Paint and Nectar

 In this blog post, I reviewed Ashley Clark's Paint and Nectar, the second installment in the inspirational romance series. This beautifully written novel spans two decades with two families, past and present.  In the 1920s, a young watercolorist named Eliza Ravenel fell in love with William Pinckney, a naturally-talented pianist, when they first met. But like the Hatfields and the McCoys, their love was forbidden due to claims that his family stolen silver during the Civil War. Fast forward to the present day when Lucy Legare works at the art museum to preserve artwork like Eliza's watercolors and later inherits Eliza's home that someone mysteriously gifted it to her. From there, she learns about Eliza and William's love story through old journal entries and a cherished ring. A year ago, she went on a date with Declan Pinckney, while her mother played matchmaker to set her up with eligible men and never heard from him with him again, until he crossed paths with her.

 Through a secret courtship, they exchanged letters and journal entries via the fence between the two properties and shared their hopes, thoughts, dreams, and fears together. William wasn't expected to fall in love with Eliza since she was sent to forge her artwork for his boss. It wasn't part of the plan. When he refused to do another job, he was roughed up his boss's henchmen. To protect Eliza from his deepest secret and bodily harm, he had to leave her brokenhearted. After he left, she married someone else and started a family. The same happened to William too. For Lucy and Declan, they started seeing each other and discovering more about their great-grandparents lives inside the house, but the same feud for the silver would keep them apart, even Lucy's inherited home from Eliza.

Years later, Eliza and William meet again, both widowed with a child of their own, and picked up where they left off to discover their happily ever after in their home and how it was handed down from generations. For Lucy and Declan, would they share the same chemistry and get together against all odds to continue the same passion their ancestors had? They had to take a leap of faith and an act of God to make it happen and be all right for their happy ending.

This was a beautiful love story that my recap had to be longer than normal. I loved this story so much and how it could stand within the hands of time. I cared for Eliza and William, who had a classic romance when their families feuded for years, and were made for each other before they were split apart. I also adored Lucy and Declan, who cared for preserving art and architecture, and learning about the history between Eliza and William. Charleston, then and now, acted as a picture-perfect scenic location for the settings for both time periods that came to life. The theme for this story is love can move mountains and bring people together after they've been apart.

 If you love remarkable lovely inspirational romances that tugged your heart with non-stop action, plenty of  historical and present-day drama and tons of heart-stopping romance, Paint and Nectar is the timeless love story for you.