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| A Lasting Impression |
by Tamera Alexander
Bethany House, 2011
Reviewed by Marian Baay
4½ stars ****
I’ve read all of Tamera Alexander’s books and really loved the western settings. It’s a complete different world that Tamera is painting in this book, but her writing is excellent, as always!
It’s shortly after the Civil War. Claire Laurent used to forge paintings for her father and ‘uncle’. Determined to start a new life she leaves the place that her ‘uncle’ has send her to. She gets a job at the Belmont Mansion as Adelicia Acklen's personal liaison. Claire and Mrs. Acklen both enjoy art. Claire didn’t say anything about the forgery and soon it becomes a burden.
In her position as liaison she's able to use her talents to paint children's toys and gift boxes. But Claire biggest desire is to paint real paintings and make a name for herself.
Sutton Monroe is working as a lawyer and is manager at Belmont. His father was killed in the war. The government threatens to take his family property. If that is going to happen then Sutton will loose everything he has.
He is working on a big case for a client who bought a forged painting with documents. They are trying to get after the person who is behind the forgeries. If he is able to win this case he’ll get a lot of money and is his future secure.
Claire and Sutton both live at Belmont and share the meals with Mrs. Acklen and her children. They fall in love, but there are some obstacles that needs to be removed before there can be a future for them together.
What will happen with their love if Sutton finds out about Claire’s past?
I really liked Claire’s character--she was sweet, lovely, and humble. Sutton was the real gentleman and Mrs. Acklen was also a great character. I loved to see how she and Claire bonded. The servants--except for Mrs. Routh--were very nice too! I loved them all!
I enjoyed reading this book and looked a lot at the cover while reading, and tried to imagine myself in such a beautiful dress!
Although I prefer the settings of Tamera’s previous books, this book too is excellently written!
In Dutch:
Ik heb alle boeken van Tamera Alexander gelezen en heb genoten van de western settings. In dit boek schildert Tamera een geheel andere wereld, maar haar schrijfstijl is zoals gewoonlijk geweldig!
Het verhaal speelt af kort na de Burgeroorlog.
Claire vervalste schilderijen in opdracht van haar vader en ‘oom’. Ze is van plan om een nieuw leven te beginnen en verlaat de plaats waar haar oom haar naartoe gestuurd heeft. Ze vindt werk in het Belmont herenhuis. Ze werkt daar als Adelicia Acklen’s persoonlijke assistente. Claire en Mevr. Acklen houden allebei van kunst. Claire vertelt niet dat ze betrokken was bij het maken van vervalste schilderijen en al snel wordt dit een zware last voor haar.
In haar positie als persoonlijke assistente van Mevr. Acklen beschildert Claire kinderspeelgoed en geschenkdoosjes voor gasten. Maar Claire’s grootste droom is om echte schilderijen te schilderen en om naam te maken voor zichzelf.
Sutton Monroe is advocaat en manager van Belmont. Zijn vader is tijdens de oorlog vermoord en de overheid dreigt de grond van zijn familie af te nemen. Als dat gebeurt dan zal Sutton alles kwijt raken.
Hij werkt nu aan een grote zaak voor een cliënt die een vervalst schilderij met certificaten gekocht heeft. Ze proberen er achter te komen wie er achter het vervalsen zit. Als Sutton deze zaak kan winnen dan verdient hij een smak met geld en is zijn toekomst zeker.
Claire en Sutton wonen beiden op Belmont en nemen deel aan de maaltijden met Mevr. Acklen en haar kinderen. Ze worden verliefd, maar er zijn een aantal obstakels die uit de weg geruimd moeten worden voordat er een toekomst voor hen mogelijk is.
Wat zal er gebeuren als Sutton achter Claire’s verleden komt?
Ik vond Claire’s personage geweldig. Ze was lief en nederig. Sutton was de echte gentleman.
Mevr. Acklen was ook een aangename personage. Ik vond het geweldig om te zien hoe zij en Claire aan elkaar hechtten.
Ik vond de bedienden ook allemaal geweldig, behalve dan Mevr. Routh.
Ik heb echt genoten van dit boek en heb vaak naar de voorkant gekeken en probeerde mezelf voor te stellen in zo’n jurk!
Persoonlijk gaat mijn voorkeur uit naar de settings van Tamera’s voorgaande boeken, maar zoals gezegd is de schrijfstijl in dit boek geweldig!
GIVEAWAYS: Tamera is also doing a giveaway for us this week in addition to our giveaways of a book of choice plus one Tamera Alexander paperback that we are giving away ourselves--grand total of THREE giveaways this week. Leave a comment and your email to be entered in the contest. *International winners ebook only.
QUESTION: Do you also speak a second language?
Wow, a review in two languages!! Go Marian! Your readers are going to learn some Dutch now, very cool :)
ReplyDeleteLoved your comments, Marian, the characters in the story definitely capture the reader's attention (based on how you described them).
