Review: When Hearts Rekindle

When Hearts Rekindle by Janet Syas Nitisk
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I had forgotten what it is like to hold a real paperback in my hands to read. This book brought back all those old (and tender feelings) of staying up late, and reading in my bed. Great memories.

This is a good romance, third in the series, but very stand alone. Didn't feel lost even once. It has a very interesting premise. Broken relationship creates need to get away and do something else. And that something else is going to nursing school and meeting a new fella, a fella that is good, kind, thoughtful and lovely to love.

Nursing school in the 1890s was extremely viable. At one point in the 1890s there were more women in the medical field than men. That is when medical schools started restricting registrations of women into the school, and that is when nursing school registrations swelled. The historical aspects of this novel are very good and accurate. So read on history buffs!

Nitisk does a great job of giving good reasons for the two main characters to fall in love with each other. That is something that isn't exactly rare, but it isn't exactly run-of-the-mill either these days. I was glad to see not only those reasons, but also a strong faith aspect in this novel. The characters have a lot of challenges to face, they grow, they grow up, they make mistakes, and they live life. I also like the way Nitisk uses anticipation to keep the pages turning. Of course, the build up to the climax gives you a blatant clue as to how it all turns out, but I won't go there--you need to read that for yourself.

There are some problems with the editing, though, typos and some grammar errors. I do mention those because being an editor these errors are like neon signs to me. They are story flow dams that need a blast of editing to break it all loose so the reader can hit the rapids.

I was talking to a publisher a few days ago, and he still has a disdain for indie published books. At the top of his list were these same kinds of errors. Anyone reading this and who is an indie author, please get your work professionally edited. It truly will lift you from being just a good writer to being a great writer.

Nitisk is a good writer. As you read, you can smell the dirt and grime, feel the heat and cold wind, smell the cigar smoke--that is good writing. Great writing is creating a wonderful river-like flow for the reader where you rush through the rapids, slow down through the deep water, and splash in the shallows. That's the kind of ride that keeps readers buying books

Four of five stars. This book is worth the money, and you'll enjoy the read.

I received this book from the author. This review is my honest opinion.

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