Reconstructing Jackson by Holly Bush

1867 . . . Southern lawyer and Civil War veteran, Reed Jackson, returns to his family’s plantation in a wheelchair. His father deems him unfit, and deeds the Jackson holdings, including his intended bride, to a younger brother. Angry and bitter, Reed moves west to Fenton, Missouri, home to a cousin with a successful business, intending to start over.

Belle Richards, a dirt poor farm girl aching to learn how to read, cleans, cooks and holds together her family’s meager property. A violent brother and a drunken father plot to marry her off, and gain a new horse in the bargain. But Belle’s got other plans, and risks her life to reach them.

Reed is captivated by Belle from their first meeting, but wheelchair bound, is unable to protect her from violence. Bleak times will challenge Reed and Belle's courage and dreams as they forge a new beginning from the ashes of war and ignorance.

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About the Author:

Holly Bush was born in western Pennsylvania to two avid readers. There was not a room in her home that did not hold a full bookcase. She worked in the hospitality industry, owning a restaurant for twenty years and recently worked as the sales and marketing director in the hospitality/tourism industry and is credited with building traffic to capacity for a local farm tour, bringing guests from twenty-two states, booked two years out. Holly has been a marketing consultant to start-up businesses and has done public speaking on the subject.

Holly has been writing all of her life and is a voracious reader of a wide variety of fiction and non-fiction, particularly political and historical works. She has written four romance novels, all set in the U.S. West in the mid 1800’s. She frequently attends writing conferences, and has always been a member of a writer’s group.

Holly is a gardener, a news junkie, and was the vice-president of her local library board for years. She loves to spend time near the ocean and is the proud mother of two daughters and the wife of a man more than a few years her junior.

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Follow the whole tour for this novel here: http://www.pumpupyourbook.com/2012/12/08/pump-up-your-book-presents-reconstructing-jackson-virtual-book-publicity-tour/

My Thoughts:

The first thing I noticed about this novel was the cover - it has to grab me, peak my interest and make me want to jump in and this one really did!  I love old photos, and a picture is worth a thousand words.  This image on the cover told me that a great story awaited me!

I love books that are set in the antebellum south, it is a time period that I love in American history and I find fascinating.  This author takes you to the time and place in such a way that you don't even realize it is 2013 and you are stuck in your living room with laundry and dishes awaiting you!

I loved the characters, Reed and Belle grab you from the jump and really do keep you interested throughout the novel.  Their heartache as they learn and grow from their past and into their future is inspiring and really does make you root for them as a reader.

I also loved the writing style - this is my first Holly Bush novel but it sure won't be my last!