Courting Calamity is a novella collection with four stories about four independent women who need a bit of help. Overall, it’s a nice collection. Some stories were better than others, but they’re nice stories to read when you don’t have much time for a full novel.
I’ve included my thoughts on each individual story below.
Lady and the Tramps by Jennifer Uhlarik
This was a good story, although I felt like it could’ve been developed a bit more. I liked the characters, not only Mattie and Jake but also the children. The plot was interesting, but the romance could’ve been developed more. The ending wrapped up really quickly and seemed a bit rushed. But overall, this was a good story and I was sad to leave the characters. It would’ve made a great novel.
The Secondhand Bride of Polecat Creek by Kathleen Y’Barbo
The premise here was interesting, but I wish Zeke and Lizzie’s relationship had been developed more. I found the ending to be a bit cheesy, but I did appreciate the fact that all loose ends were tied up.
The Bride of Basswood Hill by Gabrielle Meyer
I wish this story had been longer. I enjoyed Alex and Sofia and wanted to stay with them a bit longer.
Echoes of the Heart by Amanda Barratt
This story was graphic and puts more emphasis on the plight of workers at the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory than the romance. I would’ve like to see this as a novel so the characters could be more fleshed out and to accommodate the timeline. I understood that she wanted the reader to understand the experiences of those involved in the strikes and the fire, but the ending had a lot of description of death and destruction I was not prepared for. However, I did like that she tried to accurately portray the plight of factory workers and the reason we’ve seen many labor laws go into affect to protect people.
Courting Calamity releases July 1. You can pre-order it by clicking the image above or order it from your favorite bookstore.
Note: I received a free copy via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. I was not required to give a positive review.
