Sweet Mercy by Ann Tatlock

Once in a while you find an author that is just above the rest. There are many authors that I love and will read, but there are two who stand above everyone else. Lynn Austin is one, and Ann Tatlock is the other one. When either of these two ladies releases a new book I want it. Now. I don't even need to know what it's about. It's a given that I will love it.

Sweet Mercy by Ann Tatlock blew me away (again!) The characters came alive instantly and I could barely tear myself away from reading, but the family needed fed, the laundry needed done, I needed sleep...I wish these things would quit interrupting my reading time.

Ann taught me so many things this time around and made me want to research the prohibition era. I loved that the book started out in present day and then went backwards in time to the memories of when the main character (Eve Marryat) was a teenager. 

If you only discover one author this year, make it this one. Each and every one of her books is perfect. This is probably my favorite so far. Tatlock keeps getting better and better. 

I treasure her books and the time I spend reading them. I just wish they were released faster, I hate waiting for a new book from one of my favorites.

This book was provided for review by Bethany House.

From the back cover:
When Eve Marryat's father is laid off from the Ford Motor Company in 1931, he is forced to support his family by leaving St. Paul, Minnesota, and moving back to his Ohio roots. Eve's uncle Cyrus has invited the family to live and work at his Marryat Island Ballroom and Lounge.

Eve can't wait to leave St. Paul, a notorious haven for gangsters. At seventeen, she considers her family to be "good people," not lawbreakers like so many in her neighborhood. Thrilled to be moving to a "safe haven," Eve soon forms an unlikely friendship with a strange young man name Link, blissfully unaware that her uncle's lodge is anything but what it seems.

When the reality of her situation finally becomes clear, Eve is faved with a dilemma. Does she dare risk everything by exposing the man whose love and generosity is keeping her family from ruin? And when things turn dangerous, can she trust Link in spite of appearances?