An Unlikely Suitor by Nancy Moser

An Unlikely Suitor by Nancy Moser. Bethany House, 2011. 394p. (9780764207525)

Several summers ago my family and I stopped off in Newport, Rhode Island to see the mansions and walk the Cliff Walk. It was very fun to read a book set in a place that I’ve been to and to learn more about what life might have been like for the people who lived there over a hundred years ago.

Back Cover:

New York dressmaker Lucy Scarpelli befriends socialite Rowena Langdon as she’s designing her summer wardrobe. Grateful for Lucy’s skill I creating fashions that hide her physical injury, Rowena invites Lucy to the family mansion in Newport, Rhode Island, encouraging the unusual friendship.

One day Lucy encounters an intriguing man on the Cliff Walk, and love begins to blossom. Yet Lucy resists, for what Newport man would want to marry an Italian dressmaker working to support her family?

Rowena faces an arranged marriage to a wealthy heir she doesn’t love, but dare a crippled girl hope for anything better?

And Lucy’s teenage sister, Sofia, falls for a man well above her social class – but is he willing to give up everything to marry a woman below his station?

As the lives of three young women – and their unlikely suitors – become entangled in a web of secrets and sacrifice, will the season end with any of them finding true happiness?

My opinion:

I really enjoyed this story. The beginning wasn’t quite what I was expected and was a bit slow at times, but the story and plot didn’t take too long to quicken. The story flowed well and I enjoyed getting to know Newport, RI in the 1890s. It reminded me a lot of another book about New York dress makers I read and enjoyed earlier this year: A Heart Most Worthy by Siri Mitchell.

While the description indicates that the story is about three women it actually is mainly Lucy’s story with Rowena and Sofia playing significant side characters. Sofia’s story probably could have been left out, but it was a fun addition.

Unfortunately I am finishing this review a week or two after finishing the book (life got in the way, sorry) and I don’t have the book with me. One thing that delayed the writing of the review was searching for pictures of what Rowena would have worn. There are sketches in the back of the book that I didn’t discover until I was done. Here are a couple photos I found of dresses from about 1895 in America.

Dinner dress from 1894-96

Costume (Fancy dress) from 1890s

The only thing I didn’t like about An Unlikely Suitor was its title. It sounds too much like a dime novel or a tacky romance. And it’s not either of those things. I’ve recommended this book to several friends and will recommend it to anyone who enjoys historical fiction and Christian romance.

Go read it! Wake County; Greene County; Find it at a library near you; Buy it from ChristianBooks; (Updated 9/9/12: Buy it from Amazon)

Disclosure: I borrowed this book from the library. The opinions I have expressed are my own.

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