No Small Storm

The beginning, with a predicament for both the hero and heroine, engages the reader and pulls them right in. The ending with the storm, based on the real storm of 1815, was excellent and suspenseful. In the middle, though, was some unclear motivations and some characters incapable of seeing what was right under their nose in terms of solutions to their issues. I almost wanted to lay the book aside when the hero up and walked out on his job without so much as a by-your-leave, moving away while Mem was gone, wasting money and not having a plan for his future and ultimately putting his sons's life at risk.

The biggest pluses were a strong sense of geography, with the location in 1815 Rhode Island, and a solid portrayal of Federalist era times and habits.