When Love Calls

When Love Calls 

Lorna Seilatad

Revell Publishing 

May 2013 available now from your favorite book seller! 

Romance, fiction, historical 

Hannah Gregory is good at many things, but that list doesn’t include following rules. So when she is forced to apply for a job as a telephone switchboard operator to support her two sisters, she knows it won’t be easy. “Hello Girls” must conduct themselves according to strict-and often bewildering-rules. No talking to the other girls. No chatting with callers. No blowing your nose without first raising your hand. And absolutely no consorting with gentlemen while in training.

Meanwhile, young lawyer Lincoln Cole finds himself in the unfortunate position of having to enforce the bank’s eviction of the three Gregory girls from their parents’ home. He tries to soften the blow by supporting them in small ways as they settle into another home. But fiery Hannah refuses his overtures and insists on paying back every cent of his charity.

When one of Hannah’s friends finds himself on the wrong side of a jail cell, Hannah is forced to look to Lincoln for help. Will it be her chance to return to her dreams of studying law? And could she be falling in love? 

This book managed to grab my attention and keep it which is quite a feat these days. I love the history detail Seilstad writes. I may be a little biased as an Iowa girl but it is very enjoyable to find out the background on known places. I found the switchboard operator job to be fascinating. You'll enjoy the complexity of something that is so simple these days. Lincoln and Hannah are well developed characters that you'll like right away. Watching the story develop and the relationship between those two will delight you. Hats off to Seilstad who is most definitely growing in depth as an author. I look forward to reading the next books in the series. 

My thanks to Revell Publishing for providing me with a free copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. 

Making Waves

Making Waves by Lorna Seilstad
Reviewed by Melissa J. MacDonald
Genre: Historical, Romance
Publisher: Revell
Date: 2010

It’s 1895 and precocious Marguerite Westing resides in Council Bluffs, Iowa. She is delighted when her wealthy father tells the whole family they’ll be spending the summer camping on the shores of Lake Manawa. She imagines a summer of freedom away from her snore of a suitor, Roger Gordon. She also hopes to stay out of sight of her demanding mother. Marguerite gets a quick taste of the lake as she slips on the dock and tumbles in. Her handsome rescuer is none other than sailor Trip (ironic name?) Andrews. Never one to settle for simply “womanly” pursuits Marguerite finds herself in love with the strictly male sport of sailing. Trip Andrews isn’t too bad himself. Under the guise of chaperoning her younger brother’s sailing lessons Marguerite and Trip are inexplicably drawn to each other.

In spite of what should be a warm fun summer there is a decided chill that breaks through as Roger’s moods are unpredictable and Marguerite’s father is keeping dangerous secrets that could alter the family forever. When the secrets come to light Roger seems to be the only person who can save the family. Marguerite agrees to marry the mustached Roger with the hope of restoring her family to wealth. Lies and deceit run rampant through the story. Will Marguerite stay with Roger to save her family? Will Trip forgive Marguerite’s deceit and pursue her? I’m not telling, you’ll have to read for yourself!

I’ll fully admit that Making Waves started off a little irritating for me. Marguerite comes across as your typical spoiled brat rich kid who will do anything to get her own way. I was not amused. However, being from Iowa (and within an hour of Lake Manawa) I was completely intrigued by the elusive Lake Manawa. I read on for purely historical purposes. What I quickly found was a much better developed Marguerite and a story that took me by surprise. If you give yourself 100 pages you’ll be completely engrossed in the story and be so glad you kept reading. The story takes twists you won’t be expecting and both Marguerite and Trip have a depth to them that is not seen at first introduction.

The historical aspects of Making Waves were fascinating. Wealthy people really did camp at Lake Manawa for the summer and there really were ferries and ice cream stands and sailboat races. If the story doesn’t grab you the setting of Lake Manawa will. You’ll want to climb into your woolen swimming costume (does that sound itchy and hot to anyone else?!), grab a strawberry sundae, and watch a sailboat race!

Rated: PG for content related to gambling