Book Review: Hattie Ever After by Kirby Larson

Hattie Ever After by Kirby Larson
Publisher: Listening Library
Publication date: February 2013
Length: 5 hrs 49 min
Source: Audiobook from Library
For: YA Audiobook Challenge
Series: Sequel to Hattie Big Sky

Summary from goodreads:

"After leaving Uncle Chester's homestead claim, orphan Hattie Brooks throws a lasso around a new dream, even bigger than the Montana sky. She wants to be a reporter, knowing full well that a few pieces published in the Arlington News will not suffice. Real reporters must go to Grand Places, and do Grand Things, like Hattie's hero Nellie Bly. Another girl might be stymied by this, but Hattie has faced down a hungry wolf and stood up to a mob of angry men. Nothing can squash her desire to write for a big city newspaper. A letter and love token from Uncle Chester's old flame in San Francisco fuels that desire and Hattie jumps at the opportunity to get there by working as a seamstress for a traveling acting troupe. This could be her chance to solve the mystery of her "scoundrel" uncle and, in the process, help her learn more about herself. But Hattie must first tell Charlie that she will not join him in Seattle. Even though her heart approves of Charlie's plan for their marriage, her mind fears that saying yes to him would be saying no to herself. Hattie holds her own in the big city, literally pitching her way to a byline, and a career that could be even bigger than Nellie Bly's. But can making headlines compensate for the pain of betrayal and lost love? Hattie must dig deep to find her own true place in the world."

Things I Liked:
I am so glad she decided to write more about Hattie.  I adored Hattie Big Sky and I wondered where Hattie would go from there.  Her story here is interesting and I loved how she was both so trusting and also so unwilling to give up on her dreams.  She's such a fun character and though I didn't love this story as much as I loved the first one, it was still intriguing.  The time period and her journalist aspirations that were so ahead of the times just made for one great story.

Things I Didn't Like:
As I mentioned, I didn't like it quite as much as the first, but I found that I still fell in love with Hattie and I also really liked her man, who wanted to give her everything she wanted, but also wouldn't take the back and forth from her.  It's an interesting story, but not the big prairie story from the first book, obviously. 

Read-alikes:
Start with Hattie Big Sky by Kirby Larson

BOOK CONTENT RATINGS:
s-factor: none

mrg-factor: none

v-factor: none

Overall rating: **** 

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