Book Review: Home At Last by Deborah Raney (plus more!)
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Synopsis of the book:
Link Whitman has settled into the role of bachelor without ever intending to. Now he’s stuck in a dead-end job, and as the next Whitman wedding fast approaches, he is the last one standing. The pressure from his sisters’ efforts to play matchmaker is heavy as he helps his parents at the Chicory Inn.
All her life, Shayla Michaels has felt as if she straddled two worlds. Her mother’s white family rejected her African American father without even knowing him. Her father’s family also disapproved, but they eventually embraced Shayla as their own. After her mother’s death and her brother Jerry’s incarceration, life has left Shayla’s father bitter; her niece, Portia, an orphan; and Shayla responsible for them all.
Everything changes one icy morning when a child runs into the street and Link nearly hits her with his pickup. Soon he is falling hard for the little girl’s aunt, Shayla, the beautiful woman who runs Coffee’s On, the bakery in Langhorne. Can Shayla and Link overcome society’s view of their differences and find true love? Is there hope of changing the ugly perspective of the world around them into something better for them all?
My review:
It is not often that a contemporary Christian author takes on such a hot topic as racial prejudice and that made me intrigued to read this book. I thought the author wrote about the subject in real and beautiful terms. Watching Link and Shayla navigate the waters of public opinion made for a really good story. It was one that left me with hope for the future.
Shayla. Oh, what a tough cookie. I loved her strength. I also sympathized with her feelings of being trapped in a life where she took a back seat to others. She deserved someone to put her first.
In comes Link. Funny, family oriented, and naive. What an education he received the moment he showed interest in Shayla. 🙂 But he learned those lessons well and took them to heart while keeping his values in tack. He knew that Shayla was worth it and he showed her.
This was a very nice conclusion to this series. We visit again with the Whitman Family and I will miss them.
What I enjoyed most about this book:
The hope that we, as humans, will do better in our relations with people who are different.
What I didn’t like about this book:
Since this was the conclusion to the series, I was hoping to see a little more information on the other Whitman children.
My rating: 4 out of 5 stars
Would I recommend this book to others? Yes. This author writes about real people dealing with real issues in such a way that is both entertaining and a little educational. Racial diversity is not a topic written about that often and this was handled beautifully. This is the last book in the series. It is a standalone book but will give a few small spoilers from the other books.
Note: I received this book complimentary as a participant of the Litfuse Blog Tour. I was not required to give a positive review. All of the opinions I have expressed here are my own.
Where can I learn more about this author and their books?
You are invited to a Facebook Party!
Conclude Deborah Raney’s Chicory Inn novels with the final book, Home at Last, a story of acceptance, trying to overcome differences, and love. Everything changes for bachelor Link Whitman one icy morning when a child runs into the street and he nearly hits her with his pickup-and then the girl’s aunt Shayla enters Link’s life. Can Shayla and Link overcome society’s view of their differences and find true love? Is there hope of changing the sometimes-ugly world around them into something better for them all?
Join Deborah on Thursday, March 23, for a live author chat party in her Facebook group with fun prizes to be won! Click the graphic below for more details and to RSVP. Hope to see you there-bring a friend or two who loves to read!
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