Making A Home Weekend Book Review: A Heart Most Worthy

A Heart Most Worthy, by Siri Mitchell, is a historical novel set in Boston in 1918, the time of the Great Italian Emigration.

The lives of three young women intertwine in a most unexpected way in this fictional Christian novel. All three woman live in the impoverished North End of Boston where the Italian immigrants congregated during the time of the immigration into the States. All three are brought together in Madame Fortier's gown shop, where they weave together equisite gowns for the affluent customers that patronize the shop.

The story follows the life of each of the girls and their search for love and their place in the New World. There is Julietta, the free-spirited, reckless young woman who desires to break away from her Italian roots and live a truly American life. There is Annamaria, the young woman fated by her family to be their servant for life, who falls for a forbidden love. And there is Luciana, a young woman with an affluent background who was chased from Rome to the States only after the assassination of her father.

Mystery and suspense are also lightly dispersed throughout the novel as we follow the pursuance of Luciana by her father's assassinator, the man who followed Luciana to Boston after vowing to end her life as well.

This was the first fiction title I've read in a couple of years. I typically don't choose fictional titles since I'm always afraid that I'll be drawn in and neglect my work because I can't put my book down! However, I found this book to be a light, enjoyable read. It was not a heavy book, so I could pick it up and read it without having to ponder on the words too much. Maybe I'm used to reading nonfiction in which one really needs to think to be able to gleam from the book.

The way that the author weaves the lives of these three women together is really very fascinating. One can't help but really feel for the characters in this book, and even relate to them in a way.

I enjoyed this book. It was a nice change from the usual nonfiction I usually read. It was nice to be able to escape for a few minutes at a time because the chapters were nice and short which I appreciate in a fiction book.

This is a "romance" novel. But I hate to even dub it that. When I think of romance novels, I think of those softcover books with the raunchy covers. That isn't what this book is at all. There isn't any raunchiness in this book. Instead, it actually focuses more on the emotions involved in love, and it even touches on the fact that love isn't about feelings, it's about giving. I really liked that about the book.

I received this book from Bethany House Publishers in exchange for my honest review.