Tuesday, November 19, 2013

Review - Dear Mr. Knightley

Dear Mr. Knightley
By Katherine Reay
Publisher: Thomas Nelson
Pub. Date: November 5th, 2013
ISBN: 978-1401689681
Pages: 336
Buy Link: http://ow.ly/qDEkp
Blog Tour: http://litfusegroup.com/author/kreay

Review:

I have to admit that I sometimes, well most the time, make my decision whether or not I'm going to review a book based on the book cover. If it isn't eye-catching, I normally look the other way. For the some odd reason when I received the email invitation to review Dear Mr. Knightley, the book cover image didn't upload correctly, so I scrolled down the email and read the book description. After reading that the main character was a book lover too, I had to review it.

In Dear Mr. Knightley, Samantha Moore (she goes by Sam) grew up an orphan and found herself drawn to the magical world of books written by classic authors, such as Austen, Dickens and Shakespeare. Her love of books leads her to become English major. She quotes from her favorite authors, which become annoying to her friends. At the age twenty-three, an anonymous benefactor going by the name Mr. Knightley offers to pay for her education at Northwest University's Medill School of Journalism. Sounds like a dream come true, but there is one little catch, Sam must write letters to the benefactor, detailing how her schooling is going.

Sam follows through with the letters, which at first they are basic, but since she doesn't know who the benefactor is, she opens up to him and reveals her true emotions. For her entire life she has shied away from the world by hiding behind books. Through these letters she can finally confront her problems and be free of them, maybe even find love.

Sam isn't the only person who is a fan of classic authors, as I could clearly tell Katherine Reay is heavily influenced by them by the way she wrote Dear. Mr. Knightley. For some strange reason, I thought the book would be a quirky comedy, but it was surprisingly heartfelt. Sam feels like a real person to me. Every since I was a kid I have hid myself from the world through books and movies, so I instantly connected with Sam! Overall, Dear Mr. Knightley is a beautifully written novel, in my opinion it’s a modern classic, and it is my favorite book from 2013. I highly recommend it.



*Disclaimer - I received a complimentary copy in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are my own. 

About the Author:


Katherine Reay has enjoyed a life-long affair with the works of Jane Austen and her contemporaries. After earning degrees in history and marketing from Northwestern University, she worked as a marketer for Proctor & Gamble and Sears before returning to school to earn her MTS. Her works have been published in "Focus on the Family" and the "Upper Room." Katherine currently lives with her husband and three children in Seattle. "Dear Mr. Knightley" is her first novel. Learn more about Katherine at: http://katherinereay.com/

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