THE PEASANT'S DREAM

The son of a farmer falls in love with the daughter of a duke in this period romance set in a German-inspired world.

Adela dreams of traveling around the region and proving herself as a painter, but as the youngest daughter of Duke Wilhelm of Hagenheim, she isn’t even allowed past the castle walls without a guard. Twenty-one-year-old Frederick works on his father’s farm to support his parents and sisters. His hopes of becoming a woodcarver are realized when he gets the chance to carve biblical scenes on the cathedral’s new doors. One day Adela dresses as a servant and sneaks out to the market, where she meets Frederick and they have an instant connection. Adela entertains the idea of falling in love with a poor farmer, but her family has arranged suitors from noble families. When Frederick gets caught up in a plan to kidnap the duke’s daughter for ransom, secrets are revealed, and Adela and Frederick must decide how to cope with the truth. The story has many elements of “Cinderella,” altered just enough to make it feel original. The characters are charming and the plot is engaging. The text is heavily laced with Christian references and prayers, as both main characters have strong faith. Frederick’s family experiences domestic violence at his father’s hand. Fans of the series will enjoy the references to characters from previous entries, but the novel functions as a stand-alone story. All characters seem to be white.

Simple, endearing period Christian romance.