Dorothy Love has come out with a winner in this book!  I have never read any book by her, but she is definitely towards the top of my list now.

I did not realize that this book was part of a series, but I had no problem following it even though I did not read the first in the series.  I was able to jump right into the action and get to know Carrie and Griff from the beginning.  I was completely impressed with the wide variety of characters and realistic circumstances that the author put in this book.  Nothing was sugar-coated, and some of the great tragedies truly touched me.  It was nice to see an imperfect heroine and see how she dealt with it in light of her faith.

The message of the book truly struck a chord with me.  It is the same message that I continue to read over and over lately.  Find God’s will, and then do it.  Don’t let the chance pass you by.  God will provide for all your needs, and He cares about everything that concerns you.  He will work it all for your glory–the bad things too.

I can relate a little bit to Carrie.  I am quite friendless and sometimes shunned–that is the story of my life!  I know how it feels to continue to ask for God’s will and seemingly receive no direction.  It is so tough to not give up!

The Christian themes were placed in very natural places in the book.  The reader was not beaten over the head with Christianity, and yet, it was there.  It was neat to see that God could change anyone.  And it was amazing the way God worked through various tragedies in the book.  I was pleased to see that the author is working on a sequel to this one.  I hope that she will tie up the minimal loose ends that she left.  The book ended in the right way, but it was rather abrupt as well.  My only complaint!

I received a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.  I was not financially compensated in any way, and all opinions are 100 percent mine.

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