Linda Lee Graham

Alright I am already having the blues and letdown from finishing this book today while I wish I could just jump into the second one. What will happen to Liam? How is David and Elisabeth going to be continued in their part of the story? And how will America be touched by this young generation of non-American immigrants? I can't imagine.

Starting on this book I was caught up in the spell of the writing from the first. The writing was detailed enough to drag you into the story, thrilling enough to hold you and had so many twists that you never knew what was coming even though you knew, you just knew, somehow that David and Elisabeth no matter their differences were going to end up together while still cursing the book for taking forever to getting there.

The characters were refreshing, their personalities so outstanding from the others that you didn't need the list of characters at the back and realistic that you could just expect to turn around to see one of them. Their voices rang out in your head as you read while it wasn't hard to understand them and even if it was their was again a glossary for some of the terms in the back of the book if you wanted to follow along.

I was trying to finish about the last forty pages while at work today, which wasn't easy, and with one dealer we started discussing the book. She said she would definitely look into it since it is such a roller coaster while everywhere you thought finally it turned out to be another dead end.

My problem wasn't the background or even the characters but there were some part slightly unbelievable. In other parts there were scenes that you didn't expect to see but it was the emotional grasp and coloring that bypassed those slight problems to give it the full rating. I love it while I hope I get a chance for the next.

**Received this book as part of the Members Giveaway at Librarything.com for free in exchange for a reviews**… (lisätietoja)

Voices Echo tells the story of Jamaica in the 18th century. Rhiannon Ross, newly married, wants to get the funds from her husband to open up an inn in America. She feels that her husband does not really care if she stays in Jamaica or not. The atmosphere in Jamaica is not great and as she realizes that the safety of the plantation and her husband are in jeopardy from a slave rebellion. She also has an attraction to a young man Liam Brock which has her conflicted.

This is a very descriptive historical story based on the slave rebellion to abolish slavery on the island. The slave owners are not too happy with this effort as this would mean the end of their authority over the slaves. Plantations get burned and there are rumors of voodoo. Rhiannon feels that there are strange going's on that she can't quite figure out. Can she trust the house slaves? The author tells a great story of believable characters and island life. This is a long book but well worth the read. I only wish I had read the two previous books, I think it would have helped to get to know the characters better. Still a stand alone novel that is worth the read.… (lisätietoja)

Considering this was, I believe, a self-published debut for this author, it was good. I got the first part free for kindle and liked it enough to buy the rest of the book, unfortunately I felt it slowed down from there. This story follows the three main characters over a seven year period. I have yet to find a book I love that covers a long period of time like this because I often feel like I'm missing important things when the story continually jumps forward months and/or years. I have to constantly flip back to figure out how much time has passed between chapters and plot developments never seen to get the chance to development enough before the jump happens again. And unfortunately that's how I felt with this book as well at times.

There are a few times where you can see the need for a editor and there was a part near the ending that was a little unclear to me, and simultaneously set up the sequel (which is a plot device that I don't like), but, impressively, there were no glaring grammatical/technical errors. I also loved how the author created links within the text to refer to the index in the back - genius!… (lisätietoja)

My rating: 4 of 5 stars
I received this book from the author for an honest review. This is a self published novel. I believe this full length novel began as a three part series in novella form. In 1783, a voyage to Philadelphia begins for a group of young people, which begins a life time of friendship. David is indentured for six years to work for a printer. Elisabeth is traveling with her father for the chance at better opportunities in America. Together with their friend, Liam, they suffer through a long hard voyage. Sickness, accidents and storms plague their journey. Elisabeth's father is still mourning the death of his wife, he is also unhappy with the friendships his daughter has made on board the ship. Differences in class and religious beliefs start long lasting resentments. The second part of the novel takes up shortly after everyone arrives in America. David starts his job and classes and Elisabeth works as a teacher's aide. They eventually find each other. When they meet again, Elisabeth is accompanied by a black girl named Polly. Polly and Elisabeth become very good friends and share all their heartbreaks and triumphs together. Liam, has only revealed a small part of himself to David. His life before coming to America was rather bleak. He works hard and he and David are like brothers and Liam loves Elisabeth like a sister. But, the happy ever after David and Elisabeth hope to share is torn from them, when an old rival for David's affections makes shocking allegations against him. The third part of the book takes us further in Elisabeth and David's relationship as well as David and Liam's involvement in American politics. When Elisabeth's father finally gets wind of the relationship between them, he inserts his will upon Elisabeth and it seems that the lovers might end up star crossed after all. Ah, how I miss these sweeping sagas that cover a significant period of time. I miss the old historical romances set in America. Now is seems it's pretty much a Regency or else. There are exceptions of course. But, this was an interesting period of time to choose as the setting of a historical drama. The politics, religious differences and class differences that people had very strong opinions about was tastefully depicted. The love story between Elisabeth and David was really sweet. They fell in love at first sight. They went through the normal insecurities of young love, then faced some real hard times that might have broken a relationship up for good. The relationship dealt with a teenage couple coming of age and maturing in adulthood. The couple do not engage in sexual relations until after marriage, which is fitting of the time period, even though Elisabeth was the strong one in that department. (Shock) So, this ended up being a sweet romance, and old fashioned saga, with a few laughs and a few tears along the way, just like in real life. But, it ended perfectly. Overall this one gets a B+.… (lisätietoja)