Wayback Wednesday: Take a Journey to 1914

Wayback Wednesday: 

Take a Journey to 1914

Love and Chocolate is set in 1914, a time when the world was in a turmoil, but modern conveniences and inventions never imagined made people’s lives easier. In America, Henry Ford’s Model T vied for space with horses and carriages. The telephone had been invented, and nearly every business installed one. Radio technology was in its infancy, but there were broadcasts to listen to.

Eleven years had passed since the Wright brothers historic flight at Kitty Hawk, and aviation had come into its own. In January 1914, the first commercial flight took off from Petersburg, Florida and landed in Tampa twenty-three minutes later. Races and record-setting events abounded as men and women took to the air to test their mettle. Many of the larger nations had developed air power, and by the time World War I erupted in July, zeppelins and bi-planes were part of battle strategy.

Fashion changed dramatically, allowing women less restrictive clothing without corsets, and

Lily Absinthe

significantly less fabric with higher hemlines. The “empire waist” style returned, and fashions based on “Orientalism” emerged. The hobble skirt had come and gone, a skirt so narrow at the bottom, it made walking difficult. Even though the US didn’t enter the war until 1917, American women were affected by the changes in European fashion that included tunics and long uniform-like jackets.

Thanks to advances in chemistry, the use of gases gave rise to the first electric refrigerators - kicking “iceboxes” to the curb. Air conditioning units came next to those located in the South and Southwest regions of the U.S. Another gas that changed the face of America was neon when French inventor Georges Claude figured out how to store it in glass tubes to create lighting. Advertising would never be the same.

Suffragism continued to gain momentum, and in March the Senate put forth a constitutional amendment to grant women the right to vote, but the measure fell short of the required two-thirds by eleven votes. In October thousands of men and women marched on Cleveland in support of a bill to amend the Ohio constitution and give women the right to vote. The war, during which women served in place of men and proved they were just as capable, helped the suffragist cause with more and more individuals getting onboard.

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Love and Chocolate

She just needs a job. He wants a career. Is there room in their hearts for love?

Ilsa Krause and her siblings are stunned to discover their father left massive debt behind upon his death. To help pay off their creditors and save the farm, she takes a job at Beck’s Chocolates, the company her father despised and refused to supply with milk. Then she discovers her boss is Ernst Webber, her high school love who unceremoniously dumped her via letter from college. Could life get any more difficult?

A freshly-minted university diploma in his hand, Ernst Webber lands his dream job at Beck’s Chocolates. His plans to work his way up the ladder don’t include romantic entanglements, then Ilsa Krause walks back into his life resurrecting feelings he thought long dead. However, her animosity makes it clear she has no interest in giving him a second chance. Can he get her to change her mind? Does he want to?

Purchase Link: https://books2read.com/u/mdQerZ