All My Secrets by Lynn Austin

 All My Secrets is Lynn Austin’s newest Christian Fiction title. It tells the story of three generations of women during the Gilded Age in New York City. The current patriarch of the family has just passed away without a male heir leaving his wife, widowed mother, and youngest daughter in a predicament. Most of the estate has passed on to his brother’s family, leaving the three ladies with the family’s exorbitant mansion, which they will not be able to sustain the cost of running for long.  The burden falls to Adelaide, the youngest and only unmarried daughter, to find a wealthy suitor who will be able to bring his fortune to the family and allow them to continue to reside in the grand estate. Adelaide, however, is being pulled in two different directions by her grandmother, who wishes for her to leave her wealth behind and find true love, and her mother, who has lost everything before in her past and is frantic to keep the mansion and the social status that she has obtained through her marriage. As the story unfolds, the reason behind Adelaide’s mother and grandmother’s encouragement comes to light, and these stories help Adelaide decide what kind of person that she wants to be, and who she will chose to marry. 

Having read several of Lynn Austin’s novels, my favorites have always been Eve’s Daughters, and A Proper Pursuit. All My Secrets has the same wonderful feel to it that these two did, and it now ranks right up there at the top of the list. I enjoyed each of the three ladies’ stories and their character development throughout the book.  New York City and New Port during the Gilded Age were such a fun setting. I loved the underlying theme of the good that can come from hardship in life. 

Thank you to the publisher, NetGalley, and the author for the advance copy of this book. All opinions expressed in this review are my own.