by Siri Mitchell
Christian Fiction / Historical
Available March 2013
Bethany House
400 pages
About the Book
Lucy Kendall returns from a tour of the Continent, her luggage filled with the latest fashions and a mind fired by inspiration. After tasting Europe's best confections, she's sure she'll come up with a recipe that will save her father's struggling candy business and reverse their fortunes. But she soon discovers that their biggest competitor, the cheat who swindled her father out of his prize recipe, has now hired a promotions manager--a cocky, handsome out-of-towner who gets under Lucy’s skin.
Charlie Clarke's new role at Standard Manufacturing is the chance of a lifetime. He can put some rough times behind him and reconnect with the father he's never known. The one thing he never counted on, however, was tenacious Lucy Kendall. She's making his work life miserable...and making herself impossible for him to forget.
My Thoughts
Siri Mitchell is the author who finally convinced me that I was a fan of historical fiction a few years ago. That combined with the beautiful cover (yes, I'm a cover judger!) and the interesting premise, and I was prepared to love this book. Unfortunately, regardless of how much I wanted to, I just didn't love this book.
The book started off okay, but I really got bogged down in the middle of it. While there were hints of romance during the book, it was extremely slow to develop and then wrapped up way too quickly at the end—as did some of the other elements of the book. At nearly 400 pages, there just weren't enough "new" things happening to hold my interest, and I felt that the pacing was off. I found myself skimming through large portions of the book in order to push myself through it.
The other thing that I disliked was that the entire story was told from a first-person perspective ... of two different characters. While the chapters were clearly labeled to let you know whose perspective you're reading, it still confused me at times. I had a hard time mentally switching back and forth.
There were certainly parts that I enjoyed. I definitely liked the aspect of a woman trying to make her own way and breaking out of the mold that society demands she fit into. And Charlie was a unique hero ... with a lot of growth from the beginning of the book.
It seems that I'm in the minority regarding my opionions of this book, so if you think Unrivaled sounds interesting, check out the other reviews before making a decision based solely on my opinion. Melanie at Christian Bookshelf Reviews wrote a great review if you're interested in a different perspective. While Unrivaled wasn't my favorite book, I still look forward to reading future books by Siri Mitchell, who is an extremely talented author. [2.5 stars]
I received a free copy of this book from Bethany House and LitFuse Publicity in exchange for my fair and honest review.
Siri Mitchell is the author who finally convinced me that I was a fan of historical fiction a few years ago. That combined with the beautiful cover (yes, I'm a cover judger!) and the interesting premise, and I was prepared to love this book. Unfortunately, regardless of how much I wanted to, I just didn't love this book.
The book started off okay, but I really got bogged down in the middle of it. While there were hints of romance during the book, it was extremely slow to develop and then wrapped up way too quickly at the end—as did some of the other elements of the book. At nearly 400 pages, there just weren't enough "new" things happening to hold my interest, and I felt that the pacing was off. I found myself skimming through large portions of the book in order to push myself through it.
The other thing that I disliked was that the entire story was told from a first-person perspective ... of two different characters. While the chapters were clearly labeled to let you know whose perspective you're reading, it still confused me at times. I had a hard time mentally switching back and forth.
There were certainly parts that I enjoyed. I definitely liked the aspect of a woman trying to make her own way and breaking out of the mold that society demands she fit into. And Charlie was a unique hero ... with a lot of growth from the beginning of the book.
It seems that I'm in the minority regarding my opionions of this book, so if you think Unrivaled sounds interesting, check out the other reviews before making a decision based solely on my opinion. Melanie at Christian Bookshelf Reviews wrote a great review if you're interested in a different perspective. While Unrivaled wasn't my favorite book, I still look forward to reading future books by Siri Mitchell, who is an extremely talented author. [2.5 stars]
I received a free copy of this book from Bethany House and LitFuse Publicity in exchange for my fair and honest review.
About the Author
Siri Mitchell is the author of nearly a dozen novels, among them the critically acclaimed Christy Award finalists Chateau of Echoes and The Cubicle Next Door. A graduate of the University of Washington with a degree in business, she has worked in many different levels of government. As a military spouse, she has lived in places as varied as Tokyo and Paris. Siri currently lives in the DC-metro area.
Siri Mitchell Online
