Today, I'm happy to be part of the Book Tour for Anita Stansfield's new book, Color of Love. This book deals with society's prejudice in the 1850s and the repercussions it had on a young woman's life and family.
The book introduces us to Amala, a young Indian girl, who is sitting at a ball trying not to look bored. She is loved and accepted by her white adopted family, but society generally ignores her. A young man named Henry Beckenridge, who has just returned from nine years abroad in India, sits with her and tries to engage her in conversation several times. Amala wants to talk to him, but is worried about what people will say if they see him talking to her. She doesn't want to hurt his standing or reputation because she knows well how cruel society can be.
Henry is determined to be part of Amala's life. The more he is around her, the more sure he is that she was meant to be in his life. Amala doggedly points out all that will be against them if they did court and marry. Interracial marriages are frowned upon. The children will be ostracized. But Henry feels they can face those things together. Amala finally relents, but before their courtship can go further, society's cruelty rears its ugly head and Amala must deal with a broken heart. Using a relative's kind offer to travel, Amala goes abroad, thinking that distance might help. But when a brief letter calls her home, she's unprepared for what has happened in her absence. Can Amala live with the consequences of her actions?
I really enjoyed the author's vivid descriptions of India and Britain, with their stark opposites and yet some similarities as well. Henry's love for the country while still seeing the struggles was admirable and gave him a lot more depth as a character. I also liked the secondary character of Emmett that gave our heroine (and hero) someone to confide in. Amala was an intriguing, emotional heroine who at times seemed naive, yet at others, too wise for her years. With her young age some of her more impulsive decisions could be forgiven, but her reactions to the events that took place during her extended absence were surprising, to say the least. It was a long, emotional, and drawn out love story that takes the reader on a roller-coaster of feelings as the storyline unfolds. This is a book that will raise eyebrows, make you grab a tissue, and make you want to shake some sense into the characters. But readers will definitely come away with more of a sense of how India and its people were viewed by British society at that point in history, and grateful that fiction stories like Color of Love show a happy ending since, in reality, most people with similar issues in that time period did not get that.
(Don't forget to scroll all the way down and enter the giveaway!)
Here's the back copy:
England, 1857
The British aristocracy is an inflexible judge. And for Amala, a lovely young Indian woman, that judgment is most keenly felt. Raised from a child by the wealthy Hepworth family following the murder of her parents, Amala grew up alongside the Hepworth’s own daughter, Katarina, and was loved as both sister and daughter. The family is part of the charmed circle of the upper class, but Amala’s place in society is tenuous. As an Indian woman, her life is marked by a sense of otherness and voices of prejudice. So when she embarks upon a sweet acquaintance with Henry Breckenridge, a white Englishman, Amala is both elated and terrified. She knows first-hand the opposition that an interracial couple would face, and courtship with Henry could destroy his standing in society.
Determined to spare the reputations of both Henry and her sister Katarina, Amala flees England with the hope that an extended trip will allow her time to heal her broken heart. But she never imagined the repercussions of that decision, and the heartbreak awaiting her. For when she returns to England, she finds those she holds dear facing unparalleled devastation. And now it is her love that holds the key to healing a broken family . . .
Book Tour Stops:
*Jan. 9th: http://rockinbookreviews.com/, http://mybookaday.blogspot.com/, http://ldswritermom.blogspot.com/
*Jan. 10th: https://joyinthemoments.wordpress.com/
*Jan. 11th: http://ilovetoreadandreviewbooks.blogspot.com/, http://thethingsilovemost.com/
*Jan. 12th: http://ldsandlovinit.blogspot.com/, http://www.singinglibrarianbooks.com/
*Jan. 13th: http://booksaresanity.blogspot.com/, http://sweetlymadejustforyou.com/, http://brooklynberrydesigns.com/
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