The Peasant's Dream By Melanie Dickerson

Adela is the daughter of a duke, and she dreams of being a peasant.

All her brothers and sisters have grown up before her eyes, gone on adventures, and found their true loves. Now Adela wonders when adventure will come for her.

And how it will come, considering she is a duke's daughter, and expected to make an advantageous marriage.

And that's what leads Adela to disguise herself as a peasant and explore her village . . . where she meets Frederick, a farmer's son who dreams of being an artist.

I've been intrigued by the premise of this book since I heard it was releasing. I'd never read a reverse Cinderella story before and was interested to see how it was. The author created an excellent reverse Cinderella character who holds tight to his dreams--but doesn't just wait to be rescued. He works towards his dreams.

The author also did an excellent job of writing the perspective of a youngest daughter--a bit spoiled youngest daughter--without making her completely obnoxious. She wrote her realistically and sensibly.

Granted, a good deal of the story is based on a lie. But never do we feel like Adela's less-than-honest actions are being approved of. In fact, even Adela herself sees how she could do better.

While romance is a strong plot in this book, it's not a romance driven only by feelings. Both Adela and Frederick think about how their decisions will affect others.

We experience the story from diverse perspective, all of them as shining as the main characters'. I loved seeing this story from two artists' eyes and felt like it made a huge contribution to the story.

The faith of those who lived in medieval times is portrayed realistically, while not feeling cheesy or preachy, even while including a "miracle" scene.

I have to admit, I'm sad to see Melanie Dickerson's Hagenheim Series that I've followed so long end. (And what about Toby? Please tell me he gets his own book in the next series!) The Peasant's Dream did not disappoint, and provides a sparkling conclusion to this series I've loved so well.