The Waiting Game by Eugenia Price

"The Waiting Game" by Eugenia Price - 334 pages

This book was recommended to me by a patron.  Abby Banes from Boston, thought it would be romantic to marry Eli Allyn.  He was an older gentleman who would make her the mistress of a southern plantation on Georgia's seacoast.  Abby, however, was not prepared for the realities of slavery and of the loneliness of having a husband who spent all his time in the fields.  Abby's world is suddenly turned upside down when her husband dies in a storm.  In a land that is gearing up for Civil War, can Abby defy Southern tradition and run her plantation on her own while embracing a people's call for freedom. 

"The Woman at the Light" by Joanna Brady

"The Woman at the Light" by Joanna Brady - 322 pages


Emily Lowry's husband is the lighthouse keeper on Wreckers' Cay, an isolated island off the coast of Key West.  One afternoon her husband disappears and Emily has no choice but to take over his duties at the lighthouse, along with keeping up with hers of raising their 3 children.  Unexpected help comes from a runaway slave named Andrew that washes ashore during a storm.  In the beginning, Emily is wary of him, but as her children trust him, so does she.  Far from societies rules, Emily and Andrew grow closer.  When a hurricane comes, Emily is forced to leave her island, and Andrew.  As she returns to Key West, her family influences threaten to rule her life until she finally takes control and begins to live the life she wants.