The One True Love of Alice Ann

When you find an author you like, you anticipate their next book.  I fell in love with Eva  Marie Everson's books and was thrilled to get this book to review. This story proved to be another winner in my book.

The setting is rural Georgia in 1941 and chronicles Alice Ann, a sweet sixteen year old who has a huge crush on her brother's friend Mack. There is a five year age difference but that doesn't make  Alice Ann shy away from trying to make Mack fall in love with her. Being set in 1941, there is the attack on Pearl Harbor and all available young men enlist, including Mack. They promise to write and actually correspond for three years then the letters stop.  Of course, Alice Ann fears that he has been killed in action. Alice Ann so wanted to wear her maiden aunt's wedding dress but now there is "no happily ever after" for her. She is convinced Mack is her one true love and will she become a old maid like her aunt?  Alice Ann busies herself with work when Carlton enters the picture. He is her best friends brother that has been wounded in the war. She starts caring for him and as time passes their friendship develops into something more.  A simple phone call changes everything.  What about Mack, since he was to be her one true love or is Carlton ? This advice was given to Alice Ann. "You can't choose who you fall in love with, but you can choose who you marry". Must read the book to find out Alice Ann's choice.

What I love most about Eva Marie Everson's books is how the story line flows with rich history of that time period. I felt myself back in that era and the emotional toil it had on everyone. The characters were alive, interesting and the story kept me turning pages long into the night. I had to know what Alice Ann decided. You will not be disappointed when you pick this book up to read, you will be picking up all of Eva Marie Everson's books to read, just like I have.

Thanks to Tyndale Publishers  for this free book just for my honest opinion.

1. What inspired you to write The One True Love of Alice-Ann? This whole story started with the title. I was working on another project when the title The One True Love of Alice-Ann popped into my head. I thought, “That’s a cool title . . . ,” and I wrote it down. I went back to my project, but I kept looking over at the title. Then, as if inspiration just sprang up, I remembered a story our neighbors (both of whom have been deceased for a while) told my husband and me—their love story from World War II. I took that story, changed it slightly, wrote it down, ran it past my critique partner—she loved it—so I sent it to my editor at Tyndale . . . and then I got back to work! 2. How do you expect this story to resonate with your audience? What are you most excited for your readers to experience through reading this novel? We have all had to make life choices. I heard a line in a movie (just this morning) that went like this: Every time you make a decision, you take a gamble. Maybe it’s the right choice. Maybe it’s not. How do you know? This is Alice-Ann’s dilemma. Does she have one true love . . . or two? We’ve all been there. We’ve all made decisions and then wondered if we made the right one. Sometimes those choices follow us for years. Sometimes we know the answer right away. I’m most excited for readers to experience life in the States during WWII. So often we read of what happened in Europe or in the Pacific, but we don’t usually read about how our citizens who stayed back home sacrificed for the greater good. I’m also excited for them to experience Alice-Ann’s love story and maturity as she grows from a starry-eyed 16-year-old to a grown woman. 3