Destiny's Plan By Victoria Saccenti

Fist off I want to comment on how beautiful the cover art of this novel is.  This is definitely a cover that will draw readers into the story.  The look on the woman's face is beyond enticing and what I would imagine Raquelita would look like.

Raquelita's mother is moving her and her younger sister from Texas to Florida, away from their father.  While on the train ride to Florida, Raquelita is seated next to a young soldier. They are instantly connected and begin a conversation that changes their lives.  The two quickly fall in love and must try to figure out how to manage their budding romance through harsh trials such as Raquelita's mother's iron fist, and Matthew being deployed to war.  Things do not turn out exactly as the two love birds planned and both struggle with choices they make in the time away from one another.  Will they be able to make their love work?  Will destiny have other plans?

Destiny's Plan is an interesting story in that it tells the story of not only Raquelita and Matthew, but also her mother: Isabel.  I will warn you there is a lot of adult content within this novel including abuse and allusions to rape in the past.  I actually wanted a little more of Isabel's past to be told or rather Raquelita to learn more about her mother.  There were some points in the story that felt dry and seemed to drone on, but those were far and few between, the rest of the book made up for those moments.  I was drawn into the story of Matthew and Raquelita, and honestly I was worried it would be a story of just them missing one another and trying to get past the hardship of her mother, but it is so much more than that.

Victoria has a style of writing that is very descriptive and informative.  Though it does not feel as if it was too much, it was perfect for the story.  We see Raquelita develop through the story from a scared little girl to a semi-confident woman trying to learn things on her own.  While she makes the wrong decisions and learns the harsher lessons of life the hard way, she learns and becomes stronger because of them.  As Isabel deals with her demons in various ways, she becomes a kinder woman, even if not completely.  It is interesting to see her transform and struggle with alcohol addiction, the demons of the past, and so much more.  While she may seem like a weak character, she is indeed a strong one. 

Victoria does a fantastic job with this story, I would recommend this for those who enjoy a historical romance.  She does her homework in the Vietnam war and includes that into the story.  She is a very talented author and I look forward to reading more.  I give this book a 4 out of 5 because of the dry moments that seemed dull, but as I stated, the story really picks up in other places.