REVIEW: “The Lady of Bolton Hill” by Elizabeth Camden

April 24, 2011

From the back cover: Female journalists are rare in 1879, but American-born Clara Endicott has finally made a name for herself with her provocative articles championing London’s poor. When the backlash from her work forces a return home to Baltimore, Clara finds herself face-to-face with a childhood sweetheart who is no longer the impoverished factory worker she once knew. In her absence, Daniel Tremain has become a powerful industry giant and Clara finds him as enigmatic as ever. However, Daniel’s success is fueled by resentment from past wounds and Clara’s deeply-held beliefs about God’s grace force Daniel to confront his own motives. When Clara’s very life is endangered by one of Daniel’s adversaries, they must face a reckoning neither of them ever could have foreseen.

This book touches on several different topics, like the need for others’ approval, and the necessity of life-partners sharing one faith. I found the religious bits — the part where Clara is sharing her faith — to be a little bit fake and contrived. But, that didn’t take away from the story enough to ruin things. These incidences were few & far between, so there’s no worry about this being a really “preachy” book. Yes, it’s laced with the topics of forgiveness and God’s grace, but the overall story is one of two old flames being reunited after a long absence.

The flirting and romantic tension in this book were –as Clara would say– absolutely “delicious!” LOL. I found these parts to be excellently done! And, I just loved the Daniel/Clara storyline… I loved that, despite their backgrounds, a common thread united them. And that they started out as good friends, but that that grew into more. I think that the best relationships start out that way.

Overall, this is a fabulous book, and I will definitely be looking for more from this author!