An Appalachian Summer

by Ann H. Gabhart

In 1933 Louisville, Kentucky, even the ongoing economic depression cannot keep Piper Danson's parents from insisting on a debut party. After all, their fortune came through the market crash intact, and they've picked out the perfect suitor for their daughter. Braxton Crandall can give her the kind of life she's used to. The only problem? This is not the man--or the life--she really wants.

When Piper gets the opportunity to volunteer as a horseback Frontier Nursing courier in the Appalachian Mountains for the summer, she jumps at the chance to be something other than a dutiful daughter or a kept wife in a loveless marriage. The work is taxing, the scenery jaw-droppingly gorgeous, and the people she meets along the way open up a whole new world to her. The longer she stays, the more an advantageous marriage slips from her grasp. But something much more precious--true love--is drawing ever closer.

Bestselling author Ann H. Gabhart invites you into the storied hills of Eastern Kentucky to discover what happens when one intrepid young woman steps away from the restrictive past into a beautiful, wide-open future.

• ISBN10: 0800729285
• ISBN13: 9780800729288
• Publish Date: 14 August 2020 (first published 30 June 2020)
• Publish Status: Active
• Publish Country: US
• Publisher: Baker Publishing Group
• Imprint: Revell, a division of Baker Publishing Group
• Format: Paperback
• Pages: 368
• Language: English

Reviews

[phyllish]

From the ballrooms to the backwoods

I have decided that it must be impossible to write about the Appalachian Mountains without infusing your story with the artistry, imagery, and music of nature. Or so it appears from the ones I have read. An Appalachian Summer continues this tradition with a vivid portrayal of the beauty of this place, along with the people and critters that inhabit it.

I loved being immersed in this world of the past on the verge of becoming the future. Modern and yet so foreign. A world where children are passed from stranger to stranger to bring them to a hospital for care. A world where women have the vote and yet are not expected to work outside the home. A world where the backwoods are still foreign and a little frightening.

The characters were wonderful! From spunky Piper and her aunt Truda to the arrogant Braxton Crandall (honestly, you can't just call him Braxton!) to the gentle and playful Jamie to the colorful people of the mountains. They came alive and worked their way into my heart. I especially loved when Jamie was unexpectedly chaperoning little Thomas until he could be reunited with his family. The fact Jamie would have undertaken such a responsibility and the way he entertained the frightened young boy was heartwarming and fun!

The Frontier Nursing association was fascinating. To have young women out in an area where strangers were treated with suspicion and greeted with guns, traveling by themselves bringing medicine and messages to care for the women and children. Wow! And even better, this part of the story is not fiction. While several births in the story were witnessed and described, the detail was appropriate and still in good taste.

One of my favorite aspects of An Appalachian Summer was the faith that was such an integral part of some of the characters. The kind of faith that couldn't help but come out in their speech as they encouraged Piper to look beyond her actions into her heart to be certain that her relationship with the Lord was not mere knowledge. This was a quiet undercurrent of the story, a sure foundation that didn't draw unnecessary attention to itself, and yet the story would not have been as strong without it.

Read my full review at Among the Reads


I was given a copy of this book. I was not required to give a favorable review nor was any money received for this review. All comments and opinions are my own.