A Light in the Wilderness

A Light in the Wilderness by Jane Kirkpatrick
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Letitia is a freed slave with papers that she keeps keeps hidden for proof. For companion sake and safety, "Tish" sets up housekeeping with Irish Davey Carson. Davey, who loves her in his own way, gets the itch to set out for the Oregon Trail, where he believes Tish will be safer. The two with their good friends and families strike out with death and danger along the way.

Tish's character is fully fleshed out and my heart breaks for her and her several female friends during the long, hard journey. Each woman seems to be at the mercy of their husbands and the time period they lived in.

From Tish: *“Maybe that was what freedom meant, being in a place where one didn’t fear.”

Note: The book is based on the real-life woman Letitia Carson!

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The Christmas Light

The Christmas Light by Donna VanLiere
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I look forward to reading Donna VanLiere's Christmas novella each year as we ready ourselves for the holiday/holy days soon approaching. This year's writing focuses on several hurting families in the town of Grandon, who are trying to get back on track and somehow enjoy Christmas. Jennifer De Luca is struggling to uncover the darkness for her six-year-old daughter Avery. Ryan Mazyck and his young daughter, Sophia, are moving for work reasons and are thinking of settling near his Aunt Gloria in Grandon. Sixteen-year-old Kaylee wants to believe that everything will be ok, but right now she can't see it beyond her expanding tummy. Stephen and Lily love their little church, Grandon Community, and are helping prepare for the Christmas Nativity. Each family is brought together by the power of love and faith.

There are two ways of spreading light: to be the candle or the mirror that reflects it.

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Through the Deep Waters

Through the Deep Waters by Kim Vogel Sawyer
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

A story of grace and forgiveness: When Dinah's mother dies in the brothel where she worked, the owner of the "hotel" offers Dinah a one shot deal to cover the burial plans. Dinah feels forever branded, even as she tries to secure a position as a Harvey Girl, a respectable serving job in hotels. But her plans falls through because of her young age and Dinah settles for working as a chambermaid until she reaches 18. Can Dinah ever feel forgiven for doing something against her will?

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Harbor of the Heart

Harbor of the Heart by Katherine Spencer
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

5th in the Angel Island series, Harbor of the Heart continues the storyline between inn owner Liza Martin and carpenter/EMT Daniel Merritt. With summer approaching Daniel is considering taking his board exams over to return to the medical field but it means a season away from Liza and the inn. Plus, it means facing and overcoming his old fears. Meanwhile as he and Liza consider the cost to their relationship, a small white sailboat flounders off the shore near the inn and the sailor is thrown into the churning water, nearly drowning - if not for Daniel's quick reactions, with Liza and Claire's help. Who is this sailor that reportedly has no family except for a huge friend named Edison?

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Where Courage Calls

Where Courage Calls by Janette Oke
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

When I first started visiting our new library branch, the librarian led me Janette Oke and Snelling. Both authors have become my two of my favorites.

Beth, born into a wealthy family, is following in her aunt's footsteps - heading west to a small impoverished coal town to teach. After a very long, demanding train ride and lost luggage woes, her trip ends in a row of small shanties and a saloon. To her shock, there is no school building - the saloon is her daytime classroom. Follow Beth as she falls in love with her students and Coal Valley residents.

A follow-up to When Calls the Heart and special companion story to the Hallmark Channel series.

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Fifteen Minutes

Fifteen Minutes by Karen Kingsbury
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Zach Dylan has an amazing voice and the looks of a young Elvis Presley. When he tries out for the hot reality show 15 Minutes, Zach has already promised his family and fiancee that his faith will not be compromised. At the same time, one of the show's judges and famous female vocalists, Chandra Olson hopes that she can save one of the contestants from falling into the prison of fame and fortune. Chandra, a former 15 Minutes winner, lost her family and privacy when she followed her dreams and forgot her roots. Will Zach be snared into the same nightmare?

A very contemporary read about the price of fame....

I must agree with a few other reviewers and actually hate to write this as I admire Karen Kingsbury tremendously, but her writing is beginning to be formulaic. I found myself skimming paragraphs, something I never did in her earlier writings....

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A Home for My Heart

A Home for My Heart by Anne Mateer
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Historical fiction that tugs at your heart - Miss Sadie Sillsby helps run the Raystown Home for Orphan and Friendless Children, caring for the orphans on a daily basis and assisting the Matron and dear friend, Hazel. But when Hazel offers her the position of Matron, as she herself is marrying soon, Sadie will have to set aside her own marriage plans to Blaine. A matron can not be married and must attend to the many duties of running the orphanage, including keeping the finances straight and acquiring needed donations. Sadie accepts the position without consulting Blaine and forges ahead with her new career, even though she is sorely lacking math skills. The home continues to operate in the red and her records don't match the bank figures. On top of these problems, Sadie realizes she may soon lose Blaine to someone else. Sadie must take a hard look at herself and ask some very difficult questions...