I also pictured myself wearing the dress from the cover, that's amazing!! This is one of those books that keeps you mesmerized by the cover, it's just so beautiful :)
Great review, Marian! Hugs and blessings to you and your lovely co-bloggers :)
WOW! Marian. Talking two languages? How smart! I think I would really like Tamera's book. Please enter my name. Maxie ( mac262@me.com )
ReplyDeleteHey KARA, so nice to see your lovely face first thing this morning. I think you were also the last one I talked to last night. Cool!! :)
ReplyDeleteThanks for stopping by and blessings to you, my friend!
MAXIE, always nice to see you stop by. Do you also speak another language? Good luck in the draw!
ReplyDeleteLoved reading your great review MARIAN!! The characters were just so beautifully and brilliantly written weren't they?! And the history behind this epic story only made it more interesting. How I would love to visit all these places!
ReplyDeleteThanks TAMERA for such enormous reading pleasure. So looking forward to equally enjoying To Whisper Her Name!
Thanks NOELA! I wrote this review a year ago. Since then I have read almost 100 other books, but I do remember this story very well. I only remember the best ones. :)
ReplyDeletewould love to win. Thanks so much for the dutch words, trying to say them is another thing. lol
ReplyDeleteI was waiting for the question to be posted :)
ReplyDeleteI speak spanish, but still learning to be fluent with it.
Me encantada en este blog y los mujeres aqui son como mis hermanas. Bendiciones y amor a ti mis amigas!
Don't know if spelling and grammar is totally accurate, but it says:
I delight in this blog and the women here are like my sisters. Blessings and love to you my friends!
What a blessing it is to speak more than one language!
Kara
wman4jcATaolDOTcom
Great review!
ReplyDeleteI took French for 4 years in high school but never was too good at it.
campbellamyd at gmail dot com
lol PAT, if you win you'll get an English edition of Tamera's book. :)
ReplyDeleteKARA, I've had a few Spanish lessons, but I don't remember much of it anymore. I also learned French and German. I won't be able to speak French if necessary, but I think I can make myself understood in German.
ReplyDeleteBlessings!
Thank you AMY! I'm not good at French either. The only thing I remember is: Je ne parle pas francais. ;)
ReplyDeleteGreat review, my lovely Dutch cohort! That gown is out of this world gorgeous -- Tamera has the best covers! This is the only one of hers I haven't read yet, but it sounds wonderful!
ReplyDeleteGreat review... as always! Love that cover... and yes the gown! It's my favorite color of BLUE... love it!
ReplyDeleteMARIAN impressive review...loved that you posted it in English and Dutch. MARIAN indrukwekkende beoordeling ... ik vond dat je het geplaatst in het Engels en het Nederlands. (Yes I googled this. lol) Can't wait to get started on Tamera's books. :)
ReplyDeleteThank you my dear cohort DIANA! :) You're right - I also love all Tamera's covers!
ReplyDeleteThanks LADETTE, I think we all love that dress!
ReplyDeleteTERESA, thank you for your kind and Dutch words. ;) It's great to see mom is also trying to speak a bit Dutch!
ReplyDeleteMARIAN if I could hear my girl talk maybe I could learn to speak it too. :)
ReplyDeleteI took a year of spanish, but can probably only remember a dozen words or so. You have to continually use a second language I think to make it stick=). Tamara's books are great in any language I'm sure!
ReplyDeletePatty
pattymh2000(at)yahoo(dot)com
I will record my voice for you soon, TERESA, and teach you a couple of words. :) Also how to pronounce my name in Dutch.
ReplyDeletePATTY, I learned English in school, but didn't use it for a couple of years and didn't remember much of it anymore when I decided I wanted to read English books. Of course I remembered the basics, but most words were long forgotten. I have teached myself to read and write English again.
ReplyDeleteSo yes, you're right that you have to use a second language to make it stick.
My first two Tamera books I read in Dutch and they were great indeed!
I can speak some Amish and also can do sign language. I worked for the Amish and picked up some from there and then my brother in law is deaf, so I learned sign language. I would love to learn other languages too! makeighleekyleigh at yahoo.com
ReplyDeleteI do not speak another language, but I would really like to be fluent in Spanish :)
ReplyDeleteThank you for the chance to win!
Beth
bharbin07[at]gmail[dot]com
I do not speak enough Spanish to live in a Spanish speaking country, but I know enough to survive (where's the bathroom and I am hungry!)
ReplyDeleteGreat review Marian!! As always. The cover is fantastic. Haven't seen one of Tamera's that isn't. I only speak English but have a smattering [and I do mean a smattering] in Spanish & German. Would love to learn a different language--I'll get to it some of these days. Count me in. Blessings! Darlene
ReplyDeleteI only speak English, but which I was fluent in Spanish. I took French in high school, but can't speak it.
