Meet a Congressman and a Librarian in
Elizabeth Camden’s
historical romance
Beyond All Dreams
Bethany House
*******
The Story
Anna O’Brien leads a predictable and quiet life as a map librarian at the illustrious Library of Congress until she stumbles across the baffling mystery of a ship disappeared at sea. Thwarted in her attempts to uncover information, her determination outweighs her shyness and she turns to a dashing congressman for help.
Luke Callahan was one of the nation’s most powerful congressmen before his promising career was shadowed in scandal. Eager to share in a new cause and intrigued by the winsome librarian, he joins forces with Anna to solve the mystery of the lost ship. Opposites in every way, Anna and Luke are unexpectedly drawn to each other despite the strict rules forbidding Anna from any romantic entanglements with members of Congress.
From the gilded halls of the Capitol where powerful men shape the future of the nation, to the scholarly archives of the nation’s finest library, Anna and Luke are soon embroiled in secrets much bigger and more perilous than they ever imagined. Is bringing the truth to light worth risking all they’ve ever dreamed for their futures?
Introducing Anna & Luke
Anna O’Brien
Brief description
Credit: FlynetPictures.com
Anna O’Brien is a map librarian who works at the Library of Congress in the 1890’s.
Resembles
Let’s just say she’s a lot more fetching than depicted on the cover! I see her as Rachel McAdams from the Sherlock Holmes movies. See more of my pictorial thoughts on my Pinterest page.
Strengths & Weaknesses
Anna is quiet, detailed oriented, and has the amazing ability to memorize exhaustive volumes of information. This skill is what leads her to notice a tiny flaw in an old government report which leads her to the mystery of a ship that disappeared at sea. Her obsession with detail and order is also what leads her into plenty of trouble.
Luke Callahan
Brief description
Luke is a charismatic, outgoing congressman from Maine. He is the golden boy, with an easy smile, laughing blue eyes, and the ability to charm birds from the trees. Think Simon Baker or maybe Robert Redford.
Strengths & Weaknesses
Credit: peoplestylewatch.com
Luke is a gregarious congressman who is reckless, charming, and passionate. He loves the perks of being a congressman, and has no qualms dumping as much work as possible on Anna’s desk. He would be annoying if he wasn’t so good-natured! Of course, charm will only get you so far, and his good-nature is going to be severely tested by the end of the novel.
Background to the story
After Anna starts investigating the mystery of a ship that disappeared at sea, she senses the government is tracking her, and turns to Luke for help. Anna and Luke are soon embroiled in a story much larger than either imagined, and begin falling in love during the process. As for their chemistry once they get together? It’s a bit of a Cinderella story. The idea of a popular congressman who falls hard for a studious librarian has great romantic appeal. Although Luke and Anna appear to be total opposites on the outside, they have complementary strengths that work to make each of them stronger as they unite in a common goal of discovering the truth behind the missing ship.
Inspiration for the story
I am a librarian in real life, so casting a librarian as a romantic lead has always been a temptation for me. And since I had free reign to set the story wherever I wanted, I simply HAD to go for the Library of Congress, as it is quite possibly the most beautiful, awe-inspiring library in the world.
Washington D.C. is a terrific place to set a historical romance novel, simply because there were so many women who worked for the government in the late 19th century. I prefer to have my heroines working in professional positions, so Washington is a rich setting for me. Of course, there were plenty of restrictions against female workers dating fellow-government employees, so that adds another wonderful layer of tension for my characters.
Thanks Elizabeth!
Relz Reviewz Extras
Review of With Every Breath and Into the Whirlwind
Character spotlight on Dr Trevor McDonough (With Every Breath)
Character spotlight on Zack (Into the Whirlwind)
Review of The Lady of Bolton Hill
Character spotlight on Bane & Lydia (Against the Tide)
Visit Elizabeth’s website and blog
Visit With Every Breath‘s Pinterest page
Buy at Amazon: Beyond All Dreams or Koorong
February 9, 2015 at 8:41 am
I used to borrow books from the library every other day or so. Now my friend and I buy our own books and exchange them with each other!
February 9, 2015 at 8:46 am
I used to borrow from the library all the time. Now I buy books. I have so many in my Kindle. It is easy to do it. I need to figure out how to borrow ebooks from my library.
February 9, 2015 at 9:14 am
I live one block from the library and go there quite often.
February 9, 2015 at 9:21 am
I love the library! I usually go and get books every other week. Even though I have lots of books at home and on my Kindle, I still love going to see what is new. I have to hold myself back from taking too many, and letting other people read them first!
February 9, 2015 at 9:53 am
My name is Alaina and I’m a bookaholic.
When I haven’t got a stack of purchased books already on my dresser waiting to be read, I go to the library at least twice a month. I can’t help it, I read so fast and get so absorbed I don’t want to stop!
February 9, 2015 at 9:55 am
I’m at the library a couple of times a week to borrow books for my daughter and I. The library has saved me lots of money over the years. For 2015, I’m trying to read more of my owned books so plan to not read quite as many library books this year. We’ll see how it goes…
Thanks for the opportunity! I very much enjoy Elizabeth’s work!
February 9, 2015 at 10:43 am
I hardly ever check books out of the library. Most of my books are on my kindle these days.
February 9, 2015 at 11:23 am
I used to borrow books from the library every two or three weeks but with all the free Kindle books, it doesn’t leave me much time for other books. I do sometimes check out books from the library in the summer, when I have more free time to read. I do miss going to the library though.
