Eloise Drake's first love is frowned upon by her family, and
she is sent to Arizona, while the young man is beaten and
railroaded out of town. Years later, they meet again. In
1908, New York State is in the middle of a building and
engineering boom. Alex Duval is the mayor of a town called
Duval Springs in this, the third book in the Empire
State series. The New York City Water Board wants to
flood the town to construct a reservoir for the city
downstream, and only A DESPERATE HOPE can see the community
surviving.
Eloise has made her home in Manhattan, where she has a
respectable gentleman caller, and she works for the Water
Board, using her formidable mathematical genius. She is sent
to supervise the compensation payouts for townsfolk, which
are meager and won't see them established elsewhere. Many
people have already left, and the town is on its last legs.
The cherished community buildings like the church, school,
and tavern are shared history. Workers from the nearby
quarry and from the Water Board mingle uneasily, and farmers
and dairy owners weep at the thought of starting afresh.
Eloise has family here too, but she thinks she's made the
break. Maybe the energy and community spirit of Alex Duval
is what it will take to change her mind.
I stand totally in awe of the research and intricacy evident
in this strong novel. Oxen and railroads, immigrant workers,
exploitative bosses, an earlier generation's wars and
professional women are all featured. Eloise is so busy being
an assessor for the state that she doesn't have time to
consider whether women should have the vote. She hardens her
heart against her own past love but staunchly supports her
good friends. How would you go about moving a town uphill?
Apparently, this was done in some cases -- the author gives
some real-life notes on the situation at the end. And how
would you go about sabotaging engineering works? We get to
see some choice examples. The story covers several months,
through the autumn and winter, of back-breaking,
spirit-crushing work, trying to salvage buildings,
livelihoods, and friendships, while outside influences hover.
With fine role models and dilemmas, this historical romance
A DESPERATE HOPE is a nicely judged suspense story which
engages and entertains the reader. Elizabeth Camden, a
research librarian who has won the RITA Award and the
Christy Award, has my sincere admiration.
Eloise Drake's prim demeanor hides the turbulent past she's
finally put behind her--or so she thinks. A mathematical
genius, she's now a successful accountant for the largest
engineering project in 1908 New York. But to her dismay, her
new position puts her back in the path of the man
responsible for her deepest heartbreak.
Alex Duval is the mayor of a town about to be wiped off the
map. The state plans to flood the entire valley where his
town sits in order to build a new reservoir, and Alex is
stunned to discover the woman he once loved on the team
charged with the demolition. With his world crumbling around
him, Alex devises a risky plan to save his town--but he
needs Eloise's help to succeed.
Alex is determined to win back the woman he thought he'd
lost forever, but even their combined ingenuity may not be
enough to overcome the odds against them before it's too late.
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