Blog Tour: Blackmoore by Julianne Donaldson

Review * Giveaway

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Book Description:

Kate Worthington knows her heart and she knows she will never marry. Her plan is to travel to India instead—if only to find peace for her restless spirit and to escape the family she abhors. But Kate’s meddlesome mother has other plans. She makes a bargain with Kate: India, yes, but only after Kate has secured—and rejected—three marriage proposals.

Kate journeys to the stately manor of Blackmoore determined to fulfill her end of the bargain and enlists the help of her dearest childhood friend, Henry Delafield. But when it comes to matters of love, bargains are meaningless and plans are changeable. There on the wild lands of Blackmoore, Kate must face the truth that has kept her heart captive. Will the proposal she is determined to reject actually be the one thing that will set her heart free?

Set in Northern England in 1820, Blackmoore is a Regency romance that tells the story of a young woman struggling to learn how to follow her heart. It is Wuthering Heights meets Little Women with a delicious must-read twist.

Review:

When I read Julianne Donaldson's debut novel, Edenbrooke, last year, I found a new favorite book! Donaldson is a talented author who tells a wonderful love story. I was very excited when I heard she was writing a second novel, and I jumped at the opportunity to review Blackmoore.

The cover for Blackmoore is excellent! It would definitely catch my attention in a book store, and is very fitting with the story.

Reading the book blurb, you get a feel for the angst of Blackmoore. It is quite different from the happy feel of Edenbrooke, but don't let that dissuade you from reading it. It is a great story that pulls you in with lots of unknowns.

I loved that Donaldson was able to bring out a lot of emotions throughout the story. Tears stung my eyes a few times. I was up and down with Kate in her brief moments of happiness, and her extensive sorrow. Her mother was horrible! I still get upset thinking about how selfish and awful she was, especially to Kate.

I don't typically love lots of flashbacks in a story, but Donaldson did a great job using them to tell Kate's story.

The ending was excellent, and the characters were wonderful. If you are looking for a book with a swoon-worthy main male character, you'll love Henry.

I look forward to reading Blackmoore again and again. It is a perfect fit in the "Proper Romance" line-clean and a great love story!

About the Author:

Julianne Donaldson grew up as the daughter of a U.S. Air Force fighter pilot. She learned how to ski in the Italian Alps, visited East Berlin before the wall came down, and spent three years living next to a 500-year-old castle. After earning a degree in English, she turned her attention to writing about distant times and places. She lives in Utah with her husband and four children.

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Giveaway:

Publisher Shadow Mountain has very graciously offered a paperback copy to one lucky Literary Time Out follower (open within the United States and Canada). Just use the Rafflecopter form below to enter. The contest will be open through Monday, September 23rd (EST). The winner will be notified within 48 hours of the contest ending via the email address provided on the Rafflecopter entry.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Title: Blackmoore

Author: Julianne Donaldson
Publisher: Shadow Mountain
Published: September 2013
ISBN: 1609074602
FTC FYI: I received a copy from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

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