From modern-day Roanoke Island to the sweeping backdrop of North Carolina’s Blue Ridge Mountains and Roosevelt’s WPA folklore writers, past and present intertwine to create an unexpected destiny. Restaurant owner Whitney Monroe is desperate to save her business from a hostile takeover. The inheritance of a decaying Gilded Age hotel on North Carolina’s Outer Banks may provide just the ray of hope she needs. But things at the Excelsior are more complicated than they seem. Whitney’s estranged stepfather is entrenched on the third floor, and the downstairs tenants are determined to save the historic building. Searching through years of stored family heirlooms may be Whitney’s only hope of quick cash, but will the discovery of an old necklace and a Depression-era love story change everything?
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Lisa Wingate is a former journalist, inspirational speaker, and the author of over twenty mainstream fiction novels, including the national bestseller, Tending Roses, now in its nineteenth printing. She is a seven-time ACFW Carol award nominee, a Christy Award nominee, an Oklahoma Book Award finalist, and a two-time Carol Award winner. Her novels are known for taking on gritty subjects while offering redemptive and uplifting themes. Recently, the group Americans for More Civility, a kindness watchdog organization, selected Lisa along with Bill Ford, Camille Cosby, and six others, as recipients of the National Civies Award, which celebrates public figures who work to promote greater kindness and civility in American life. More information about Lisa's novels can be found atwww.Lisawingate.com or on Facebook at: Lisa Wingate Readers CircleI received this book from bookfun.org and Tyndale in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are my own.
My Thoughts: It took me a month to read this book, but not because it wasn't good. It was amazing!! It was so very intriguing but also detailed and I didn't want to miss a single detail. To be honest, it was so fascinating I had to read slowly to take it all in. I absolutely loved it.
It is actually two stories in one, that tie together in the end. Whitney Monroe is having some serious financial woes over a restaurant she is trying to get up and running. In the midst of it all, she gets a call that her step-father has been admitted to the hospital and really needs someone to come take care of business. In spite of her reservations about it, Whitney drives to Outer Banks, North Carolina from Michigan to see what she can do. After her mother's death, she inherited some property there as well as whatever was left of her grandmother's possessions, but there were a few strings attached so she has left well enough alone til now.
Her mission is to see what her step-father needs, maybe sell a few things for some quick cash, and head back to save her restaurant. But life never goes as planned, does it? And Whitney finds much more than she bargained for in the old hotel. How does all this tie in with her current situation? Is she just wasting her time reading some old letters found in her grandmothers stored items?
I can't say enough good about this book and yet, I don't want to spoil it for you. The story drew me in. I was fascinated not just with it, but with the historical aspect of it. Lisa had me looking into the past and wanting to know the stories of those who lived back then. I could also feel Lisa's emotional battle, the ties to her past, her mother, the building. And yet the need to let go, take a leap of faith, trust. It's a beautiful story. This is the first book, I have read by her, and Oh my! I am certainly going to be reading more! I can't wait to get my hands on another one of her books. This one is definitely worth the read!!
This is a wonderful story by Lisa Wingate. :-)
ReplyDeleteThanks for stopping by Melissa, I agree, it was really good!
DeleteAmy, I've only read one of Lisa's books, but her writing is everything you described. It was the first book she wrote back in 2001, Tending Roses. There's so many great authors that I don't have time to read because of over commitment. There's a message there somewhere!
ReplyDeleteCarole, I have to agree, there are just so many good authors out there it is hard to read them all, or read all their books when you find one. I would like to read another book by Lisa. I won one of her books, so maybe I will find time to read it soon. But like you, I struggle with over commitment, and am really trying hard to cut back this year, but it is difficult to resist good books.
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