Love's Fortune

Love's Fortune
(The Ballantyne Legacy)
Laura Frantz
(Revell)
ISBN: 978-0800720438
September 2014/400 pages/$14.99

With two very different horizons stretched out before her, one young woman stands on the cusp of an unknown future.

Sheltered since birth at her Kentucky home, Rowena "Wren" Ballantyne has heard only whispered rumors of her grandfather Silas's vast fortune and grand manor in Pennsylvania. When her father receives a rare letter summoning him to New Hope, Wren makes the journey with him and quickly finds herself in a whole new world--family members she's never met, dances she's never learned, and a new side to the father she thought she knew.

As she struggles to fit in during their extended stay, she finds a friend in James Sackett, the most valued steamship pilot of the Ballantynes' shipping line. Even with his help, Wren feels she may never be comfortable in high society. Will she go her own way . . . to her peril?

With her signature attention to historical detail and emotional depth, Laura Frantz brings 1850s Pennsylvania alive with a tender story of loss, love, and loyalty.

Read an excerpt.



ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Laura Frantz is a Christy Award finalist and the author of several books, including The Frontiersman's Daughter, Love's Reckoning, and Love's Awakening. She currently lives in the misty woods of Washington with her husband and two sons. Learn more at www.laurafrantz.net.

MY THOUGHTS

Laura Frantz swept me away with her third novel of The Ballantyne Legacy series. I had not read either of the first two books but Love's Fortune easily reads as a standalone. However, it did make me want to go back and find the first two books to learn more about this intriguing clan. Wren and James are both likable characters, and the culture shock Wren experiences as she is plucked from her provincial life in Kentucky and surrounded by the whirlwind and upscale society of her Pennsylvania relatives garnered my sympathy. Authentic, well-researched aspects of mid-nineteenth century Pittsburgh and a well-crafted story combine to produce an engaging novel. Add Love's Fortune to your fall reading list!


Disclosure of Material Connection: I received a copy of this book free from Baker/Revell Publishing as part of a blog tour. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”