9.21.2013

The Invention of Sarah Cummings ~ Review

The Invention of Sarah Cummings
The Avenue of Dreams #3
By Olivia Newport

Sarah Cummings dreams of a life outside of service and what might have been if her parents hadn't been killed and if she hadn't been placed in St. Andrew's Orphanage.  But dreams can only take you so far as Sarah has found out until a chance encounter introduces her to Lillie Wagner, a young woman of means and fortune.

When Sarah Cummings introduces herself as Serena Cuthbert she enters the world she always desired but can Sarah live a double life and not get caught?  Only time will tell...

The Invention of Sarah Cummings is a delightful third installment in The Avenue of Dreams series.  Set in Chicago in 1896 the story revolves around Sarah and her struggles to find her place in the world.  With her skills with a needle she re-works cast off gowns making them hers, but Sarah has been unable to make her life her own.  She is, like so many people even today, looking at what those around her have and is thus unsatisfied with what she has been blessed with.

Sarah's duplicity could have far reaching consequences and cost her what her heart truly desires unconditional true love love.  But until Sarah accepts who she is can her heart ever truly be at peace?  But sometimes we, like Sarah, don't know our own heart until it is almost too late.

I liked the look into Chicago's past, after having lived there at one time.  And the parallels between now and then are intriguing.  It seems that we are always dealing with the same issues we just throw in technological advancements that add another layer to the complexities we must traverse.

I have to admit I really liked Simon Tewell's character and have say Bradley Townsend didn't impress me at all.  And Sarah's growth as a person makes for a believable reading experience!  Olivia Newport has created another fantastic book and I look forward to reading more of her books in the future.

I was provided a copy of this book by Revell in exchange for my honest review.

Available August 2013 at your favorite bookseller from Revell, a division of Baker Publishing Group.

Connect with Olivia Newport at the following:  

In a world where everyone is putting on a show, there is a love that is genuine.

Sarah Cummings has one goal in life--to break into Chicago's high society. Desperate to stop serving dinner to members of the wealthy Banning family and to start eating at society tables, Sarah spends her meager free time altering cast-off gowns to create the perfect wardrobe for her future life.

When opportunity knocks at a chance meeting, she presents herself as Serena Cuthbert, weaving a fictitious past to go with her fictitious name. But as she gets closer to her goal--and closer to Simon Tewell, director of St. Andrew's Orphanage--Sarah finds that she must choose between the life she has and the life she dreams of.

Can she piece together the perfect life from scraps? Or will it all come unraveled in the face of true love?

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~ Blooming with Books