Dear Mr. Knightley: A Novel

This was a sweet story of a woman whose life started out rough (abandoned at a fire station) and ended with a happily-ever-after ending. Again, as with Seay’s books that I’ve read previously, it was peppered with Jane Austen references, which is one of the reasons I enjoyed it. I gave it 4 stars for the unrealistic aspect of the book—some of it was a little hard to swallow. Again, the faith aspect of it was definitely present but not overwhelming.

I think this book was absolutely delightful. Yes, Samantha grew up in an abusive childhood - but this author is very good at letting you understand, and even feel that abuse without graphic uncomfortable details. All in all, I love the style of writing. Serious - but lighthearted at the same time. I'll search for other books by this author.

As epistolary novels go, this one doesn't write within the lines - so to speak. There's far too much dialogue & 3rd person level narrative to be believable as natural letter-writing. Comparing it to Webster's Daddy Long Legs or Austen's Lady Susan makes its weaknesses in that regard readily apparent.Nevertheless, it's a good story. Samantha is a sympathetic character. She grew up abused, & it's left her emotionally confused. It's not just that she doesn't understand her own emotions, but that her childhood has warped her emotional responses. Counseling from the group home she's lived at as she reached legal adulthood has helped improve her awareness but she's still stumbling her way thru social interactions.The premise of the book that she lived in her favorite classic books to the point that she "puts on" the characters & their dialogue to navigate social situations was interesting. One of my children has dyspraxia & was echolalic as a preschooler. We used to joke that he spoke "Blue's Clues" because he would frequently go around parroting lines from the show & respond to us with its dialogue.However, Sam isn't dyspraxic; & while her relating people she knows to book characters was believable, using lines from the books often felt too forced or contrived. That ended up handicapping the story as it pushed me out of the story several times.I enjoyed following Sam's journey of self discovery. It did make the story drag in a few places, but she grows so much in the book, and despite having an upbringing very different from hers, there was still a lot I could relate to.I wish we could have had more of Alex's story, as there were some things that were never really explained & others that were not fully explained, so I didn't quite understand some of his motivations or thought processes.Still, if I could change one thing, it would be to add an epilogue that allows us a glimpse of their happily-ever-after. Having spent the majority of the book waiting for them to get together as a couple, it would have been nice to get to enjoy some of their happiness, too.*Romance level: passionate kisses, the protagonist considers having sex with her boyfriend but is counseled by a worker at the foster house on reasons to wait, there's nothing graphic (some threatened sexual exploitation of a child & recounts of physical abuse but again no graphic or salacious details)*Religion: generically Christian; includes a priest character who leads the foster home & the protagonist's journey to faith, but is not heavy-handed or preachy

I have loved every book I've read by this author. I can't tell you how long I have been eyeing this particular book. And having several friends tell me that I should read it. I kept saying I was going to and life would be busy, and other books I was reviewing would keep popping up taking my free time. Well I told myself at the beginning of the summer that I was going to remedy it all and read it. I bought a copy when it was on sale and downloaded it thinking I would read it on my long camping trip hiding away in the woods. It didn't happen. I hardly read at all. Last week after I'd gotten home from the long summer vacation, I opened the book up just thinking I'd peek at it and slowly start it before I went to bed. Ha! Ha, ha, ha, ha, HA! Yeah right. I couldn't put it down. I read and read and read and...you get the idea. I think I read most of the book that night. Fell asleep, then woke up and read during my free moments. I have a lot on my mind and trying to organize a couple different big things that my brain was so exhausted from that, that when I started this book it was such a relaxing and enjoyable time for my overwhelmed brain. I absolutely loved it.My brain is still on overload and trying to prep for school that I'm not going to go into my normal rambling thoughts for a review. I just had to say how much I loved these characters. I've read a couple books now in a row that the characters were just fabulous! I loved the letter format for the book. Samantha was so interesting to dive into her character and I loved how honest she was, it made it so easy to connect with her and understand her world.I think I highlighted the whole book. Hee Hee! Ok, not really but I was highlighting like crazy. Quotes I liked, moments and scenes that had me happy sighing. *ahhhh, happy sigh*. All of the literary references were so much fun. I loved them! Especially because the books she was referencing are favorite books of mine. That of course makes me connect even more with this book.This is one that I will need to return to over and over again! If you haven't read a book by Katherine Reay, go do so now. I'm a fan! I can't even begin to say how much I loved the love story. There are so many things I want to say right now, but I'm just going to keep it all in because it will spoil it all if I say anything. My lips are sealed. Now, go read Samantha's letters to Mr. Knightley!Content: Clean. This book deals with orphans/foster care children so there are scenes that mention some of the struggles and sorrow associated with them. Especially physical abuse, mental abuse. So be warned that this isn't a light a fluffy read, it's real and emotional but very well written. The love story is sweet and clean.Happy Reading!!!

I loved this book so much that I stuck it straight into my 'I will re-read this' pile.
The book is a contemporary romance, written as a series of letters from Sam to 'Mr. Knightley' her mysterious benefactor who paid for her to study journalism. I loved the characters and wanted to spend more time with them. The book had more grit to it than I expected from the cover. I guessed the 'who' of the ending (but not the 'how') but that in no way took away from my enjoyment of the story.
The main character Sam hides behind her books and their characters. This was something my teenage self would have really identified with. Thank God he sets us free to be ourselves without fear.

*Spoilers*Cringey and weird. Avoid.Implausible and frankly dodgy story, with an annoying, unsympathetic 'heroine'. The whole thing is so wrong on many levels. Manipulative 'hero' lies to her for months, while learning all about her likes and dislikes, and providing her with clothes, money and family. Sound like grooming to me. The only characters in this sorry tale with any value or charm are the Muirs.

It took me a while to get into this book, and for about the first third of the book I wasn't sure whether I liked it or not - I wasn't sold on the whole writing-long-personal-letters-to-an-anonymous-benefactor element of it, and there were some things that happened that irritated me. After a while, though, it began to grow on me and I got so absorbed in the story and Samantha's development as a character that I did enjoy it for the most part. I think the story was great, there were some aspects I wasn't completely sold on and I wasn't 100% comfortable with the ending (although I liked it more than I thought I was going to). I think maybe I would have liked the book to go on a bit longer so that I could see everything be fully resolved. But overall, it was quite a good book and I enjoyed reading it.

I liked the general idea behind the book through using letter writing. I felt the ending was slightly weak and could have been better...I felt a little bit let down. Having said that I enjoyed the character development and the journey of the young people in care.

Best book I've read, well since Pride and Prejudice, I suppose. It was clever, gripping , as well as a moving story of redemption. Even knowing the ending, I'm sure I will read it many times more.