BOOK REVIEW MONDAY: Miracle in a Dry Season

Miracle in a Dry Season

By Sarah Loudin Thomas

I give this book...

3.5 out of 5 Stars

I was excited to read Miracle in a Dry Season for a number of reasons. First, I love Bethany House Publishers, and from them I always expect top-notch writing and storytelling. Second, I've never read this author before, so I wanted to check her out. Third, I really enjoy this cover; it intrigued me. Fourth, I haven't read anything from this era in Inspy literature, so I was excited to take a look. Fifth, the back cover copy is written like the story will be a romance, and I'm always excited for those!

The first chapter was great. I was immediately charmed by Casewell, the story's hero. I was smiling at the unique turn-of-phrase the author used. I also immediately liked the heroine, Perla. I could tell she had a secret to hide, and I was intrigued by it enough to keep reading.

But as the story continued, I began to grow more and more disenchanted with the story, I'm sorry to say. While the characters were very strong (loved the father, the elderly twins, Perla's family, etc.), the writing grew into a "telling" style, more so than I prefer to read personally. I found myself skimming in order to get to the action. That really dragged the pacing down for me. I also kept waiting for the romance, but it never blossomed into what I hoped to see. I honestly felt this was a historical fiction with a light romantic thread, instead of a historical romance. That would've been fine by me, had the back cover copy not portrayed it as a romance.

I did love the era though. Thomas did a great job weaving in the spirit of the time period, and I plan to read more of this era in Inspy lit. I have Thomas' novella, Appalachian Serenade, on my Kindle (which also has an awesome cover!), so I do plan on reading that. I do hope to love this author, given time. I received this book free from the publisher in exchange for my honest review. Thank you for the opportunity!