Book Review- In the Shadow of the River by Ann H. Gabhart

 

I wanted to love this book.  I've liked other books by this author. The setting is perfect.  The details of life on a showboat in the late 1800s is right up my alley.  Many years ago, I spent quite a bit of time researching 1800s traveling drama troupes, not on showboats, but still, it was a fun world to revisit.  Many of the characters were interesting to me, and I felt that the beginning of the book was strong.  However, the novel kept dwelling on the detail of Gabe falling in love with Jacci when she was 5.  Since he was 13 at that time, it was just really creepy to me.  I couldn't get over that, and it ruined the romance for me.  The relationship between Jacci's parents was weird, too, and not fully believable.  The mystery was interesting to me, but not really hard to guess.  However, the historical setting and life on the river kept me reading to the end. 

I received a copy of this book from the publisher, Revell, for the purpose of writing a review, but all opinions are my own.