Hello Friends :)
I hope you're all doing well, and I want to thank you all for joining me for another book review here on The Preppy Book Princess.
If you've been reading my blog for awhile, you may have remembered that at the start of the year I read The Prince Edward Island Dreams series by Liz Johnson, and considered the whole series a new favorite. You can find my review of one of those books here.
When I discovered she has a new series, this one set along the Georgia Coast, I knew I needed to go ahead and dive into it.
Today I'd like to share my review of the first book with you all.
A Sparkle of Silver by Liz Johnson:
Source: Library
Publisher: Revell
Publication Date: October 16th, 2018
Genre: Christian Fiction/Mystery/Romance
Series: Georgia Coast Romance
Synopsis:
Ninety years ago, Millie Sullivan's great-grandmother was a guest at oil tycoon Howard Dawkins' palatial estate on the shore of St. Simons Island, Georgia. Now, Millie plays a 1920s-era guest during tours of the same manor. But when her grandmother suggests that there is a lost diary containing the location of a hidden treasure on the estate, along with the true identity of Millie's great-grandfather, Millie sets out to find the truth of her heritage--and the fortune that might be hers. When security guard Ben Thornton discovers her snooping in the estate's private library, he threatens to have her fired. But her story seems almost too ludicrous to be fiction, and her offer to split the treasure is too tempting to pass up . . .
Get ready for a romantic escapade through dark halls and dusty corners that will have you holding your breath and sighing with delight as two charming characters get caught up in the adventure of uncovering the past and finding their way to an unexpected future.
(synopsis from goodreads)
My Review:
I was honestly expecting to love the first book in Liz Johnson's Georgia Coast Romance series, especially since her Prince Edward Island Dreams series is one of my all time favorites. This particular title is composed of so many elements I love, that it seemed to be a read that I was going to end up proclaiming as a new favorite.
To start with, the plot centers around two individuals who meet during their jobs at a historic estate, and join resources to try and locate a lost diary belonging to a relative of the main female character (Millie) that they've been lead to believe will lead them to a long forgotten treasure. I loved the idea of the main protagonists, Millie and Ben, searching through history for answers to a long forgotten mystery, and the rich history that surrounds the estate turned museum that they've been employed at. The story adds an extra dimension when the diary is discovered, as part of the story is then told in another time period through diary entries from Millie's great grandmother. Epistolary and time slip are two of my usual favorite formats when reading fiction, and I thought that both would make a great story even better.
I also have to mention that on paper, Millie and Ben both seemed like characters I would usually find myself enjoying. Millie is a bookworm that's had to work hard for everything she's ever received, and her favorite thing to do in the little free time she actually has is lose herself into fanciful literary worlds. Ben, on the other hand, grew up in not the greatest home life situation, and has had to prove to the world and to himself that he's not like the legacy that's been laid down before him.
However, unfortunately this one failed to make its mark on me. Both characters failed to illicit a response from me during the entirety of the story, and since I didn't personally connect to either one of them, I also wasn't even slightly invested in their romance. I had a hard time staying focused on the story when it felt like the plot was jumbled, and really confusing to try and follow. Millie and Ben both also make a lot of juvenile decisions during the course of the story, and a lot of the plot twists and turns seemed implausible and not written in a way that felt realistic to the reader.
I spent a good portion of the story wondering why Millie thought she'd have a claim to the treasure in the first place, and I didn't really like the answer my question finally received. The ending felt kind of rushed, and once again, slightly unrealistic, and I was left feeling a tad underwhelmed by how Liz Johnson chose to wrap the story up.
While A Sparkle in Silver did have its positive moments, it wasn't the five star read I was expecting. I personally would recommend this author's other books over this one, but that being said, I do feel I enjoyed it enough to want to continue on with the rest of the series.
If you like sweet mysteries, and enjoy books about treasure hunting and history's buried secrets, then this one might be a good choice for you.
Final Rating: 3/5
I don't personally see myself rereading this one, but I'm not sorry that I took a chance and read it the first time around.
Thanks so much for reading guys! Have a great rest of your day.
This is not a sponsored post. All thoughts and opinions are my own. The photo does not belong to me, and all rights to the respective owners.
