Wednesday, September 18, 2013

My Review - The Invention of Sarah Cummings



THE INVENTION OF SARAH CUMMINGS is the third installment in the Avenue of Dreams series.  I’ve enjoyed this series from Olivia Newport, but I must say, at times I found myself more frustrated with Sarah Cummings then I was rooting for her.

Sarah Cummings is determined she will not live her life as a woman in service.  Her goal is to become a woman of society and find herself a husband that can afford her all that she thinks she deserves.  With her own invention of Serena Cuthbert-a daughter of society- she sets her sights on Bradley Townsend.  Now, all she has to do is juggle her job as parlor maid to the Banning household and time away to meet suave Mr. Townsend.  With the help of Lillie Wagner, Sarah begins to make inroads into society life.  But, managing her time and her deception is getting more complicated as time goes on.  To add to the multiple pretenses she has to balance, Simon Tewell, the director of the orphanage where Sarah grew up, is pursuing her both professionally and personally.  Though Sarah feels her heart stirred by Simon’s attention, the life of an orphanage director’s wife is not the life she has set her sights on.  But as time progresses Sarah realizes she might not be the only one keeping a secret.  Bradley Townsend-though showing his attention to “Serena”-is secretive as to where he is spending the majority of his time.  When faced with a choice, Sarah realizes to have all that Brad wants to offer her, might leave her rich in possessions but lacking the love she desires.

I have to say, Sarah Cummings was not my favorite heroines.  At times, she treated those around her with the same haughtiness that was directed at her as a maid.  You would think someone who was trying to break out of that role, would be more compassionate to those around her.  She did show some genuine compassion for Jane, one of the girls at the orphanage, but her scheming minimized my tolerance for her as a lead character.  Even in the end, though all ends well, it is only because she realized she was being strung along by Brad.  She didn’t make a choice out of deep seeded love.  Her decision was spurred on because all her calculations and manipulations were going to leave her lonely.  At least that is how I read it.  So, though I liked the Avenue of Dreams series, this was not my favorite book.

Book provided for review purposes.

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

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