To Follow Her Heart ~ Review

To Follow Her Heart
The Southold Chronicles #3
By Rebecca DeMarino

Patience has waited for years for Captain Jeremy Horton to marry her.  Now it seems her heart has lost to the ocean when word reaches Southold the Jeremy's ship was lost with no survivors. Patience refuses to believe that Jeremy is dead, but how can she convince those closest to him to not lose hope?

Jeremy Horton survived and is given a mission by the British which returns him to Southold.  But his return is temporary one as he fulfills his orders.  With each delay Patience lives up to her name as she waits for the man who has captured her heart. But how long is she willing to wait?

To Follow Her Heart takes place over several years as the world that they have come to call home changes and yet remains the same. There are births, marriages, and deaths that have a profound impact on those who call Southold home. Those who have read the previous books in the series (A Place in His Heart and To Capture Her Heart) will enjoy the chance to be reacquainted with the Horton family and their friends.

It is amazing how different life was then when compared to the conveniences we enjoy today. Communication over distances could be weeks or months to share news of joy or sorrow. Cooking and baking were a good day's work. And education, as Patience ran the Dame School, is vastly different from what we experience today.

If you are looking for Colonial Period historical fiction this is a delightful book and series to delve into.  The characters are believable and one can empathize with Patience as she proves worthy of her name and yet wonder how she can be so patient. At times I felt Jeremy could have stood a couple of wacks from his hat to get his attention, but one can see his point of view whether or not one agrees with it. This is a series one will want to revisit.

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


About the Book:

Duty and love are powerful forces. 

Only one has the power to make 
her life complete.

It is 1664 and Patience Terry is devastated to learn that Captain Jeremy Horton's ship has been shipwrecked off the coast of Barbados. There were no survivors. She had hoped that Jeremy would someday give up the sea and settle down with her in Southold, Long Island. 

Unaware his memorial service is being planned, Jeremy sails aboard a British warship with secret orders to attack New Amsterdam and claim it for the British Crown. When he makes his surprise return to Southold--and to an overjoyed Patience--it's not quite the happily-ever-after his beloved had hoped for. 

With a finely tuned sense for authentic historical characters and settings, Rebecca DeMarino plunges you into a world of tall ships, daring journeys, and yearning hearts.