A Heart’s Revolution

Love Finds You in Annapolis, Maryland (2011), aka, A Heart’s Revolution, by Roseanna M. White is a fabulous stand-alone novel. This novel comes in all forms including eBook, and is 313 pages in length. With a full-time job and a very precocious five-year old at home, this story took me three days to read. I purchased this novel from the author to read and review. The opinions expressed in this review are my own. I give Love Finds You in Annapolis, Maryland 5 STARS. This story is a Christian Historical Romance. I absolutely enjoyed every second of this story. Love Finds You in Annapolis, Maryland is a perfect Historical novel, and proves again what a stellar writer and storyteller Roseanna M. White truly is. I was hooked from page one, and could not put this book down. I may have even sneaked reading pages during work today! LOL! This story is unique in that I hated the hero right from the start. He’s smug and detached and awful. I wanted to smack him on several occasions. I cannot remember reading a book hoping the leading lady would choose someone else. But, that’s how I felt through 3/4 of this book. Emerson’s best quality is that he realizes he’s a total fool. At first, Emerson does not seem so contrite; it’s more like he goes after Lark because of wounded pride. But, as he sees Lark through others’ eyes, and he finally witnesses her true personality, he comes to understand just what it means to be repentant. And then he makes good, solid change. Believable change. Emerson didn’t get perfect over night. But he knew the steps he needed to take to fix the mess he made, and he knew those steps began by going to God. As the story was nearing its end, I found myself rooting for Emerson to succeed in his redemption quest. And, by the end, I felt he had become a true hero. Lark is a wonderful heroine. At first, she tries to be what she believes society and Emerson want her to be. She is meek and mild, and she doesn’t ever show her true colors in public. But, over the course of the story, she grows into an amazing woman. She learns to express her opinions, she learns to stand her ground, and she learns to relax. The biggest stumbling block Lark faces in this story is herself. She is so caught up in her outer appearance that she loses sight of who she is. She doubts herself, her looks, and her worth. But, Lark discovers that God sets her worth, not man. Lark blossoms once she realizes this fact. She comes to see her true self-worth and beauty, and begins to be the woman God always wanted her to be. This is an exceptional reminder for me, and for most every woman I have ever met. Our value is not set by the standards of this world. Our value is set by God. So most of us don’t look like the women on the covers of magazines. Big deal! The creator of the known and unknown universes intricately formed us. He knows us by name, and He calls us His own. If that doesn’t prove our true worth, I don’t know what does! There is so much more that I want to say about this book! The secondary characters are wonderful. Wiley, Sena and her family, and the Calverts are some of my favorite characters. The depth and complexity to the secondary characters is as good as the main characters. And, the history — it is so clear Ms. White put in a ton of study and research for this book. I learned so much! I had no idea about life right after America became it’s own nation. I always assumed it was a rather peaceful, happy time, but that was not necessarily the case. I did not know about the discord between the American Revolutionists and the few Tories who chose to continue to make their home in America even after the War had been decided in America’s favor. It’s intriguing, and sad, to me that since its beginnings, America has resorted to a mob mentality when the majority doesn’t get its way, or when its popular values are questioned by others. There are a couple of tense moments displayed in this book, and the injustice of those moments really made me shake my head. On a more positive note, I really loved witnessing through Lark Washington’s official resignation from his military commission. What struck me was how eloquent he was. No one talks like him anymore. Such excellent word choice and elocution! Love Finds You in Annapolis, Maryland is an excellent story. If you are looking for a well researched, highly engaging story that is a fast-paced page turner, then you need to purchase this book. I highly, highly recommend it.