Beyond All Measure

Beyond All Measures by Dorothy Love

Paperback: 320 Pages
ISBN-10: 1595549005

Just after the civil war, Bostonian Ada Wentworth goes to Hickory Ridge, Tennessee to take a job as a lady's maid.  Not only does she encounter a different life that she was used to financially, but she also encounters some of the prejudices of a post civil war era. Attempting to eventually start her own business, she runs into problems due to her gender and her background, as well as also running into love. But, will her love prevail, or will her past come back to bite her? You will have to read to find out.

This book was a very quick read, as many romance novels are. I won't spoil anything for future readers, but it pretty much follows the same plot as several other romance novels I have read. However, the author does bring history into it as well and it was definitely interesting to think about how hard it would be to live in such a tumultuous time, especially if you are a woman in a man's world, a northerner in a southerner's world, or a white among recently freed blacks, in a place where prejudices still run rampant.

I haven't read a romance novel in a long time, and the reason is they are usually too much silly romance and not enough hard evidence or a believable story. However, this one did keep my attention and I finished it in about a day and a half. The characters are likable, the setting is interesting and the story does keep you turning pages. I would recommend this book to anyone is into a bit of fluff interspersed with history. The author could have made it more Historical and less Romance but if you like it better the other way around, it may be just the thing for you. However, I would give it a 3 out of 5 for that reason alone.

You can find more information about this book HERE. 

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookSneeze®.com book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”