A Heart Adrift (2022)

About the Book

Book: A Heart Adrift

Author: Laura Frantz

Genre: Historical Christian Romance

Release Date: January 4, 2022

It is 1755, and the threat of war with France looms over colonial York, Virginia. Chocolatier Esmee Shaw is fighting her own battle of the heart. Having reached her twenty-eighth birthday, she is reconciled to life alone after a decade-old, failed love affair from which she’s never quite recovered. But she longs to find something worthwhile to do with her life.

Captain Henri Lennox has returned to port after a lengthy absence, intent on completing the lighthouse in the dangerous Chesapeake Bay, a dream he once shared with Esmee. But when the colonial government asks him to lead a secret naval expedition against the French, his future is plunged into uncertainty.

Will a war and a cache of regrets keep them apart, or can their shared vision and dedication to the colonial cause heal the wounds of the past? Bestselling and award-winning author Laura Frantz whisks you away to a time fraught with peril–on the sea and in the heart–in this redemptive, romantic story.

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My Thoughts

I genuinely am at a loss for words. If you know me, you know that rarely happens. But I find myself, after having read the final page of A Heart Adrift by Laura Frantz, completely unsure how to write this review. This story is masterful … absolutely masterful. At one point, I looked at my husband and told him, “I would read her [Mrs. Frantz’s] grocery list.” He laughed at me, but I’m serious. Frantz is such a stellar writer that I would pay money to read her grocery list. Every time Frantz picks up a pen, magic happens. God has surely gifted her as an elite storyteller, and this may be the most evident in her recent stunning novel. There is not one single thing I could critique except for the fact that the story ends. And I so did not want it to end!

I love when a book touches on a topic that is super relevant to the reader in the moment. It makes the book feel like a personal conversation between the author and reader. That’s how I feel about A Heart Adrift. Two topics — grief and idolatry — jumped off the pages and forced me to take a good, long look at myself. You wouldn’t think the two topics go together, but they do. Over the past few years, I have dealt with an insane amount of death and grief. I miss people who are dear to me every single day. And, yes, while the hurt and the pain changes every day, it never quite goes away. Over the past few years, I have learned that one aspect to grief is realizing that love can veer into idolatry if you are not SUPER careful. There is a moment in A Heart Adrift where Esmee and a chaplain discuss this idea of idolatry, and Esmee is a bit dumbstruck. She asks herself if it is possible to make a loved one, a human, an idol. I wouldn’t have understood it either before we lost a beloved member of my immediate family. As I watched my family go through their various grieving processes, I have witnessed firsthand that we humans can 100% turn our loved ones into idols. I have learned that just as love is a choice we make each day, so, too, is making God #1 in our lives. Every day we wake up, we have to choose to put God first — before ourselves, our spouses, our children, our friends. If we don’t, we could fall into the trap of putting a beloved family member before God. It is interesting how death and grief become mirrors and show us if we are in correct alignment with God or not.

There is no way to do A Heart Adrift justice in a single review. This book would make a wonderful book club selection as the discussions could be so varied and many. Suffice to say, A Heart Adrift is a story I will never forget. This is a book that touches the heart and sears the soul. I highly, highly recommend this novel. I implore you to purchase a copy immediately. You will not regret the purchase!

I received a review copy of this novel in eBook form from the author, Laura Frantz, via NetGalley. I also received a paperback copy of this novel from the publisher, Revell, in order to read and review. And I purchased a copy of this novel in eBook form from Amazon.com on January 4, 2022, in order to review. In no way has any of this influenced my review. The opinions expressed in this review are my own.