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Alcott Legacy #1
The Tapestry
By teacher mom on December 14, 2010 Have you ever begun a series with great hopes, only to be disappointed by future installments? That is not the case with The Alcott Legacy. I heartily recommend purchasing all 3 books together, because the minute you finish one, you will want to immediately begin the next! The Tapestry is a wonderful combination of history, drama, and romance. What makes the stories even more beautiful is that they are connected by the thread of faith. However, it does not ever sound forced or even "preachy." Rather, the author manages to weave it throughout the story in such a natural fashion that her words illustrate the title itself. You will find yourself utterly captivated by the Alcott family, particularly young Ethan. I hope to find more series such as this one.
402 pages, Paperback
First published May 1, 1993
2 people are currently reading
107 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 21 of 21 reviews
April 25, 2018
A great story of the O'Dell family that takes on the Alcott family. Much excitement and suspense in these families that grows into two Christian families all living in one house. It is listed as a romance and to me that does not show all the Christian influence in the story. The story takes place during the U. S. civil war and what lead up to it. This is a great read for teens and actually the whole family would enjoy this.
January 2, 2021
The Tapestry is by far one of the best books I have ever read in my life (other than the bible)! I love the story line, and how they stretched it out the plot. I will read it over and over. And over. I love how Ethan and Henri turn out to be brothers!
[i have since read other really awesome books, but this one is still pretty wonderful]
[i have since read other really awesome books, but this one is still pretty wonderful]
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
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April 3, 2017I enjoyed this book. It took awhile to get to the plot described on the back of the book (don't read it!) but once I realized it was more a story of a family and not one individual, I was able to settle in and just watch it unfold. It kept my attention and I read it in a little over a day.
March 7, 2011
I really enjoy this series and the family. Reading this book was like taking a journey through the old south. Grab a cool drink, put your feet up and sail away on this Masterpiece.
October 26, 2025
I am ashamed that it took me so many years to pick this book up for myself! However, there are many themes within it that mean more to me now than they could have earlier in life. *sigh* Wonderful book. So many good examples of faith and love throughout the heartbreak and hardships.
February 1, 2022
I kind of wish I found this during my experiment year
May 28, 2022
Enjoyable, if somewhat cheesy read. Took a while to get used to the progression - every chapter seemed to start a few years after the last one ended, but appreciated the pace in the end.
April 19, 2023
"Wonderful!"
February 20, 2025
Nope...not finishing the series....
August 13, 2025
Had a slow start, but improved as the story progressed. Ready to start the next book in the series.
October 11, 2025
Very good historical read.
January 10, 2023
A favorite from my childhood, re-read this year.
January 10, 2015
First of all, I would like to say that this is fairly well-written - for what it is. But, just to give you fair warning, this is a romantic fiction story that is set during the Civil War, not a comprehensive historical work with fiction thrown in to make it interesting. The author does an excellent job of weaving historical happenings in with her plot line, but it is still her plot line, and it would be misleading to call it historical fiction. She states at the end of the book that certain dates had to be juggled around for the sake of the plot. True historical fiction uses fiction to create interest in learning history, not history to create interest in fiction. And for your information, this book actually says 'Fiction-Romance' on the back cover (I bring this up because I have read several reviews that refer to this as 'Historical Fiction', and don't want to have anyone misled as I was).
Criticisms:
I am not a fan of romantic books, and I felt like this book was a bit on the fluffy side, using God and history to give it some weight. But, that is my personal opinion, and I am biased. The prologue alone was enough to make me nearly give up on the whole book - with two severely undeveloped characters meeting and getting married happily within five days of an initial meeting, with only a detailed description of how good-looking he was, how gorgeous she was, and how he concludes that she's a good Christian woman by......her looks??? I actually felt like I was reading a rough draft, and that it was going to be plumped up a little more later on; but it was more like the author followed advice to "just write whatever comes to mind"......and then forgot to go back and re-read it. Also, as other reviewers have said, the story on the back cover doesn't really begin until about halfway through the book. Again, I felt like the history was a prop for the author's plot - interesting, but not the focus.
I also felt like it was gliding from one romantic situation into another, with the 'good' female characters being a little fickle about how they felt and who they liked. There was also a lot of modern day cliches and situations incorporated that just 'weren't done' in those days (i.e. the chaste 'good' girl wearing her hair completely down in public at a ball, wading in the creek with a grown man with ankles exposed - BY HERSELF). Even tomboyish Jo in Little Women didn't go quite that far. It just WASN'T done; I realize the author pointed out that those were 'scandalous' things, but the problem is they weren't just scandalous, they simply weren't done back then in public. Period. Ever. Unless you wanted to be labeled inappropriate and embarrassingly unladylike and having appalled mothers keeping their daughters away from 'that naughty girl'. It was taboo. And the very mild 21st century 'understanding and sympathetic' reaction described toward both scenarios was a bit unrealistic. Just a few little historical slip-ups that are fairly obvious.
Praise and Conclusion:
For a ROMANCE novel, if you like that sort of thing, you will find this an easy, not-too-complicated read; with sincere references to God and the Christian faith that definitely classify it as Christian. If you want a book that is fast, easy, girly, and light - you'll probably like this. Some of the scenes related are encouraging, like the circuit rider rebuking the devil, and [*SPOILER*] one of the main characters/prodigal son becoming a Christian at the end of the book. They are written with care, and not too corny. And - I give it three stars because 1) I respect someone who can actually publish and sell a book that is relatively decent, 2) I didn't feel like the Christianity was too corny and preachy like other books, and 3) it did keep my interest, despite my personal preferences. It actually does get better later on, in spite of the slightly clumsy beginning, and it seem to acquire a bit more polish as it meanders along. If you like romance, you'll probably like it - if you're looking to learn in-depth historical information about the Civil War in a story format, look elsewhere.
