When it comes to Melanie Dobson books, I’ve admitted that I’m a bit biased. I love each one of her books without fail. She’s written many Love Finds You books, including Homestead, Iowa, Amana, Iowa, Liberty, Indiana, and Nazareth, Pennsylvania (review coming soon!). She also authored The Silent Order, one of my all-time favorites and an award-winner.

I’m also beyond blessed to be in a critique group with this amazing woman (and three other incredible women). Love Finds You in Mackinac Island has had a special place in my heart ever since I saw the first chapter in it’s “rough” form. (Nothing Melanie writes is ever that “rough.”)

Description:

It’s the height of the Gilded Age, but Elena Bissette’s family has lost most of its fortune.

The Bissettes still own a home on fashionable Mackinac Island, and they spend summers there in hopes of introducing Elena to a wealthy suitor. Quickly tiring of the extravagant balls at the Grand Hotel, she spends her days walking along the island’s rugged coastline. There she meets Chase, a young fisherman who invites her to watch the ships from an abandoned lighthouse.

The two begin to meet there in secret, hoping to solve a decades-old mystery. Meanwhile, Elena’s mother contrives introductions between Elena and the island’s most eligible bachelor, an elusive millionaire named Chester Darrington. When Elena’s two worlds unexpectedly collide, she will be in for the surprise of her life.

My Review:

I read Love Finds You in Mackinac Island just before Melanie sent it off to her editors and when Melanie gave me a hard copy of the book, I wasn’t sure I necessarily needed to read it again to review it. But I flipped open the first page, and then I devoured another, and then another. This is the way of Melanie Dobson novels.

Elena & Chase’s tale is rapturing, along with the history of this quaint island that is still so untouched by the contemporary world around it.

Love Finds You in Mackinac Island challenges the issues of class, fortune and family expectations. All the while, Elena is an ernest, lovely character you want to know more. Chase, though pragmatic and seemingly aloof, is a hero everyone will root for. He strives to make the world a better place and surprises the reader a time or two.

As with all the Love Finds You books, you walk away knowing a bit more about the town or region, but with this story, Dobson plants fascinating facts from a time when America was truly coming into its own.

There is no better summer escape. Fans of the Guilded Era should take note—this is not a story to miss.

Look for this after July 1st – Amazon, Christianbook.com, Barnes&Noble. Check out Melanie’s website and if you enjoy historical tales with genuine characters, sweet romances and a lot of heart, pick up any of her other books! 

Disclaimer: I was not provided a copy of this book in exchange for my review, but I did receive a copy from my dear friend Melanie and plan on shamelessly promoting the book. This is posted to comply with FTC Blogger Guidelines.