Carrie Fancett Pagels

A tangled Gilded Age love story unfolds against the backdrop of beautiful Mackinac Island, encircled by azure waters of Lake Michigan and Lake Huron.

Maude's Mooring

My Heart Belongs on Mackinac Island

Sheila Goicea

This full review can be viewed on my blog along with others at: Shesgoingbookcrazy.com

I received this copy from the publisher via NetGalley, in exchange for an honest review.

Living on an upscale island that is deserted for half of the year can be a difficult location for anyone to grow up in. Maude Wellings, the daughter of a man who had inherited an upscale inn on the island, desires to follow her familial female predecessors and become a business woman. Trying to prove her worth, she serves at the Grand Hotel, disguised as a maid. 

While there, she meets Ben Steffans---also posing under a fake name---who is a reporter. Traveling to the island, he hopes to uncover a story on men trying to meet and marry wealthy women at the hotel solely for their fortune.

The tale of the island girl, and Detroit reporter weave together beneath lies, deceit, and second-chances. 

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This book is part of the My Heart Belongs series, but can easily be read as a stand-alone, in my opinion. Set around historical settings, these romance tales are unique in location and time frame. This book was set on the amazing Mackinac Island, known for its amazing lakeside views, the Grand Hotel, and upscale living. Unfortunately, my appetite for atmospheric detail was not satiated. I wanted more of the island itself, life, and culture in detail. While the island wasn't the main focus of the story, it still is hard to deny such an iconic place more page time that what it was given. I can't ignore that there were some dollops given here and there, bur they managed to disguise themselves more than they should have beneath the romance itself. 

The plot is centered around an unlikely romance between to people from very different backgrounds. While I appreciate the fact that this was a Christian fiction, I couldn't help but feel that it was not the main focus. Allusions to faith and God were few and far between, and stuck in at odd angles which made the text choppy and in-congruent. God seemed to be more of an afterthought. It simply didn't meet my expectations in that area. 

One aspect that I enjoy was the era in which this was set, because social norms can be quite laughable. The lack of communication between characters due to propriety during that time makes the entire problem of this book. Every answer given is more indirect than the last, and only causes more confusion for the characters, if anything. This can be observed between both the main character, Maude Wellings, and her soon-to-be love interest Bob, disguised under the name of Friedrich. Gossip was the main form of communication, so many things were discovered via hearsay and speculation. 

I also very much appreciated the author's ability and ingenuity with combining fiction with non-fiction. She took personal experiences, historical facts, and fictitious plots to fabricate this tale. (All of the details are provided at the end of the book in the Author Notes. 

Overall, this was a decent read. The details I described above are my opinion only---and probably due to the fact that I just love Mackinac Island. If you haven't been there, I'd highly recommend that you visit. I mean, the only transportation is by horse and carriage, or by bike, still today! It's very nostalgic, with a LOT of history, and is a beautiful setting for a story. 



Vulgarity: None.
Sexual content: Kissing only.
Violence. Zilch. 

2.5 stars.

A big thanks to the publisher for providing me with a copy of this book!

My Heart Belongs on Mackinac Island Maude's Mooring

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