Blessing
Blessing is the tale of two unlikely allies in pre-Civil War Cincinnati, but that’s not where the story begins. When we first meet Blessing Brightman, a widowed Quaker hiding more than one secret, and Gerard Ramsay, the disowned playboy son of a wealthy Boston banker, neither has any idea that their paths crossing will change both their lives. He’s looking to build his personal fortune and annoy his father, while she is intent on saving the world, one disgraced woman, runaway slave, and orphan at a time, to atone for her previous “sins.” Though they try to deny their mismatched attraction, it soon becomes clear they will need one another if they are to fight the ills of society and survive the dangers of their racially divided city.
Cote does a wonderful job shedding light on the workings of the Underground Railroad and how the people who risked their lives to hide runaway slaves concealed their work from the general public. Her depiction of a city bubbling with racial tension brings to mind the modern-day struggles in Baltimore and Ferguson. However, that was not enough to make this story stand out. In the beginning of the story, Blessing and Gerard are quite manipulative, purposefully trying to outdo one another in their own private quests. Cote deserves credit that the characters grow and change over the course of the book, although this feels a little forced. This, combined with slow pacing and a predictable plot, contribute to the novel not shining as much as it could.