I hope you're all doing well, and I want to thank you all for joining me for another book review here on The Preppy Book Princess.
If you've been reading my blog for awhile, you may have remembered that at the start of the year I read The Prince Edward Island Dreams series by Liz Johnson, and considered the whole series a new favorite. You can find my review of one of those books here.
When I discovered she has a new series, this one set along the Georgia Coast, I knew I needed to go ahead and dive into it.
Today I'd like to share my review of the first book with you all.
A Sparkle of Silver by Liz Johnson:
Source: Library
Publisher: Revell
Publication Date: October 16th, 2018
Genre: Christian Fiction/Mystery/Romance
Series: Georgia Coast Romance
Synopsis:
Ninety years ago, Millie Sullivan's great-grandmother was a guest at oil tycoon Howard Dawkins' palatial estate on the shore of St. Simons Island, Georgia. Now, Millie plays a 1920s-era guest during tours of the same manor. But when her grandmother suggests that there is a lost diary containing the location of a hidden treasure on the estate, along with the true identity of Millie's great-grandfather, Millie sets out to find the truth of her heritage--and the fortune that might be hers. When security guard Ben Thornton discovers her snooping in the estate's private library, he threatens to have her fired. But her story seems almost too ludicrous to be fiction, and her offer to split the treasure is too tempting to pass up . . .
Get ready for a romantic escapade through dark halls and dusty corners that will have you holding your breath and sighing with delight as two charming characters get caught up in the adventure of uncovering the past and finding their way to an unexpected future.
(synopsis from goodreads)
My Review:
I was honestly expecting to love the first book in Liz Johnson's Georgia Coast Romance series, especially since her Prince Edward Island Dreams series is one of my all time favorites. This particular title is composed of so many elements I love, that it seemed to be a read that I was going to end up proclaiming as a new favorite.
To start with, the plot centers around two individuals who meet during their jobs at a historic estate, and join resources to try and locate a lost diary belonging to a relative of the main female character (Millie) that they've been lead to believe will lead them to a long forgotten treasure. I loved the idea of the main protagonists, Millie and Ben, searching through history for answers to a long forgotten mystery, and the rich history that surrounds the estate turned museum that they've been employed at. The story adds an extra dimension when the diary is discovered, as part of the story is then told in another time period through diary entries from Millie's great grandmother. Epistolary and time slip are two of my usual favorite formats when reading fiction, and I thought that both would make a great story even better.
I also have to mention that on paper, Millie and Ben both seemed like characters I would usually find myself enjoying. Millie is a bookworm that's had to work hard for everything she's ever received, and her favorite thing to do in the little free time she actually has is lose herself into fanciful literary worlds. Ben, on the other hand, grew up in not the greatest home life situation, and has had to prove to the world and to himself that he's not like the legacy that's been laid down before him.
However, unfortunately this one failed to make its mark on me. Both characters failed to illicit a response from me during the entirety of the story, and since I didn't personally connect to either one of them, I also wasn't even slightly invested in their romance. I had a hard time staying focused on the story when it felt like the plot was jumbled, and really confusing to try and follow. Millie and Ben both also make a lot of juvenile decisions during the course of the story, and a lot of the plot twists and turns seemed implausible and not written in a way that felt realistic to the reader.
I spent a good portion of the story wondering why Millie thought she'd have a claim to the treasure in the first place, and I didn't really like the answer my question finally received. The ending felt kind of rushed, and once again, slightly unrealistic, and I was left feeling a tad underwhelmed by how Liz Johnson chose to wrap the story up.
While A Sparkle in Silver did have its positive moments, it wasn't the five star read I was expecting. I personally would recommend this author's other books over this one, but that being said, I do feel I enjoyed it enough to want to continue on with the rest of the series.
If you like sweet mysteries, and enjoy books about treasure hunting and history's buried secrets, then this one might be a good choice for you.
Final Rating: 3/5
I don't personally see myself rereading this one, but I'm not sorry that I took a chance and read it the first time around.
Thanks so much for reading guys! Have a great rest of your day.
This is not a sponsored post. All thoughts and opinions are my own. The photo does not belong to me, and all rights to the respective owners.
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