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4.0 AVERAGE
4.0 AVERAGE
emotional
hopeful
slow-paced
challenging
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Hate crime, Racism, Slavery, Violence, Murder
Moderate: War
Minor: Rape
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
adventurous
informative
lighthearted
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Now I enjoy historical fiction, but this historical romance is on an entirely different level. Honestly, the author knows how to write strong, protective, and determined Black men and that I can appreciate.
Though, Valinda was able to see love first hand from the LeVeq family, desire it, and eventually she was able to have the love she never knew. I just couldn’t understand how her father, and possibly many fathers at that time - felt the need to dictate who she married (and for a price).
Though, Valinda was able to see love first hand from the LeVeq family, desire it, and eventually she was able to have the love she never knew. I just couldn’t understand how her father, and possibly many fathers at that time - felt the need to dictate who she married (and for a price).
This was a beautiful romance set during the post emancipation/ reconstruction period in New Orleans. I loved the LaVeq sons and their example of "provide and protect" in the community. Valinda is a savvy, smart and determined young teacher and when she encounters Drake LaVeq sparks fly!
I learned a lot about post Civil War New Orleans, Creoles and the Freedman's Bureau in this novel. I truly enjoy a romance that has a solid plot and storyline. The work from Jenkins did not disappoint. This romance was good to the last drop.
This is my first Beverly Jenkins novel, but it won't be my last.
I learned a lot about post Civil War New Orleans, Creoles and the Freedman's Bureau in this novel. I truly enjoy a romance that has a solid plot and storyline. The work from Jenkins did not disappoint. This romance was good to the last drop.
This is my first Beverly Jenkins novel, but it won't be my last.
Strong heroine and sweet hero. Lusty pirate thoughts.
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Ms. Jenkins comes highly recommended and the praise is justified. This story is succinct but rich, and I wished for more tales of the buccaneering LeVeq family.
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
I’m really liking the immersiveness of the Jenkins’ set in the south! Old West is interesting but there’s something very rich and proximate in these stories as someone who lives in the south and has been to all the places she describes. And the LeVeq family is great - definitely going to read more of their stories!
It just felt like this one didn’t have much of a plot? Sort of a “slice of life” where events took place but they didn’t necessarily come together or culminate in any truly specific way. The pacing was pretty off too, with the main confrontation for Valinda all being in the last like 30 pages and feeling very irrelevant? And since Valinda and Drake were basically were in love without any real barriers to their relationship from the second they clapped eyes on each other there wasn’t much tension in the romance arc either. I enjoyed the characters and the settings and the specific events on their own, but it didn’t feel like a really tightly plotted story I guess.
It just felt like this one didn’t have much of a plot? Sort of a “slice of life” where events took place but they didn’t necessarily come together or culminate in any truly specific way. The pacing was pretty off too, with the main confrontation for Valinda all being in the last like 30 pages and feeling very irrelevant? And since Valinda and Drake were basically were in love without any real barriers to their relationship from the second they clapped eyes on each other there wasn’t much tension in the romance arc either. I enjoyed the characters and the settings and the specific events on their own, but it didn’t feel like a really tightly plotted story I guess.
The history and romance are fantastically woven in this continuation of the LaVeq family story.
I loved how much Drake had to keep himself from always getting his way. He had those alpha male vibes, but with a sensitive and lovable interiority.
Valinda was a practical woman who was generous, kind, and cerebral. I loved how she took time and thought things through.
There were a few times where Valinda was extremely brave in the face of bigotry, and I felt myself tense up and feel fear for her. The way in which Jenkins conveyed both the positive outcomes from the abolition of slavery and the resistance towards free Black people, was powerful and frightening.
I cannot wait to read Through the Storm. There is a scene where Sable and Valinda have a talk, and we get a summary of the start of Sable and Raimond's relationship through a marriage of convenience, and I was hooked. It sounds like a fantastic story. I guess I am just mood reading this series rather than following the order of the books. But I have not felt lost in the slightest. Hopefully that continues to be the case.
If you like history and you like romance, Beverly Jenkins is a required, and highly enjoyable read.
*Audiobook narrated by Kim Staunton
I loved how much Drake had to keep himself from always getting his way. He had those alpha male vibes, but with a sensitive and lovable interiority.
Valinda was a practical woman who was generous, kind, and cerebral. I loved how she took time and thought things through.
There were a few times where Valinda was extremely brave in the face of bigotry, and I felt myself tense up and feel fear for her. The way in which Jenkins conveyed both the positive outcomes from the abolition of slavery and the resistance towards free Black people, was powerful and frightening.
I cannot wait to read Through the Storm. There is a scene where Sable and Valinda have a talk, and we get a summary of the start of Sable and Raimond's relationship through a marriage of convenience, and I was hooked. It sounds like a fantastic story. I guess I am just mood reading this series rather than following the order of the books. But I have not felt lost in the slightest. Hopefully that continues to be the case.
If you like history and you like romance, Beverly Jenkins is a required, and highly enjoyable read.
*Audiobook narrated by Kim Staunton
The history and romance are fantastically woven in this continuation of the LaVeq family story.
I loved how much Drake had to keep himself from always getting his way. He had those alpha male vibes, but with a sensitive and lovable interiority.
Valinda was a practical woman who was generous, kind, and cerebral. I loved how she took time and thought things through.
There were a few times where Valinda was extremely brave in the face of bigotry, and I felt myself tense up and feel fear for her. The way in which Jenkins conveyed both the positive outcomes from the abolition of slavery and the resistance towards free Black people, was powerful and frightening.
I cannot wait to read Through the Storm. There is a scene where Sable and Valinda have a talk, and we get a summary of the start of Sable and Raimond's relationship through a marriage of convenience, and I was hooked. It sounds like a fantastic story. I guess I am just mood reading this series rather than following the order of the books. But I have not felt lost in the slightest. Hopefully that continues to be the case.
If you like history and you like romance, Beverly Jenkins is a required, and highly enjoyable read.
*Audiobook narrated by Kim Staunton
I loved how much Drake had to keep himself from always getting his way. He had those alpha male vibes, but with a sensitive and lovable interiority.
Valinda was a practical woman who was generous, kind, and cerebral. I loved how she took time and thought things through.
There were a few times where Valinda was extremely brave in the face of bigotry, and I felt myself tense up and feel fear for her. The way in which Jenkins conveyed both the positive outcomes from the abolition of slavery and the resistance towards free Black people, was powerful and frightening.
I cannot wait to read Through the Storm. There is a scene where Sable and Valinda have a talk, and we get a summary of the start of Sable and Raimond's relationship through a marriage of convenience, and I was hooked. It sounds like a fantastic story. I guess I am just mood reading this series rather than following the order of the books. But I have not felt lost in the slightest. Hopefully that continues to be the case.
If you like history and you like romance, Beverly Jenkins is a required, and highly enjoyable read.
*Audiobook narrated by Kim Staunton