to capture her heart {book review}

//title: to capture her heart//

//facebook//

//author: rebecca demarino//

//series: book 2, southold chronicles//

//genre: christian fiction//

It is 1653 and Heather Flower, a princess of the Montauk tribe, is enjoying her wedding feast when her groom is killed and she is kidnapped by a rival tribe and held for ransom. Though her ransom is paid by an Englishman, she is nonetheless left to die in a Connecticut forest--until she finds herself rescued by handsome Dutch Lieutenant Dirk Van Buren. Torn between her affection for Dirk and her long friendship with family friend Benjamin Horton, Heather Flower must make a difficult choice--stay true to her friend or follow her heart.

Exploring a unique slice of history, Rebecca DeMarino transports readers to the wild land that would eventually become Long Island, New York. Her attention to detail and her captivating storytelling bring the New World to vivid life.

I will begin by saying that this book was not my cup of tea.  I enjoy historical fiction, but the era isn't one I tend to enjoy.  That being said, I may be a little biased on my opinion.

The deep point of view from which the story was written was excellently done.  I really appreciated how even nicknames were changed according to each characters' point of view!  Flawlessly done.

I had a difficult time getting into the story; I was having a hard time finding the plot line.  I understand now the underlying plot of Heather Flower's hurting heart finding healing, but it was so difficult to pinpoint the plot that I almost didn't even finish the book.  In fact, I probably wouldn't have if not for the sake of this review. 

I had a hard time connecting with the characters because there were so many points of view.  However, I will grant that the characters were real and relatable.  But I kept waiting for the story to get deeper than the love triangle...

Another thing that bugged me was that some of the dialogue seemed just awkward.  At one point, one of the men after Heather Flower's heart says, "I can't let her marry the wrong man." Implying that he, himself, is the right man.  And a few of the things that the other characters say that if said in real life would just seem a bit strange...

Also, the couple gets engaged before Heather Flower becomes a Christian...I just thought that was kind of interesting.

The author did a great job with the way that she wove together the story with the history of the time period.  All of the historical and cultural practices that were portrayed were very interesting; rich with education!

But all in all, this book wasn't for me.  I'm sure that someone in love with this era would find it very interesting, but I had a hard time getting into it.

Thanks to Baker Publishing Group for providing me a copy of this book for my honest review.