ReplyDeletemay_dayzee[at]yahoo[dot]com
I'm in my 4th year of German right now(in high school) and I love it! I'm not fluent, but I can understand a lot. Dutch is similar to German so I understood a teeny bit of it.
ReplyDeletemarissamehresman(at)aol(dot)com
hi MEGAN, I am often amazed when I see people using sign language. Cool!
ReplyDeleteBETH, who knows...maybe someday you will speak Spanish. :)
ReplyDeleteSUSAN, that are the most important things to ask in another language - lol
ReplyDeleteGood luck in the drawing!
Well DARLENE, if you ever going to visit Holland I'll teach you some Dutch. :) You're entered!
ReplyDeleteKAY, I think French is difficult and sounds so different than any other language. I couldn't remember much of it and was always glad if I could remember it long enough to pass a test. ;)
ReplyDeleteMegan, I would love to communicate in sign language :) I've noticed for me that I'm mostly motivated to learn a new language when I love a person and English isn't an option to communicate with them.
ReplyDeleteMarian, that's so amazing that you learned English on your own, WOW! Writing the language is always harder than speaking it, you're amazing girl :)
Susan, you've learned the two most important things to know if you're ever in a spanish country and it's a start!
Donde esta el bano? Tengo hambre.
Das ist schön, MARISSA! :) Dutch and German are a bit similar, but German is more difficult I think - spoken by a Dutch girl... ;)
ReplyDeleteThank you KARA. In my case writing is easier, because I learned the language by reading it. I don't practice speaking much, so sometimes I pronounce words completely wrong, but that makes someone else laugh out loud, so I don't care... as long as they tell me how to pronounce it right. ;)
ReplyDeleteYes I do speak two languages. I grew up speaking Pennsylvania dutch until I went to school. It made travel in Germany and Switzerland a bit easier. I always thought it would be fun to go there to work for a year - maybe someday :)
ReplyDelete- Jen
jking23(at)kent(dot)edu
Hey, that's cool JEN! Good luck in the drawing. :)
ReplyDeleteHow fun to have a review posted in two languages.
ReplyDeleteI speak spanish and tried learning Italian several years ago. I wasn't successful at grasping Italian in the short period I learned it but I can remember a few phrases.
I see Spanish is a very popular language for Americans. I only learned a couple of phrases, but don't remember much. When I was young I always wanted to speak Italian, but I never learned it.
ReplyDeleteNo! No! marian. I don't. Now days I do good to remember what word I want in my English." My Remember is broken, and my Forgetter works better. LOL Too true.
ReplyDeleteI have those days too, that I can't remember the words - English & Dutch both. I hope your Remember will start working better soon. Blessings!
ReplyDeleteI only speak English, however, since I travel with my hubby for his job and it frequently includes other countries, we usually try to learn the basics, like "Hello", "Please", "Thank you", etc. another good one is "Check Please". I have learned that if I ask for "Toilet", most countries usually know what I want. Restroom or Bathroom don't usually work, but sometimes WC. LOL I have not read any of your books yet, but would love the opportunity to win one, so I can try it--and probably get hooked. LOL My email is vmarney {at} hotmail {dot} com
ReplyDeleteVICKY, you had me LOL about the WC comment. Yes, most people in several countries know what that is. :) Good luck in the drawing!
ReplyDeletelove this book cover. thanks for chance to win a copy
ReplyDeleteABreading4fun [at] gmail [dot] com
APPLE BLOSSOM, good luck!
ReplyDeleteExcellent review.
ReplyDeleteI took spanish in high school but I still can't speak the language very well.
Katie J. (johnsonk133@yahoo.com)
Thank you KATIE. Good luck in the drawing!
ReplyDeleteWould love to win!!! makeighleekyleigh at yahoo.com
ReplyDeleteGood luck, MEGAN.
ReplyDelete¿tiene un baño para mí?
ReplyDeleteWhile at a mission base in Mexico, we were taken for an "on our own evening in Monterrey." There were three together in our group. We saw a Domino Pizza sign and went there for dinner. Wanting to wash my hands, I asked in my very best Spanish! I'd practiced over and over to myself, "¿tiene un baño para mí?" I was sooo pleased with myself. I was led upstairs near an employees' break area. Over a door was a sign, "Bathroom." Going to a shoe store I asked for a pair of boots; "veintiséis y medio." The salesman grinned and said, "¡ah, largo!" holding his hands apart. After I was "Jestering" ~*~ gesturing with "vocabulary words," he spoke English he learned "living in Chicago."
I would like to be part of the drawing opportunity for Tamera Alexander books! Kathleen
lanehillhouse[at]centurylink[dot]net
Funny KATHLEEN! I wouldn't know how to ask for the bathroom in Spanish! :)
ReplyDeleteGood luck in the drawing!