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The Tutor's Daughter

The Tutor's Daughter by Julie Klassen
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Emma Smallwood enjoys assisting her father with his small boarding school. But, things have fallen away since the death of his wife and Emma's mother two years before. Attendance has dropped and finances are becoming tight. Emma has written to former graduates Phillip and Henry Weston's father, a baronet in Cornwall, to inquire of the two younger sons. Mr. Weston is more interested in the Smallwoods joining him at his estate on the coast and teaching the boys onsite. When Emma and her father arrive in the nearby village, no one is there to meet them so a young boy and cart are hired to take them to Ebbington Manor, where unfortunately not only had their arrival slipped Sir Giles mind but his wife, Lady Weston had not even been informed of the teaching position being filled. The rude beginning gets worse, when the younger sons, twins, do not like being taught and mystery and suspicion surround the Manor - especially at night, when howling can be heard.

Written along the lines of Jane Eyre, readers of historical and Regency romance will enjoy this novel.

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Sweet Mercy

Sweet Mercy by Ann Tatlock
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

The book opens with 60 something Eve and her grandson visiting the soon to be demolished Marryat Island Ballroom and Lodge to retrieve a beloved memento. Memories wash in as Eve thinks back on when her family moved to the lodge when she was only 17 - to get away from the horrors and corruption in St. Paul Minnesota. Her father had lost his job with the Ford Motor Company and moving back to the lodge would hopefully restore the relationship with his brother Cy who owned the Marryat. Eve's idyllic summer and new romance comes to an end when she finds that many of the townfolk are in on the hooch being bootlegged from Canada and even Cy is involved. Her once black and white standards are brought into question as Eve wrestles with the gray areas of life....

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Step of Faith

A Step of Faith by Richard Paul Evans
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Book four in the Walk series by Richard Paul Evans finds our character Alan Christoffersen, who was walking from the state of Washington to Florida, flying back to a medical center near his father’s home in Los Angeles for surgery on his recently found brain tumor. Fortunately, the tumor is found to be benign, and after spending weeks recuperating and against his father’s wishes, Alan flies back to St. Louis to continue his journey – meeting interesting and engaging people along the route. Walking provides an outlet for his jumbled, tortured thoughts and as he approaches the Florida state line, Alan realizes that he is ready to live and love again. But, he has to hold onto hope when a message is left on his cell reporting an emergency at home.

As Alan says, “For now Key West must wait. For the third time since I began, my walk has been delayed. In the beginning, I had considered these stops on my journey as interruptions - but I’m coming to understand that perhaps these detours are my journey. No matter how much I, or the rest of humanity wishes otherwise, life is not lived in smooth downhill expressways, but in the obscure, perilous trails and rocky back roads of life where we stumble and feel our way through the fog of the unknown. Life is not a sprint. It was never meant to be. It is just one step of faith after another.”


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The Reason

The Reason by William Sirls
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

During a horrible storm, lightning strikes the huge wooden cross outside of St. Thomas' Church - Pastor Jim Lindy and his almost nonexistent congregation do not have the funds to replace it. When little five year old Alex Thomas and his mother Brooke, who live with Pastor Lindy, his wife Shirley and grown son Charlie, mention it at the hospital where he's having tests done, Dr. Macey Lewis rounds up a few people to lend a hand. They include her co-worker Dr. Zach Norman, NP Kaitlyn Harby , and carpenter and volunteer Kenneth, who keeps oddly repeating, "only believe." Dr. Lewis makes quick friends with Alex and his family and although dismayed when the test conclude Alex has aggressive leukemia - she knows as a oncologist, she is the best at what she does - finding answers and helping children like Alex beat cancer. But, what do you do when leukemia will not respond to the strongest medication and treatments. Kenneth repeats, "only believe."

A compelling look at faith, doubts, and miracles...

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The Christmas Pony

The Christmas Pony by Melody Carlson
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

A sweet little Christmas story to fall in love with - it's 1937 and 8 year old Lucy wants a pony for Christmas, but times are hard, and her mama - a young widow - has to take in boarders to barely make ends meet. Grandma helps with the cooking and Lucy does a lot of chores on the neglected farm. When she walks into town to do the weekly shopping, Lucy comes across two stranded motorists. Asking them to stay at her farmhouse and fill the rooms while their car is repaired, Lucy falls in love with the exotic woman and George, her handsome companion. With one prayer answered for paying boarders, Lucy gives up her wish for a pony and prays instead for her Mama's smile to come back.

I love Melody's little Christmas books - this gem is told from Lucy's perspective and is so heartwarming and hopeful. Read with a snuggly blanket and a hot cup of tea!

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Reunion

Reunion: A Novel by Lauraine Snelling
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Great contemporary, Christian fiction by Snelling - this read is based on two families, related by blood but also best friends. Keira Johnston has just been presented a trip to Norway by her husband. The only thing stopping her from getting her passport is finding her birth certificate. When it is finally found, she is shocked and unsettled to discover that her beloved father was not her birth father. Why didn't her mother tell her and how can Keira tell the big Sorensen clan at the upcoming reunion? At the same time, her niece Kirsten Sorensen is days away from her high school graduation when she's overcome by nausea and uncertainly takes a pregnancy test. The results may keep Kirsten from accepting a college scholarship in the Fall and break her family apart. The secrets kept by both women tug at the close kinship and need to brought into the open for healing.

Very contemporary and moving, Snelling's main characters are strong women who have human flaws. Please read the Afterword to see how the story personally relates to the author.

I'm also a big fan of Snelling's Red River of the North Series - again the characters face real life and death issues as they try to farm and settle the land in the Dakota Territory, amidst sickness, hardships, and blizzards.

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