Dreams Rekindled

Amanda Cabot.  Revell, $15.99 (352p) ISBN 978-0-8007-3536-4

Anne Kemerer Jones

Dreams Rekindled

Amanda Cabot.  Revell, $15.99 (352p) ISBN 978-0-8007-3536-4

Cabot continues her Mesquite Springs historical romance series with the engrossing story of Wyatt Clark’s younger sister, Dorothy, who longs for a career as a writer despite the lack of such opportunities for women in the mid-19th century. Dorothy’s prayers appear to be answered when newspaper editor Brandon Holloway arrives in town. Brandon hires Dorothy to write for the newspaper but avoids taking a stance on the issue of slavery even though Dorothy wants to publish an editorial opinion.  Brandon’s unwillingness to take a stand stems from his guilt over his father’s tragic death in a town riot that occurred as a result of Brandon’s public support for the novel Uncle Tom’s Cabin and his denouncement of the idea of human ownership.  Through his relationship with Dorothy, Brandon rediscovers his courage to champion the values he holds dear. Dorothy, afraid to love as a result of losing her own father at young age, learns that love is worth the risk.  While Cabot does a fine job of world-building, her characters’ motivations don’t quite jive and several threads to this tale are left disappointingly unresolved. [March 2021]