I apologize for the lengthy review, but I like to give careful attention to book reviews because I appreciate it when others do so. Thanks for reading, and I hope this is helpful.
Criticisms:
I am not a fan of romantic books, and I felt like this book was a bit on the fluffy side, using God and history to give it some weight. But, that is my personal opinion, and I am biased. The prologue alone was enough to make me nearly give up on the whole book - with two severely undeveloped characters meeting and getting married happily within five days of an initial meeting, with only a detailed description of how good-looking he was, how gorgeous she was, and how he concludes that she's a good Christian woman by......her looks??? I actually felt like I was reading a rough draft, and that it was going to be plumped up a little more later on; but it was more like the author followed advice to "just write whatever comes to mind"......and then forgot to go back and re-read it. Also, as other reviewers have said, the story on the back cover doesn't really begin until about halfway through the book. Again, I felt like the history was a prop for the author's plot - interesting, but not the focus.
I also felt like it was gliding from one romantic situation into another, with the 'good' female characters being a little fickle about how they felt and who they liked. There was also a lot of modern day cliches and situations incorporated that just 'weren't done' in those days (i.e. the chaste 'good' girl wearing her hair completely down in public at a ball, wading in the creek with a grown man with ankles exposed - BY HERSELF). Even tomboyish Jo in Little Women didn't go quite that far. It just WASN'T done; I realize the author pointed out that those were 'scandalous' things, but the problem is they weren't just scandalous, they simply weren't done back then in public. Period. Ever. Unless you wanted to be labeled inappropriate and embarrassingly unladylike and having appalled mothers keeping their daughters away from 'that naughty girl'. It was taboo. And the very mild 21st century 'understanding and sympathetic' reaction described toward both scenarios was a bit unrealistic. Just a few little historical slip-ups that are fairly obvious.
Praise and Conclusion:
For a ROMANCE novel, if you like that sort of thing, you will find this an easy, not-too-complicated read; with sincere references to God and the Christian faith that definitely classify it as Christian. If you want a book that is fast, easy, girly, and light - you'll probably like this. Some of the scenes related are encouraging, like the circuit rider rebuking the devil, and [*SPOILER*] one of the main characters/prodigal son becoming a Christian at the end of the book. They are written with care, and not too corny. And - I give it three stars because 1) I respect someone who can actually publish and sell a book that is relatively decent, 2) I didn't feel like the Christianity was too corny and preachy like other books, and 3) it did keep my interest, despite my personal preferences. It actually does get better later on, in spite of the slightly clumsy beginning, and it seem to acquire a bit more polish as it meanders along. If you like romance, you'll probably like it - if you're looking to learn in-depth historical information about the Civil War in a story format, look elsewhere.
I apologize for the lengthy review, but I like to give careful attention to book reviews because I appreciate it when others do so. Thanks for reading, and I hope this is helpful.
April 10, 2012
I liked this book. I was not sure it would be something I would like, because usually I am not very interested in American history, especially the Civil war. I was pleasantly surprised. It really kept my interest.
The only problem I had with this book was that it was slightly hard to follow the time line. I would have to back track to remember how many years had passed. Also, there were a few grammatical/editing errors that should have been fixed, especially since this was the second edition. Although, it did not affect the book much at all because they were so few.
One last thing, the description of the book really did not have much to do with the story. What was described did not even show up until probably more than half of the way through the book, and the locket was mentioned maybe twice.
My review on the whole series is on my review for "The Heirloom"
The only problem I had with this book was that it was slightly hard to follow the time line. I would have to back track to remember how many years had passed. Also, there were a few grammatical/editing errors that should have been fixed, especially since this was the second edition. Although, it did not affect the book much at all because they were so few.
One last thing, the description of the book really did not have much to do with the story. What was described did not even show up until probably more than half of the way through the book, and the locket was mentioned maybe twice.
My review on the whole series is on my review for "The Heirloom"
May 3, 2012
The Tapestry is a sweeping historical Civil War-era epic that reads like a movie and has great characters and wonderful settings, not to mention that it reads like a movie. The only problems are that it moves a bit too fast and that the synopsis on the back cover gives away more of the plot than it should. Despite those problems, The Tapestry still worth reading for fans of historical fiction.
July 11, 2013
I found this book to be really long, when I felt it could have been written just as well in a lot fewer words. As as I writer, I thought the level of showing vs. telling was also a bit tedious. Other than that it was a great book. I enjoyed the storyline and by the middle of the book I was deeply involved in the characters lives. I look forward to picking up book 2 in the series.
December 27, 2010
well written with historical fact
February 3, 2011
Sweet story. I love happy endings.
September 2, 2011
I enjoyed this book, this was the first time I had ready this author. I enjoy very much books with an authentic historical flavor.
July 31, 2012
One of my all time favorite books. I've read all 3 at least a dozen times.
April 7, 2017
This is my first time with this author. Loved it!!!
A wonderful Historical fiction book. Will be getting the next book in series. Well done !!
A wonderful Historical fiction book. Will be getting the next book in series. Well done !!
Displaying 1 - 21 of 21 reviews