Bending Toward the Sun - A Review

Emilie Heinrich works with her father at the general store and she's attending classes at the girls college, Lindwood. She still finds time to join the Thursday quilting group out at the Brandenburg farm. She's happy for her friend Maren with her upcoming wedding, but Emilie has to wonder if there is love in her future. Quaid McFarland has returned to St. Charles after the Civil War and is helping in his family's freighting business. When the two meet again after so many years, the attraction is mutual. Yet there is one problem that neither forsaw - that of Emilie's father. Will they be obedient to her father's wishes or go behind his back to be together?

This is the second novella in the Quilted Hearts series. It picks up soon after the end of the first. It's easy to read and understand without having read the first. It was nice to reunite with the characters from the first novella. What I loved about this book was the fact that both Emilie and Quaid respected Emilie's father enough to honor his wishes even though it may have cost them a chance to be together. When one of the friends in thequilting circle finally receives word of her husband's fate, my heart broke for the poor girl. This is a very quick read. I think that I read it in about 2 hours. While there is not the depth of character development in this novella as there is in some of the author's full length novels, the characters are well developed for the length of the story.

Since I understand that a novella is a short story for all practical purposes, and this novella, along with the first and the third, are written to bridge a gap between the author's new book due out in August, I'm ok with the fact that these are short, quick reads. Would I have liked each one to be a full length novel? Yes. But as I'm getting an entire story told in three pieces, it's a pleasure to read it.

I received the Kindle version of the book for free from Waterbrook Multnomah's Blogging for Books program for the purpose of reviewing. My thoughts and opinions are my own.

Recommended to fans of novellas, historical fiction, Tracie Peterson, Colleen Coble

Rating - 4 stars.

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