Review: Castle on the Rise by Kristy Cambron

Castle on the Rise

by Kristy Cambron

Publisher: Thomas Nelson

Pages: 384

Format: eARC

Buy the Book: Amazon

Goodreads:  When Laine Forrester travels to France to attend her longtime friend's vineyard wedding, she expects to find a bride on the brink of a fairy-tale life. But after a series of unforeseen setbacks--a devastating diagnosis, a castle restoration put on hold, and the emergence of deep-seated family dynamics that threaten to derail the new couple's fledgling marriage--it seems the storybook life Laine had imagined for her friend--and once, for herself--is suddenly crumbling before her eyes.

With hopes of resurrecting a happy ending for one of them, Laine throws support behind her friend and agrees to accompany the couple to the groom's family home in Ireland, where the merging of a mysterious inheritance, long-buried wounds, and a fractured family set out to upend the trip from the start. It's in the unlikely corners of a historic Dublin pub, and across the wide-open moors bordering Ireland's majestic Wicklow Mountains, that Laine is slowly drawn in by the land and the people, sparking hope for something she never imagined possible: the courage to heal. But with secrets of her own--and a heart afraid to trust again--Laine must determine how much she's willing to risk in mending the broken places within herself, and whether she believes that even through the depths of our pain, a beautiful story can emerge.

Kritters Thoughts:  The second in a series and this is one of those series where most of the story is self contained from one book to another, but I would really suggest starting at the beginning.  There are characters and things that have some backstory that take place in book one that you really need for this book.  

To also reiterate what I said in my review of book one, this is one of those books with three storylines and you may want a piece of notebook paper to take some notes so you can keep each of the storylines straight with all of the characters.  

I didn't love this book as much as book one.  With a limited knowledge of the history of Ireland and its upheavals, I was lost a bit during this book and had a hard time following what was happening to the characters.  I had to do a bit more google searching in this book more so than my usual for historical fiction reading.  It halted my reading flow and just stunted my enjoyment.  

I liked the characters in this story and of course the way the author described the setting was just magical.  This book made me want to book a trip to Ireland real soon!

I am excited to read and review the latest in this series, the third one on October 29th.  


Rating: definitely a good read, but can't read two in a row

Ebook 2019 Challenge: 45 out of 100

Disclosure of Material Connection:  I received one copy of this book free of charge from Netgalley.  I was not required to write a positive review in exchange for receipt of the book; rather, the opinions expressed in this review are my own.