February 9, 2015 at 11:46 am
We try to go to the library weekly, and always bring home several books each! And that doesn’t count the ebooks I borrow from home. I love our local library!
February 9, 2015 at 4:11 pm
I borrow books from the library constantly, whether from my church library or the public library.
Elizabeth Camden is another one of my favorite authors. Thanks for this giveaway.
February 9, 2015 at 4:39 pm
It’s very rare for me to not have at least a couple library books checked out. I visit my library pretty much every week. 🙂
February 9, 2015 at 11:37 pm
I love, love, love the library. I take my kids to the library almost weekly and I check out books almost every time. I can’t wait to read this book. Thanks for the giveaway.
February 9, 2015 at 11:49 pm
I don’t get there as often as I once did. Limited to monthly visits at this time. Thanks for this giveaway!
Connie
February 10, 2015 at 2:23 am
You might say I borrow books from the library everyday. I work in the church library and have for 36 years. I am the “book selector” for the library so I read them before they are put on the shelves. Our webpage is http://www.churchatthemall.com/library
Thanks for entering me in your giveaway.
February 10, 2015 at 7:33 am
do you use Netgalley for getting advance notice of books?
a great opp to connect direct with publishers of books for your library too !
February 10, 2015 at 2:53 am
I love, love, love the library. Last week my two year old announced she didn’t want to go to school, she wanted to go to work like Mommy and Daddy. I asked where she looked and she said “the library!”
February 10, 2015 at 3:03 am
I go through phases at the library. Right now I’m resisting simple because I have so many books on my shelf that I need to read. But I love libraries and grew up checking out a dozen books every two weeks. Our current library has a great budget & their policy is they will order up to 50 books per patron per year. (I imagine that might change if everyone actually ordered that many books!) So I’ve been utilizing their request-a-book feature a lot this past year.
February 10, 2015 at 7:31 am
WoW! what an amazing opp to get great new books into circulation…
February 10, 2015 at 10:00 am
Right? *shifty-eyes* Don’t tell anyone but I’ve been known to request books I already own, just because they need them on the shelves to benefit other readers. 😉
February 10, 2015 at 10:35 am
Exactly!
Well Done 😉
thinking of all the other readers waiting to discover your Fab Finds !!
February 10, 2015 at 7:12 am
I rarely visit the library. So many books in my TBR stack at home! I do borrow audio books every once in a while when I am going on a road trip…
February 10, 2015 at 7:23 am
I don’t go to the library very often anymore. Too many books on my kindle to read. 🙂
February 10, 2015 at 7:30 am
constantly! I reserve new books and audios in processing and they’re waiting for me on hold.
I LOVE LIBRARIES !
public, church and college/uni, theology libraries are needed –
and borrowing from libraries keeps them around – pretty important to be part of that!
February 10, 2015 at 9:35 am
I borrow from the library all the time! I might pop in to the library about once a month, but I always walk out of that building with about a dozen books to keep me stocked. =)
February 10, 2015 at 9:44 am
Excited to read this one.
February 10, 2015 at 9:55 am
I always have books from the library. It’s my best friend, but don’t tell my husband that!
February 10, 2015 at 10:05 am
Never, we live 15 miles from town so it isn’t convenient at all. I used to use the library when I was little though.
wfnren at aol dot com
February 10, 2015 at 1:20 pm
I used to be at the library every single week checking out a big stack of fiction. Now I have three children and mostly buy books for my kindle. I did recently get a library card (we moved) and I did get some paper books to read. I want to figure out how to borrow ebooks next.
February 10, 2015 at 4:05 pm
I have not been to my Library in awhile due to being on my computer so much but I used to be there every week. I don’t know how it happened but I think I have two of these Rafflecopters going. Not intentual. Hope they use the one that has lots of entries. I love that Simon Baker as The mentalist. He is so cute. Maxie > mac262(at)me(dot)com <
February 10, 2015 at 7:50 pm
As the daughter of 2 librarians, I utilize the library quite often. I love checking out the library ebooks (never an overdue book that way!) and my 5 year old son loves to explore all the new books when we go. Where I live we have access to 3 different library systems within a couple mile radius, so we never have a shortage of books! Although having 3 different library cards can be a bit confusing.
February 10, 2015 at 9:08 pm
A dear friend of mine has a wonderful sister who runs her own lending library. So I’m always enjoying fantastic fiction from there! And between that I read books for the library at the children’s school. And having 4 children who love reading as much as I do, most holidays see us at the local library as well 🙂
February 17, 2015 at 6:12 am
Leola » 🙂 xo
February 11, 2015 at 3:53 am
I used to but now not so much from the church library I do a lot but my main township library I don’t I have a habit of wanting to obtain books for my personal library!
February 11, 2015 at 9:48 am
My daughter and I go to the library every two weeks to see what’s new and brings home treasures!
February 11, 2015 at 10:45 am
I have 4 little kids so I borrow books from the online library so nothing gets ruined. It’s just easier and so convenient with a kindle. I borrow 2-3 a month depending on how much time I have to read. 🙂
February 11, 2015 at 4:10 pm
I don’t usually borrow books very often because I don’t have too much time to read anymore. 🙁 I sometimes borrow books from friends, and if it looks like a really great book, I’ll just buy it!
February 11, 2015 at 6:12 pm
I do many of my books on my kindle so I don’t borrow from the library much. My friend works at the library though and if she sees a book by an author Ilke, she will always ask if I want to check it out.
February 13, 2015 at 8:08 pm
I often borrow books from the library.