The Love Note by Joanna Davidson Politano // Revell Reads Review
Everyone at Crestwicke has feelings--mostly negative ones--about the man who wrote the letter, but he seems to have disappeared. With plenty of enticing clues but few answers, Willa's search becomes even more complicated when she misplaces the letter and it passes from person to person in the house, each finding a thrilling or disheartening message in its words.
Laced with mysteries large and small, this romantic Victorian-era tale of love lost, love deferred, and love found is sure to delight.
My Review
I had a little back and forth debate with myself over reviewing this
book. Mostly because I have been trying to stay away from overly
romantic books right now. But it is by Joanna Davidson Politano and I
knew it would be amazing. She did not disappoint.
I struggle to
find adequate words to describe Politano's books. This is the third one
I've read and each is like a parable in novel form. Her characters learn
deep lessons and you as the reader learn them too. Her little
observations and notes at the beginning of each chapter are quite
possibly my favorite thing about her books. She also has a unique way of
writing in that the chapters from the main character's point of view
are done in first person but the other POVs are done in third person.
Each book I've read of hers has taught me something and this one is no
different.
Another reason I wanted to read this book was because
it reminded me of a movie my grandmother and I both love called "The
Love Letter". The stories aren't similar beyond both involve an old love
letter in a desk but that's what I thought of when I read the
description.
About the actual book :) While mystery would not be
the first word I would use to describe Politano's books, there is a
mystery going on. Willa has found an old love note that is somehow
connected to the home of her childhood friends and she is determined
that the rightful owner needs to have the letter in their possession. She
also wants to be a doctor and one of the family needs a nurse, so with
that as her "cover", she goes to try and fix things at Crestwicke Manor.
She soon realizes that she's stumbled onto more than she bargained for.
I
would say that one of the big underlying themes is that everyone needs
to hear words of affection at times in their lives. They need to be told
they are loved and that someone is proud of them. The characters soak
in tender words that they each believe are for them. The note brings
changes and wakes people up to what they were doing (or not doing) and
how much it was hurting those around them.
I LOVED AUNT
MAISIE!!!!! She is far and away my favorite character. While I felt I
could connect with Willa, I liked Gabe and Clara, and I found myself
feeling more for Golda as the book went on, Aunt Maisie was a gem from
the start.
There really were a lot of characters that were being
developed through the story but I felt like each got their turns and a
satisfactory resolution. This is not your normal book that has love as
the theme because there were so many different versions or stages of
love represented. Friendship, fractured marriages that needed healing,
single women loving and caring for orphaned children, etc. In each
relationship, you learn different things with the characters.
While
I called one storyline from the moment the character was introduced,
the letter mystery was indeed a mystery and I did not guess its
trajectory for one moment. It was surprising, to say the least.
This
book was even more wonderful than I would have guessed. I am eagerly
awaiting her next book already. Many thanks to Revell for a copy of the
book. All opinions are my own and a favorable review was not required.
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