Starfire Quilt

This book is from the Heartsong Presents historical series, sweet historical romances in various settings with an inspirational theme. This particular book is set in British-occupied Philadelphia during the Revolutionary War. It's September 1777 in Pennsylvania, and the Revolutionary War rages throughout the land. Meredith Elliot receives a message from her brother Matt, a Patriot spy. Matt fears he will soon be captured and has sent Merry a note to pass on to General Washington. The same day, she meets Will Castleton, a young Englishman from Boston. The next day, Merry and her Aunt Mina travel to Philadelphia for a shopping trip and a visit with Merry's father, who works as a doctor there. Merry passes on the message -- and soon runs into Will again. When British soldiers invade Philadelphia the next morning, Merry and her aunt are trapped in the city. Merry and Will then begin to fall in love, but although he appears neutral, concerned only with the family shipping business, Merry doesn't want to trust an Englishman, especially when she is passing on messages to the Patriots. Life becomes even more dangerous for her when Major Hastings, a cruel British officer, begins to suspect that Merry is a spy. As Merry fears for her safety, she also worries about the fates of Will, who has returned to Boston, and Matt, who never sent another message. This was a pretty good sweet historical romance. I loved the setting during the American Revolution; this setting is a favorite of mine but not too common in any type of romance. The setting and historical background were nicely developed, but the characters and romance needed more work, especially considering this is a romance, after all. Merry was the most developed character, but even she didn't really come alive. Will's point of view is never given so his character suffers even more. The strength of the book is really in the historical setting, which is the best part of it. Therefore, I would recommend this book to readers who, like me, are big fans of this time period.