TAPESTRY OF HOPE

Author: Tracie Peterson and Judith Miller ISBN: 0764228943 5/2004 HISTORICAL Publisher: Bethany House
Time Period: 1840's - Inspirational

As the only daughter of a wealthy cotton grower, Jasmine Wainwright has lived a sheltered existence, naive about the realities of Southern plantation life beyond her family’s home and gardens. But when two brothers from New England visit The Willows, Jasmine's world--and her understanding of the genteel life she's always embraced—is thrown into disarray. A visit to her grandmother in the bustling textile town of Lowell, Massachusetts, further opens her eyes. Bradley Houston sees a connection with Jasmine’s family as the perfect means to solidify his new position with the Boston Associates, the powerful men who run the mills. Ambitious and driven, he will stop at nothing to ensure that he achieves his goals.  Faced with the prospect of marriage to a man she doesn’t love, Jasmine must weigh her obligations to her family against the desires of her heart.

RRAH's THOUGHTS AND PONDERINGS:

TAPESTRY OF HOPE begins at The Willows, a wealthy cotton plantation in Lorman, Mississippi. It's May of 1846, 15 years before the start of the Civil War.

Jasmine Wainwright is the only daughter of The Willows' owner, Malcom Wainwright. She's led a privileged yet sheltered life and is basically clueless to the ways of the world.

Bradley Houston is an ambitious man looking to move up the ladder to a position of influence within The Associates - a major corporation in the business of running profitable cotton mills in Lowell, MA.

Bradley comes to The Willows in hopes of establishing a working relationship with the plantation. Malcom promises to consider the offer, and Bradley returns home already adjusting his strategy. He wants Jasmine for a wife—she's beautiful, young and how better to seal a deal than to marry the daughter? Jasmine and Malcom visit his mother, Alice, who happens to live in Lowell, also. She wants to have Jasmine stay with her for a time, but fears Malcom will deny the request. They're surprised when Malcom suggests it himself, unaware he has given Bradley permission to court her and possibly marry her as part of the business agreement.

Jasmine is not attracted to Bradley. She is actually repulsed by him and appalled when it becomes apparent she will marry him, regardless of her feelings. The marriage is not a happy one. It's one of domination, control, and near hopelessness.

Kiara and Paddy are all that is left of their family in Ireland. The potato famine has taken many lives, including their parents. Turning to her landlord for help, Kiara unexpectedly finds Paddy and herself on a ship bound for Boston, and bound to Bradley for five years as indentured servants. Kiara also finds that she has traded one hell for another. She may not be starving, but Bradley is the devil himself, tormenting Kiara in many ways.

Sharing different, but no less tragic, miseries that happen to be caused by the same man, Jasmine and Kiara form a special and unique friendship—a bond that saves both of their lives in many ways.

I've never read an Inspirational romance before, so this was a first for me. I volunteered to review this book after reading an excerpt—it sounded like a good story and I was curious to see what an Inspirational book would consist of. Knowing the book was published by a Christian oriented publisher, and not knowing what to expect, I was happy to see that it wasn't overly preachy or full of fire and brimstone.

What I found was a steady thread of subtle reminders to have faith in God, religion and prayer. I might add that one particular religion wasn't emphasized as the 'right' or 'true' religion, which, as far as I'm concerned, is the way it should be.

As for the story itself....

At first, I wasn't sure. It wasn't the story that was bothering me—it was Jasmine. I knew an important part of the story was the fact that she had lived a sheltered life and was very naive about the world beyond her home, but felt that it was taken a little too far. I was starting to dislike her more as things went on. Jasmine was unreasonably self-centered, and thoughtless to the negative impact breaking the marriage contract would have on her family. It was a relief when she began to behave realistically and at least try to endure her situation. Bradley, of course, was the perfect example of a man who had turned away from God, whose scruples and morals were deteriorating daily and how his faithlessness brought nothing but evil.

My favorite characters were Grandmother Alice, Kiara, Paddy and Rogan. If it hadn't been for their characters, I don't believe the story would have been to my liking at all. They added spice and depth to the story.

In my opinion, one of the most interesting aspects to the story was the controversy over slavery by the Northerners. For some, it was something that had to be abolished. For some, it was a bad thing—unless it was advantageous to business. Yet, most saw nothing wrong with taking advantage of the Irish immigrants to work the mills in conditions almost as bad as slaves endured. Overall, I believe that people who are fans of Inspirational and Christian novels would find this book, well, inspirational. Personally, I enjoyed the book, but would have liked much more from it.

Sue Cloud