Carved in Stone (#01 in The Blackstone Legacy Series)

Elizabeth Camden puts a lot of research into her books and I always learn something new about the time period. I love the references about researching and finding treatments for the various diseases suffered by the poor. I was fascinated reading about how Patrick's mother was diagnosed with tetanus and the experimental treatments they gave her. I loved the Blackstone family mystery wrapped up in the romance and the struggle of two worlds colliding. Very entertaining to read!

A new series I am looking forward to reading. I was wary of the character development at the start. Gwen and Patrick's romance started off very quick and despite their ages, their conduct seemed a little immature. However, as circumstances changed so did their relationship, into one that is beautifully developed. There is definitely lots of ground for future books in this series. I am looking forward to reading about Natalia and her spunky personality in the next instalment.

Well written to be sure, however I didn't appreciate the disturbing plot of kidnapping and abuse. Most of the Blackstone family seem to be unsavoury characters, I do hope the future novels in this series have those characters grow and change. The Christian content in this book is decidedly Catholic.

I've always enjoyed the way Elizabeth Camden has been able to take lesser-known historical events and turn them into fascinating and unique novels. Her novels usually manage to engage me from the first page, but this one took a little longer to get going. Initially, it looked like being a fairly standard rich """"old-money"""" meets poor immigrant Irish . . . something I've read before. \\n\\nBut the story changed at around the one-quarter mark when we (and Patrick) realise Mick Malone's memoir isn't the point. Yes, the story is an opposites-attract romance. Instead, the backdrop is the upcoming creation of US Steel, a merger which formed the world's largest corporation, controlling around two-thirds of US steel production. It's also about what really happened to William Blackstone. \\n\\nOnce I understood what the story was about, I was hooked. The combination of excellent characters, romance, mystery, and suspense made it hard for me to stop reading (so I didn't). The story took several unexpected plot turns, and it delivered on all of them. Carved in Stone is the first book in Elizabeth Camden's new Blackstone Legacy series, and I'm looking forward to seeing which of Gwen's many cousins is the focus of the next novel. This is a must-read for Elizabeth Camden fans, and recommended for anyone who likes historical accuracy in their historical fiction. \\n\\nThanks to Bethany House and NetGalley for providing a free ebook for review.