Top Ten Favorite
Love Finds You romance novels
With Valentine’s Day rapidly
approaching, I decided to make a list of my top ten favorite romance novels in
the Love Finds You series. There are so many things I love about this series, I
could rave about them all day, but for the sake of this blog I’ll shorten it up.
I love how the novels are based on
actual places in the United States. Some towns are no longer in operation, but
were once thriving communities. Other locations have grown into bustling cities.
Reading about the geography of some famous, and some not so famous, places is
something I haven’t experienced in other romance novels. It is a refreshing
angle, something different.
The historical aspect of these books
is interesting. They don’t just focus on the American West. They include a
variety time periods of history from pre-colonial America to post WWII. They’re
packed with historical tidbits of everyday life. I’m thrilled every time I
learned a new vocabulary word, a new style, or a fad from days gone by.
I
could go on, but I want to share my favorites, so here goes, in alphabetical
order.
Love Finds You in Annapolis, Maryland by Roseanna M.
White: Set in 1783, this book walks the reader through the days after the
Revolutionary War. I love how it deals with emotions of the Colonists and how
they deal with their new-found freedom. And I learned what a mobcap was when I
read this one.
Love Finds You in the City at Christmas by Ruth Logan
Herne and Anna Schmidt: The first novella is set in New York City, in 1947. What
piqued my interest was the heroine who rang a bell for the Salvation Army. I
did that a job for a few years when my kids were little. The second novella is
a contemporary and begins with the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day parade. I thought
this book was a nice blend of two Christmas traditions.
Love Finds You in Deadwood, South Dakota by Tracy Cross:
This book begins in 1879 with a pregnant widow in peril. Penned with authentic
detail regarding the Old West, it’s filled with danger, drama and some
surprising twists that kept me turning pages.
Love Finds You in Liberty, Indiana by Melanie
Dobson: Set in 1850, during the tumultuous days preceding the Civil War. This
is the first book in this series, and by the end of chapter 1, I was hooked. The
faith elements were subtle but still there. This is the best book about the
Underground Railroad, I’ve read, or ever expect to read. Throw in a newborn
baby in grave danger--I couldn’t put it down.
Love Finds You in Lonesome Prairie, Montana by Tricia Goyer
and Ocieanna Fleiss: Beginning in 1889, this book deals with a topic I didn’t
know much about, the Orphan Train, and it’s set in a tiny community I’d never
heard of before. It gave a detailed account of what life on the prairie was
like, along with a happy ending.
Love Finds You in Maiden, North Carolina by Tamela
Hancock Murray: Written by my fabulous agent, and taking place in the 1920’s, I
really wanted to read this one. I loved it. I learned so much about the
fashions and culture in the Roaring 20’s. I walked around the house saying “The
bee’s knees” for weeks after I turned the last page.
Love Finds You in Poetry, Texas by Janice Hanna:
Opening in 1904, the whole theme in this book is poetry. The businesses in this
story have poetic names and many famous poets are quoted throughout. The humor
in this novel had me chuckling page after page.
Love Finds You in Revenge, Ohio by Lisa Harris:
This story takes place in 1884, and I haven’t come across many romance novels
taking place in Ohio. Woven into the story are things like ostrich farming and
the Alaska Gold Rush. Lots of surprises in this book.
Love Finds You in Victory Heights, Washington by Tricia Goyer
and Ocieanna Fleiss: This one takes place in 1943, and in my state. How could I
not want to read it? The story immersed me in life during WWII, with things
like scrap metal drives, shortages of rubber and other mainstream products. I’ve
lived my whole life just south of Seattle, and I’d never heard of this
community. Learning about it was an interesting adventure.
Love Finds You in Wildrose, North Dakota by Tracy
Bateman: Not too many romance novels take place in North Dakota, or in 1913, as
this book does. The neighborly camaraderie is this story is heartwarming. The
surprise ending left me shedding a few tears, but over-all, a fantastic read.
I’m heartbroken
that this amazing series has been discontinued. I wanted to read a historical
set in every state, and some set during the Vietnam War era. Sigh, perhaps
after awhile.
I’ve just
noticed something. Nine out of the ten books listed have a pregnancy, a newborn,
or both in the plot. And with the exception of one novella, all are historical.
There are plenty of contemporary titles in this series, but I haven’t gotten to
them yet. Give me time, J Have you read many Love Finds You books? If so, what's your favorite?
Join me next
month when I post my ten favorite books by John Grisham.
First, thank you, Debby! What a great shout out and a wonderful article!
ReplyDeleteSecond, I miss this series. I fell into my chance to write "Red Kettle Christmas" because someone was unable to fulfill their contract and I got the call... and I jumped at it! And then we realized it was the historical, and I'd never written a historical, but I am a crazy learn-by-history person, you know the kind... who is always dragging her kids to historical parks and historical villages with re-enactments, and teaching them to can food and butcher meat... Maybe part Amish? Or part pioneer???? :) So the chance to do this was wonderful, and then the line closed. I think Anna and I were their last novel of the Love Finds You series, and if nothing else, I'm so glad I got a chance to work with Anna and write Mike and Karen's story... Did you know that an Emmy-award winning producer looked at "in the City at Christmas" for the Hallmark channel? We didn't get picked in the end, but what an honor to be presented! Maybe one of these days it will happen!
And let me add the editors there were wonderful, too... and Susan Downs still stays in touch with me (Guideposts) and I was thrilled when they did a great .99 deal in December. If they do it again next fall/winter, I'll shout it out!
ReplyDeleteHi Ruth, thank you for the comments here, for the behind-the-scenes look at how your book came to publication. I would love to see a comeback to this series.
ReplyDeleteHaving rang a bell for the Salvation Army, I could relate to Karen's cold, wet days in front of a department store. Feel free to shout about your book on my blog anytime. :)