“We were both broken. God knew it takes two broken hearts to make a whole.”
{about the book}
Kaitlin Covel has a thirst for adventure much like the heroines of her stories. She is an old-fashioned romantic, and if she could time travel to any historical period, it would be the Regency Era. Here in the 21st century, she is a certified Nutritional Therapy Technician, but writing is her passion, whether it’s fiction or non-fiction. She has honed her craft since childhood, benefiting from the insights of other writers through professional writing associations such as the Jerry Jenkins Writer’s Guild and Hope*writers. She lives with her family in Maine, where she enjoys teaching the teen Sunday school class at her church. Her favorite things are family, books, history, chocolate, music, the ocean, and strong cups of tea.
{my review}
| Georgette Heyer meets Charlotte Bronte meets Madeline Brent, and Jane Austen metaphorically writes the foreword. I spent the second half of the book in tears. oh. my. stars. Atoning for Ashes was the first novel I’ve read in 36 hours all of last year. (Yes, that includes my own.) I couldn’t put it down. The prose was so delicious, like a good thick hot chocolate, with the bite and snap of a gingerbread… Okay, I’ll stop with the food references. I’m making myself hungry. But seriously, this book is on a plane where I feel with my bones and my lungs, not with my emotions. It’s raw, and physical, and very present. I see so much of myself in this story. In Josie, in Charles, in the supporting characters. The places this novel took me are rich and vivid, elegantly painted, exquisitely detailed. I don’t need to go to Cornwall–I feel as though I’ve been there. The struggles of the characters are real and poignant. They’re human, flawed, broken, and yet there is hope–hope for forgiveness. For healing. For love. For redemption. The things that break us can also be the things that heal us. Recommend for 16+ due to tastefully portrayed married life, and thematic elements including violence. If you’re interested in reading Atoning for Ashes, you can pick it up here. Review copyright 2019 by Annie Louise Twitchell. Book media and data used by permission. |