A transporting historical novel about a promising young inventor, his struggle with loss, and the attractive teacher who changes his life, all set against the razzle-dazzle of the 1893 Chicago World’s Fair. Gambling everything–including the family farm–Cullen McNamara travels to the 1893 Chicago World’s Fair with his most recent invention. But the noise in the fair’s Machinery Hall makes it … Machinery Hall makes it impossible to communicate with potential buyers. In an act of desperation, he hires Della Wentworth, a teacher of the deaf, to tutor him in the art of lip-reading.
The young teacher is reluctant to participate, and Cullen has trouble keeping his mind on his lessons while intently watching her lips. Like the newly invented Ferris wheel, he is caught in a whirl between his girl back home, his dreams as an inventor, and his unexpected attraction to his new tutor. Can he keep his feet on the ground, or will he be carried away?
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This has a little more romance in it than what I usually read, but the history alone–the description of the World’s Fair of 1893–made this a delight to read. With characters who had vested interests in the fair and with the setting firmly placed in the fair for almost all of the book, the almost-unbelievable Columbian Exposition burst off the pages. I’m very impressed by this author’s work on this novel.
It’s not a common thing, but every once in a while, I will choose a book based on its setting. I read the second book in this series, enjoyed it thoroughly, and was determined to pick up any other book set as a Chicago World’s Fair romance by the author. This was just as moving with its story and fascinating with its backdrop as the other book. The fair is like the main character.
The story is a poignant one and opens when Cullen MacNamara’s father shows his pride and trust in Cullen by gambling on Cullen’s automatic sprinkler system invention that will put out fires as soon as it senses smoke being a success and pays for Cullen to demonstrate it at the Chicago World’s Fair. Cullen is not as convinced and it soon becomes apparent to him that it will all be a disaster if he doesn’t find a way to hear those who come to his booth in the loud Machinery building. It doesn’t help that Cullen is slightly deaf so he follows a suggestion and hires a teacher for the deaf to instruct him in lip reading.
Adelaide Wentworth has come to the fair when the school she teaches as is moved there to the Children’s Building to raise awareness for their school and their method of teaching lip reading for the purpose of the children to appear ‘normal’. Cullen’s need touches her and makes her get past her qualms about instructing a man. His determination to learn and his companionship make her time at the Fair golden. She and Cullen tour the Fair as she teaches him. Slowly the two grow closer and the feelings start to run deep. Then a fire, a failed demonstration, and a big secret interfere.
This sweet romance that slowly developed against every day activities at the Fair was engaging from cover to cover. The added situations of the pressing financial need back home for Cullen, his failure to gain an investor, and his conflict over the girl back home along with Della’s growing concern about the way they are teaching the students all make it layered with goodness. At first, I was a bit concerned by Della’s freak outs around Cullen, but chose to laugh at the absurdity of it. Apparently her father instilled a strong fear of men with all the ways they were monsters and beasts so that even Cullen’s rescue of her twice over sent her into full on terror that he was out to take advantage of her.
The humor was a good balance to a sad scene in the middle of the story that had me bawling my eyes out. Warning: two tissues at least.
As character and romance interests, Cullen and Della were a nice pair. I fell in love with Cullen myself- brilliant inventor type, honorable, damsel in distress rescuer, delicious farm boy body under those starched shirts, fun to be around, and quite the heroic figure. Della was a gracious, intelligent woman who had a heart for her work and her students, a tenderness toward Cullen’s plight, and a genuine interest in all the amazing things at the Fair.
I loved the authentic feel. The author balanced historical fact with story elements. The characters’ dialogue, actions, dress, and thinking were in keeping with the times. The backdrop and descriptions were the real gem. This World’s Fair totally came to life in the scenes.
All in all, a splendid sweet romance story that I would recommend to historical romance and fiction lovers.