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A review by kimber_reads
Beyond the Lavender Fields by Arlem Hawks
5.0
I recently read Beyond the Lavender Fields by Arlem Hawks and absolutely loved it! I don’t even know how to begin to describe this flawlessly beautiful story! Gilles and Marie Caroline are two people with completely opposite political opinions living in the same city during a time of political unrest. Their older brothers are best friends and Gilles works for Marie Caroline’s father. At the beginning of the story Gilles and Caroline are practically enemies, but as they spend more time together and start to better understand one another’s perspectives, they realize they want the same things, they just disagree on how to obtain them. As it becomes more and more dangerous for Gilles and Marie Caroline to be connected, they have to decide what they are willing to sacrifice, and what they are not.
There are so many things I absolutely LOVED about this book, but I think my favorite thing is that the story is told almost exclusively from Gilles’ point of view. It’s so fitting for this story too. Gilles grows so much as a character, he was the perfect person to tell this story. I appreciated getting a glimpse at what Marie Caroline was thinking and feeling through the letters she wrote to her cousin. That combination of Marie Caroline’s letters and Gilles’ point of view was so unique and works perfectly for this story.
I just love Gilles and Marie Caroline. They compliment each other so well. I love a good headstrong girl and Marie Caroline is just that. I love that she demands respect and doesn’t tolerate anything less. But she’s not haughty or arrogant. She truly is a generous and compassionate person, but she doesn’t put up with stuff and nonsense. And Gilles. He is trustworthy, levelheaded, intelligent, responsible, and would do anything to protect the people he loves. I loved seeing Gilles and Marie Caroline turn to each other for help more and more as they learned to trust one another. And I definitely swooned over all their romantic moments. Whether it was sitting on a wall eating pastries or dancing in a garden or stitching up a wounded arm, I loved it all!
I also loved the side characters. I loved seeing the impact they each had on Gilles and his opinions, goals, and dreams. There were a lot of people pulling him in a lot of different directions, but in the end, Gilles learned to think and speak and act for himself. He chose which relationships to nurture and which to abandon. I loved seeing Gilles interact with each of his family members. I especially enjoyed seeing his relationship with his father change throughout the book.
This book honestly has everything I love about historical romance! I highly recommend it to anyone who loves an unpredictable historically accurate plot, relatable characters who grow a great deal throughout the book, and wholesome swoony romance between a headstrong girl and quiet but protective guy. Now excuse me, while I go and read it again!
There are so many things I absolutely LOVED about this book, but I think my favorite thing is that the story is told almost exclusively from Gilles’ point of view. It’s so fitting for this story too. Gilles grows so much as a character, he was the perfect person to tell this story. I appreciated getting a glimpse at what Marie Caroline was thinking and feeling through the letters she wrote to her cousin. That combination of Marie Caroline’s letters and Gilles’ point of view was so unique and works perfectly for this story.
I just love Gilles and Marie Caroline. They compliment each other so well. I love a good headstrong girl and Marie Caroline is just that. I love that she demands respect and doesn’t tolerate anything less. But she’s not haughty or arrogant. She truly is a generous and compassionate person, but she doesn’t put up with stuff and nonsense. And Gilles. He is trustworthy, levelheaded, intelligent, responsible, and would do anything to protect the people he loves. I loved seeing Gilles and Marie Caroline turn to each other for help more and more as they learned to trust one another. And I definitely swooned over all their romantic moments. Whether it was sitting on a wall eating pastries or dancing in a garden or stitching up a wounded arm, I loved it all!
I also loved the side characters. I loved seeing the impact they each had on Gilles and his opinions, goals, and dreams. There were a lot of people pulling him in a lot of different directions, but in the end, Gilles learned to think and speak and act for himself. He chose which relationships to nurture and which to abandon. I loved seeing Gilles interact with each of his family members. I especially enjoyed seeing his relationship with his father change throughout the book.
This book honestly has everything I love about historical romance! I highly recommend it to anyone who loves an unpredictable historically accurate plot, relatable characters who grow a great deal throughout the book, and wholesome swoony romance between a headstrong girl and quiet but protective guy. Now excuse me, while I go and read it again!