Persuasion : A Latter-Day Tale - Rebecca H. Jamison

Summary:  "I saw him.  We spoke.  Now I have nothing to worry about.  We can treat each other as old friends...

But all the logic in my brain can't change my feelings.  Eight years might as well be eight days.  I still love him."

When Anne broke off her engagement seven years ago, she thought she'd never see Neil Wentworth again.  But when Neil's brother buys the house she grew up in, it seems fate has other plans in store, and Anne is woefully unprepared for the roller coaster of emotions that come when Neil returns and starts dating her younger friend.

Convinced that Neil could no longer have strong feelings for her, Anne pushes away all thoughts of the past.  But when the handsome man she's been dating decides he can't live without her, Anne must come to terms with her past.

Fans of Persuasion will love this fast-paced, modern version of Jane Austen's most romantic novel.  (Book given free for review, summary from back of the book, and image from http://cedarfort.com/)

My Review:  Who can pass up an adaptation of a Jane Austen classic? It has been a while since I've read Persuasion, but that didn't change my appreciation for this version of the story.  This adaptation of Persuasion is heavily influenced by the LDS faith. While that doesn't change anything for me, I figure readers who aren't members of the LDS church would probably want to know up front that it does influence the writing and story. 

Initially, I thought I was going into another sappy/fun love story.  What took me by surprise was the intense situation, particularly the threat of harm in the climax.  I didn't mean to stay up until 11:30pm on a school night, but I couldn't stop mid-conflict to fall asleep.  There were some aspects to the story that I felt could have been fleshed out--specifically why Anne is such a doormat for her family, which is explained but not much and not until the very end.  Otherwise, it was a fast read, a great replay in a new form of a classic novel.  I highly recommend it to anyone who likes clean LDS romance.

To read more about this book, visit the author's website: http://www.rebeccahjamison.com

Rating: 4 stars

For the sensitive reader: Nothing to worry about. Squeaky clean.

Sum it up:  A current twist on a classic tale with an LDS spin.