A Desperate Hope
When Eloise Drake was a little girl, she would gaze out of her bedroom window down the hill at the folks living in Duval Springs, and dream of being free. Then, when she was just eighteen, she made a big mistake with Alex Duval that caused her guardian to send her away to a convent. Now, it’s 1908 and Eloise is a successful accountant living in New York City. When her job takes her back to Duval Springs, she is at once thrilled and terrified. Alex is now mayor, and his beloved town is about to be demolished to make way to build a new reservoir. He is determined to fight the uppity engineering firm coming to assess his town, and is shocked to realize one of accountants is his long-lost love, Eloise. As his town begins to fall apart, Alex comes up with a crazy scheme to save Duval Springs, but he needs Eloise’s help. He’s not sure how to mend things with her, especially when he realizes he still loves her deeply.
This is the third novel in Camden’s Empire State series. While there are a few characters who recur in A Desperate Hope, and a few similar plot threads, reading the earlier books first is not necessary to enjoy this one. There’s a lot of development in this story, and it is doled out with impeccable timing and a fabulous amount of tension. Just when you think this is going to be a simple love story, someone gets shot, there’s sabotage, and something most gruesome is revealed with a complex mystery. These elements keep the story lively and the plot moving. The end does not disappoint. Recommended.
