Book Review: Love, Charleston by Beth Webb Hart

Book Description from Goodreads
An inspiring, heart-warming novel set in romantic Charleston, South Carolina.

"Stay and wait." Anne Brumley heard these words years ago in the bell tower at Saint Michael's Church in Charleston. She's certain they were from God and has been waiting for true love ever since. But her sister, Della, and their cousin, Alicia, have their doubts. Could Anne have misunderstood His calling?

Saint Michael's new rector may be the answer to Anne's prayers. Good-old-boy and widower Roy Summerall can't believe he's been called to pastor such an historical and a decidedly rich congregation. He can't possibly measure up to their expectations. It will take a miracle of extraordinary love to provide a happy ending for each of these four Charleston friends.

My Thoughts

First, I have to comment on the cover of this book. It's dreamy! Looking at the cover and reading the author's descriptions of the city of Charleston make you long to live in a city with so much history and variety. 

This is the first book I have read by Beth Webb Hart. She has a very good writing style. Beth is a master story teller keeping the reader's interest. I enjoyed the dialogue between all the characters of the book. It was real.

A few things I would like to mention that stood out to me. Prior to reading the book, I read the above description from Goodreads as well as the back cover of the actual book. I had the impression the book was about a character named Anne and the widower, Roy and their story. At the beginning of the book, both characters were introduced as well as some "secondary" characters. But shortly into the book, the two main "secondary" characters became the primary story lines. This confused me after a bit and I was anxious to get back to Anne and Roy's story. They did not pick back up until shortly before the story ended and their story was not really developed. I felt a bit cheated.

Overall, I felt there were too many story lines for one book and was a bit disappointed that the main characters, Anne and Roy, were not given the spotlight. But, I wouldn't let that discourage you from picking up this book and reading it for a number of reasons. After all, I read all the way through because it intrigued me to some extent. I wanted to find out what happened to everyone. Beth writes in such a way to keep you interested. The story lines all flowed and were very easy to follow. Each story line has an element of real-life issues that many people deal with on a daily basis and may be of encouragement to someone experiencing some of the same types of situations.

Pick up a copy of Love, Charleston here.

**Disclaimer - This book was received through Goodreads First Reads giveaway program. Prerelease books are listed for giveaway by publishers and authors, and members can enter to win. Winners are picked randomly at the end of the giveaway. These thoughts are my own opinion and expressed independently of the publisher and author.