Cherokee John Ridge has gotten a formal education at a Mission school and fell in love with the steward’s daughter Sarah. She kept him company when he was nursed back to health after an accident, and the two have been close ever since. They were separated by Sarah’s parents who sent her to find a “proper” husband, but even a two-year separation couldn’t dim their connection. When John returns to profess his love to Sarah, she knows that John is who she is meant to spend the rest of her life with. They marry, but they aren’t out of hot water yet. An interracial couple isn’t going to go over well in 1824, and Sarah and John are preparing to face a lot of hardship and ignorance to fight for their love.
I love historical fiction, and I rarely get to read stories like this one with interracial couples of the past. Truly a treat of a story that was based on Cherokee legends and the stories of real people from the time period. Heather Miller did an excellent job researching and creating the world that this story would be set in.
I wanted to learn more about the Cherokee culture of the time, even though the people were losing their culture to forced assimilation and being removed from their land by the US government. John had done everything that they were “supposed” to do by going to a missionary school and becoming “educated,” but he still faced harsh opposition when trying to marry the woman he loved. This book definitely doesn’t gloss over the horrors of the time, whether it be slavery or the way that indigenous people were treated in the always-expanding US. The Cherokee people were trying to assimilate to save their lives, and sometimes assimilation meant going against their personal morals to look more “normal” to the American public. It was so interesting to read about an America that had so many different governments housed within one country, from the tribal governments to the fledgling United States government.
The romance of this book was so sweet to read. It was definitely a bit of a slow-burn romance, which I truly appreciated. I felt as if I truly got to watch the characters fall in love, rather than the faster insta-love that I occasionally indulge in. John and Sarah are two characters that had an emotional depth that I don’t often get to see written in historical romance novels.
I struggled a bit reading this book as the writing seemed very descriptive, almost flowery at some points. I’m used to speeding through fast-paced books so having to slow down for this one was difficult at first. It was definitely worth it to read the story of John and Sarah. My second complaint was the ending. I felt as if the time-skips became very confusing and really took me out of the world of the story. Things had just started to become smoother for me after a major conflict event occurred, and then I felt as if I was flying back and forth in time for the last 10-15% of the story. Overall, I would still recommend the story, as these things did not make the entire book unenjoyable for me. I much enjoyed my time in the world of John, Sarah, and the people they meet along their journey.
I would recommend this story to anyone looking for a new historical fiction romance read.
I received a copy of this book and this is my voluntary review.
Overall Rating: 3.5 out of 5 books.
