I truly enjoyed this new book by Nancy Moser that offers the early history of the fashion industry and even features a glimpse of the Lane Bryant fashion business. "The Fashion Designer" is a sequel to "The Pattern Artist" and it continues the story of Annie Wood, her new husband Sean Culver, her best friend Maude Nascato, and another friend Edna Holmquist. I haven't read the first book but I didn't feel lost because "The Fashion Designer" has numerous references to the previous story. In this book Annie and Sean are about to become parents and there is also the dilemna of finding the funds to finance Annie's dream of designing clothing for the working woman. Sean's mother would like to use her inheritance to help but her husband has full control of her money and he doesn't consider it a worthy investment. The setting is New York in 1912 and this was the time when women still wore corsets, "expectant women" were limited in their choice of maternity wear and no woman was allowed to vote! We've come a long way baby!
The Fashion Designer touches on the topics of emotional abuse and rape but they are handled in a discreet manner. Mr. and Mrs. Culver separate, Maude fears the possibility of being unable to conceive and decides that she can never have a husband and Annie experiences moments of doubt. I appreciate that during these times of stress and conflict these characters display their reliance on God and their faith in the power of prayer. Through it all these friends offer each other hope and encouragement.
I recommend "The Fashion Designer" to anyone who enjoys reading historical fiction and Christian romance.
I received a complimentary copy of this book from Barbour Publishing and was under no obligation to post a review.
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