LitPick Review
The Year of Chasing Dreams by Lurlene McDaniel is about a woman, Ciana Beauchamp, who lives on the Beauchamp Estate with her mother and best friend, Eden. Ciana’s main goal is to secure her family farm, but she soon finds out it may be harder than she thought. Her old love interest, Jon Mercer, shows up to help, and Ciana can’t deny the feelings she still holds for him. Meanwhile, Eden is beginning a relationship as well, with an Australian man named Garret. Ciana’s top priorities in her life are her family and land. But when disaster strikes her town, she may not be able to protect either. Ciana’s relationships are put to the test as she navigates through life’s struggles.
Opinion:
I thought The Year of Chasing Dreams by Lurlene McDaniel was an overall good book. Although it isn’t necessary, I would recommend reading the companion novel, The Year of Luminous Love, before reading this book. I didn’t read it beforehand, so I got confused at the beginning about the relationships between characters, but I soon caught on. The main character, Ciana, is a strong female protagonist who is very likable. It moved along at a nice pace, and I liked how it was spanned over a long period of time. I enjoyed how there were multiple subplots and stories within the overall storyline. Overall, I thought this novel was a nice love story that dealt with family and relationship issues in a realistic way and I would recommend it to others.
