Clarissa's Conflict

My Heart Belongs in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania

Clarissa's Conflict

Murray Pura

Clarissa lives the life of a respectable daughter in historical Gettysburg. But at night she helps lead people through a section of the underground railroad. During her travels she meets a man named Liberty who wears a hood to conceal his identity. During the day she courts the attention of a scholar named Kyle that her parents approve of for their only child. 

I was so excited to get this book to review. I love reading historical fiction, especially stories about the underground railroad. I've really enjoyed the other books in this series. The story was well written, flowed well, and really highlighted some of the intense moments during that time period. The heroine though was enough to make me want to quit reading. She was spoiled, way too forward for the time period, and hateful. The seemingly two sides of her personality didn't mesh well at all. She professed to be a Christian, but repeatedly flew off into a temper, was extremely judgmental and was always jumping to erroneous conclusions, she was loose with her affections, repeatedly disobeyed her parents, and wasn't very kind. I read a lot of historical fiction and just didn't feel like she was a true representation of a female for that time period. I have no idea why a guy would even be interested. Because of this, I found the main male character to be weak and spineless, even when you find out his "secret" that wasn't so secret. I would have been ok if she had ever come to realize her flaws and actively worked to correct them.  But she blamed it all on her red hair and constantly made excuses for her behavior. Even when she did apologize, she didn't seem sincere. As a parent, I found her in serious need of discipline.

In conclusion, good story base, but not no endearing or redeeming main characters.

I received a copy of this book from Barbour Publishing. All thoughts expressed are my own.