Monday, April 15, 2013

Reconstructing Jackson by Holly Bush

After the end of the Civil War, there was a lot of damage to be repaired including the war veterans.  

The author and Goddess Fish Blog sent me a copy of this ebook to read for review (thank you).  You can purchase a copy on any of the ebook sites now.

Jackson was to inherit the plantation from his father and had a fiance when he went to war.  He came home without his leg, his older brother died during the war, and his father declared him unfit to run the plantation.  His young brother not only inherits the plantation, he gets his fiance too.  There's no reason for him to stay on the plantation any longer and he moves to a hotel in Missouri run by his cousin to start over.  What he encounters there will change his life forever.

As he sits on the porch at night brooding about what he might have had and where he's going now, he ends up becoming friends with a black free woman.  He's not proud of it, but he does admire her and they have intelligent conversations.  His connection with her will cause him pain and change who he is.

Belle is young woman living with an abusive father and brother.  Beulah (the black woman) is teaching her to read and that ends up in a beating that almost kills her.  In a desperate move to protect her, Jackson offers her marriage.

Ms. Bush always takes unlikely characters and puts them together in a fragile romance.  I really enjoy watching her characters dance around each otherHer men and woman are tough and opinionated and don't compromise easily; but they'll protect each until death.  

Since the author set this in the south right after the war, there are race epitaphs, violence, and a lot of hatred to go around.  This is a vital part of this story based on history, so I didn't find it offensive.  It did make me sad.

I truly enjoyed reading this story.  Why not give this historical romance a read and watch Jackson and his wife grow into a warm, loving relationship?

Holly will be awarding a $25 Amazon gift card to a randomly drawn commenter during the tour.

Follow the tour and comment; the more you comment, the better your chances of winning. The tour dates can be found here: 


Happy reading.
     

12 comments:

Mary Preston said...

WOW!! RECONSTRUCTING JACKSON sounds like a story that's going to be quite intense and memorable.

marypres(AT)gmail(DOT)com

Goddess Fish Promotions said...

Thank you for hosting

Holly Bush said...

Good morning Jo Ann! I'm so glad to be here and I hope your followers enjoy Reed Jackson. Thanks for the lovely review!

Holly Bush said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Andra Lyn said...

War is such a hard subject, no matter what era or war it was! Thanks for sharing!

andralynn7 AT gmail DOT com

Rita Wray said...

Thank you for the review, sounds like a good read.

Kit3247(at)aol(dot)com

Karen H said...

Holly Bush is a new-to-me author. I enjoyed reading about her book today and look forward to following her tour.

The years following the Civil War were probably more turbulent than the years of the war itself. There aren't too many stories out today that are set in that time frame. The book promises to be a good one.

Question for Holly: Your books are in one genre. Are there other genres in which you would you like to do more?

kareninnc at gmail dot com

Unknown said...

Sounds really interesting and unlike any romance I've read before which is a good thing. I love the idea of tackling a new historical romance, thanks for sharing

fencingromein at hotmail dot com

Holly Bush said...

Hello all and thanks for taking the time to take a look at Reconstructing Jackson. I think the years following the Civil War must have been very difficult. War is a hard subject, as Andra Lyn said.

It is very nice to meet new readers. To Karen H. - I also write women's fiction and will be releasing my first this fall. My second women's fiction is nearly done and will follow the first. Then I think I will write some more historical romance, as I've had lots of readers ask me for the stories of the heroine's sister from Train Station Bride and from the heroine's best friend from Romancing Olive.

Catherine Lee said...

Is this a multicultural romance? That would be unusual for a story set right after the Civil War. That would be quite a story. I look forward to learning more.
catherinelee100 at gmail dot com

Journey of a Bookseller said...

No, it's not a multi-cultural romance, just a friendship. Reed Jackson had grown up on a plantation that had slaves, so becoming friends with a freed slave was a real learning experience for him.

Chelsea B. said...

This was a really great review. I am looking forward to checking out this novel!

justforswag(AT)yahoo(DOT)com

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