Historical Fiction Book Review: The Innkeeper's Daughter

Publisher's Description

"Dover, England, 1808: Officer Alexander Moore goes undercover as a gambling gentleman to expose a high-stakes plot against the king—and he’s a master of disguise, for Johanna Langley believes him to be quite the rogue. . .until she can no longer fight against his unrelenting charm.

All Johanna wants is to keep the family inn afloat, but when the rent and the hearth payment are due at the same time, where will she find the extra funds? If she doesn’t come up with the money, there will be nowhere to go other than the workhouse—where she’ll be separated from her ailing mother and ten-year-old brother.

Alex desperately wants to help Johanna, especially when she confides in him, but his mission—finding and bringing to justice a traitor to the crown—must come first, or they could all end up dead."

My Review

The Innkeeper’s Daughter, by Michelle Griep, is a well-crafted historical fiction novel that thoroughly entertained and thrilled me with its creatively unique story. Brimming with surprises and unexpected twists, this memorable novel is genuinely captivating and intriguing. Like a warm, woolen shawl, this book wrapped me snuggly within its knitted threads of descriptive storytelling, and I nestled there wholly contented and satisfied. Ms. Griep has written a colorful and engaging novel filled with beautifully written sentences that beg to be noticed like the capricious hues of a winter sunset.
 

Like a current moving steadily across the sea, the swiftly paced plot flowed smoothly through elaborate scenes of adventure, suspense, mystery, danger, faith, romance, sacrifice, and redemption. The characters, authentic and multifaceted, were the jewels within this treasure of a novel. Their idiosyncrasies, motivations, fears, desires, convictions, and actions sparkled brightly with meaning and value.

Within its pages, The Innkeeper’s Daughter offers the reader a moment of escape into an engaging, fictional world formed entirely from words woven together with skill, humor, and passion. It is a novel worthy of sincere praise and thoughtful attention. I recommend it wholeheartedly.

My Reflection

How thrilling that in the midst of danger, adventure, and intrigue, a novel can also overflow with faith, forgiveness, and restoration. As the main characters grapple with difficult choices and turbulent trials, they cling to their hope in God. They pray for guidance, seek his mercy, and trust in his faithfulness. They make mistakes, of course, yet they continue to grow in their faith as they learn to rest securely in God’s grace and his provision. I find it encouraging and richly satisfying to read a novel that not only entertains the mind, but also inspires the heart and the soul to nurture a deeper faith in God.

About the Author

"Michelle Griep's been writing since she first discovered blank wall space and Crayolas. She resides in the frozen tundra of Minnesota, where she teaches history and writing for a local high school co-op. An Anglophile at heart, she runs away to England every chance she gets, under the guise of research. Really, though, she's eating excessive numbers of scones while rambling around a castle. Griep is a member of American Christian Fiction Writers and the Minnesota Christian Writers Guild." --Google Biography. 
Learn more about Ms. Griep by visiting her website https://michellegriep.com/.

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*I was given a copy of this novel from the publisher. A review was not required. The review I have written contains opinions that are entirely my own.