Place of Peace

I didn't think I was going to finish this book today... but I just did.  It's called Place of Peace by Debra Diaz.

This book is a historical fiction book that starts 12 years after the end of the Civil War.  A good part of the book is in Memphis during the yellow fever outbreak that took place in 1878.

The book was well written and I was a bit surprised that it captured me so well I hardly took any time at all to read.  One of the characters, the main character to be exact, was just really annoying to me.  I didn't like her and I haven't disliked a character like this since I read Gone With the Wind so many years ago.  Genny was a spoiled brat that thought that her family didn't love her when she was encouraged, okay - wrong word - forced - to accept a marriage to someone that she didn't love.  So, she runs away.

She ends up being employed as a bookkeeper and assistant to a doctor who ends up finding out what her secret is.  His weak marriage proposal gave her the choice to get out of the marriage that her family had arranged for her, but it really didn't take her away from that loveless marriage that she was avoiding.  It was still a marriage of convenience... but ah, just like a typical romance, Genny and her doctor husband, Ethan, do end up falling in love after all.

Okay, here is where I'm totally bitter with the character Genny.  Just like I've said before... lack of communication!!!!  Oh, that just gets my ladies fruit of a loom in a twist!  Genny accidentally catches the last part of a visit from Ethan's former fiance who has found him out with hopes that he'll help her.  He agrees to help her to an extent but does not react to her advances.  He's married after all, and even though the marriage had only taken place a couple days before, he was convinced that he loved his wife and didn't want to do anything to hurt her.  So, instead of approaching her husband like any normal human being would do, little spoiled brat Genny is convinced that Ethan has been using his former love as a mistress and that he really didn't love her after all.  She moves out of their bedroom and becomes very cold and nasty with him.  Ethan tries to be patient with her and tries to give her time, especially since he thinks that it may have something to do with the fact that she had been attacked shortly before she ran away.  But then, he's just a stupid and doesn't try to reason with her or try to figure out what is bothering her without causing a fight.  Oh, come on!!!  If I ever tried any of that kind of bull my husband, in his very caring way, would make sure that I knew that I could trust him and keep trying to get whatever it was that was bothering me.  But then, I would have approached him that same night instead of trying to build whatever sorry excuse of a 'brick wall' that Genny tried to build around her feelings.

Okay, so Genny finally finds out the truth - only 9 months later and a missing husband to find... but she does end up finding him and follows him to Memphis where there was a bad outbreak of yellow fever.  Even with all of the sickness and death around them, they find each other and fall in love again...

Okay, I'm sounding like I totally hated the book, but I really didn't.  This was a fun book to read... I found myself almost yelling at Genny for being so stupid.  You know, have you ever yelled at the TV during a movie or a game as if the people on the other end can hear you?  Well, that's what I experienced with this book.  As cheesy and predictable the plot was, it was still very well written and I really did have fun reading the book.  Now I have a craving to re-read about another spoiled brat southern gal that I just love to hate.  :-)  :-)  :-)