The Writing Desk
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"Tenley Roth's first book was a runaway bestseller. Now that her second book is due, she's locked in fear. Can she repeat her earlier success or is she a fraud who has run out of inspiration? With pressure mounting from her publisher, Tenley is weighted with writer's block. But when her estranged mother calls asking Tenley to help her through chemotherapy, she packs up for Florida where she meets handsome furniture designer Jonas Sullivan and discovers the story her heart's been missing. A century earlier, another woman wrote at the same desk with hopes and fears of her own. Born during the Gilded Age, Birdie Shehorn is the daughter of the old money Knickerbockers. Under the strict control of her mother, her every move is decided ahead of time, even whom she'll marry. But Birdie has dreams she doesn't know how to realize. She wants to tell stories, write novels, make an impact on the world. When she discovers her mother has taken extreme measures to manipulate her future, she must choose between submission and security or forging a brand new way all on her own. Tenley and Birdie are form two very different worlds, but fate has bound them together in a way time cannon erase."--Amazon.com
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What a great, well-woven story about two women in two different centuries who grapple with being writers and with being in love. In some books, quickly shifting timelines can leave the reader wondering where they are. Not the case here. Hauck does a great job of cluing in the reader when there is a time shift.
This was a book that I couldn't wait to know what happened next. And I couldn't guess either, though I enjoyed trying. Tenley Roth, a modern day novelist has had her debut novel hit it big. A century earlier, Birdie Shehorn, born in the Gilded Age, only dreams of writing her own stories. Her family assumes letting her go to college was to liberal enough and, particularly her mother, now insist she marry, have children, and put aside her dreams of being a writer.
Anyone who is a writer can identify with Birdie and understands why giving up on writing is not an option. They can also identify with Tenley, is has a serious case of writer's block and her next book due soon.
It isn't only Birdie who is at odds with her mother. Tenley's absentee mom, in failing health, is requesting Tenley's help though she was never there for Tenley in her childhood. But, Tenley relents, going to her mother's place in Florida instead of going to Paris with her fiancé, Holt, which doesn't help their relationship.
At Tenley's mother's house, she finds an old writing desk that belonged to Birdie. She also finds Jonas, a real hunky distraction she tries to not to be attracted to.
The characters and the storyline are both well drawn in this novel. The angst is real. I didn't realize it was a “Christian” novel until well into the book. It wasn't overdone, thankfully, and it was nice to see spiritual depth in the characters, even if some of the beliefs were a little trite.
I would definitely recommend this book to anyone who loves the Gilded Age or loves to write.
