ON 4/19 by Lisa Heaton

This book was a real winner for me!! My heart goes "pitter-patter" just thinking about this story.  When I finished, I felt like reading it all over again.  If you love a fairy tale romance with a strong christian theme then you will want to read this story.  It is the story of an unconventional arrangement that turns into two people finding the love of their life.  It is also the story of letting go and letting God do the work and waiting on Him to change a life, even if it means giving up your heart's desire.  It brought tears to my eyes at one point in the story, but I finished the book with a sigh of contentment and wanting to read more by this author.

When I got into the story and saw the story-line and the age differences between these two main characters I didn't see how the author could make this work and seem plausible, but she did!  I fell in love with Chelsea Whittaker and John Keller and the amazing love that grew as they spent more and more time together.  Could a college student, Chelsea, find the unconventional job she had working for a millionaire, John Keller, and experience the travel and lifestyle she did, remain true to her religious beliefs and find happiness with a guy twice her age??  The way this author writes this story makes it seem very possible.  I highly recommend this story and I am hoping this author hits a home run on the next book I read of hers, because this one was great!!  I might also add that the cover for this book was very good and truly fits in with the story.

WRONGLY ACCUSED by Laura Scott

This book is labeled as a riveting, inspirational, suspense, romance and I would have to agree wholeheartedly with all those descriptive terms.  What it doesn't tell you is that within the first few pages that action begins and doesn't stop until the very end.  It doesn't take long to read, one, because it is a short book, but two, because you don't want to put it down until you are through.

Caleb O'Malley has finally been released from prison after  14 months where he was "wrongly accused" for his wife's murder.  Now he just wants to pick up his 5 year old daughter from her foster care home and take care of her.  But when bullets fly as he stands at the door to the foster care home he must run, with his child and  Noelle Whitman, his daughter's foster care mother (single woman of course) and while running, try to figure out why someone is after him and why someone tried to frame him for his wife's murder.  In the meantime Noelle must decide if she is going to trust this man while she clings to protecting his daughter from any more emotional or physical harm.  You know there is going to be romance between these two people, but it is slow in coming because they are kind of busy just staying alive. I appreciated the way Noelle's strong trust in  the Lord came out in this story and how it influenced Caleb and Kaitlin in ways that you could see.   Near the end there is a suspenseful scene at the home of one of Caleb's "buddies", while Noelle and Kaitlin are hiding in the basement.  It was one of the scenes that I wished I wasn't reading late at night as it did put the fear into me  that I am sure those two people experienced.  A good first story in the "SWAT: Top Cops series".  Be prepared to be captured from the very beginning as you run for your life with Caleb, Noelle and Kaitlin.

COLORADO PROMISE by Charlene Whitman

This story takes place on the Front Range of Colorado in 1875. The author has lived in the area she writes about and you get a sense of what the land was like back then, the weather, the terrain and the beauty that people found in living out in wide open spaces.

Emma Bradshaw is looking forward to going to school and hopefully becoming a botanical illustrator.  She loves the city life in New York and her family is well to do and enjoys having things done for them.  So when her father decides to pack up and move to Greely, Colorado, Emma is heartbroken and her dreams are ruined.  But in Greeley and on the open range she will find a new beauty and a draw of her heart that she was never expecting.  Two men will capture her interest and she must decide which one is right for her.

Lucas Rawlings in the area veterinarian living on a ranch with a dear Indian lady and her two sons.  He is trying to get his life back among the living after having lost his wife and baby during childbirth.  He believes Emma is the person who was meant to come into his life and change it for the better.  Randall Turnbull comes to Greely to work for his father.  He doesn't want to live there and longs to be back East once again.  He grew up knowing Emma and their lifestyles are very compatible.  

This was an enjoyable story to read.  Although I thought it was kind of slow at the beginning, it picked up speed and held my attention to the very end.  I liked how Emma's whole perspective on life changed as she opened her eyes to her new surroundings, how she fought for what she wanted.  I also liked how both Lucas and Randall had to face their fears and come to grips with what they wanted in life.  A midst some harsh conditions on the front range you will grow to appreciate all the people there and their different backgrounds.  There will be struggles, hardships, hatred and fears, but through it all you will find abiding love and steadfast endurance as these people formed a lifestyle in the Colorado territory.

ANGEL'S DEN by Jamie Carie

This was a good story by Jamie Carie; I enjoyed reading it, thought the cover and title both went with the story line very well, but it wasn't my favorite story by this author.  The back cover says it best, "Not everyone who looks like an angel. . . is one."  This was surely true in this story.  Emma Daring, along with everyone else in town, thinks Eric Montclaire is a handsome, well-to-do gentleman about town so when he courts Emma and they marry she thinks she is on cloud nine.  But Eric is an evil man who abuses his wife and will murder people to get what he wants.  When he sets out on an expedition along the Lewis and Clark trail he hires Luke Bowen as his cartographer.  Luke will soon discover that Emma needs help and he is the man God has sent to hopefully free her from this nightmare.  But when a murder is discovered can the twisted lies and deceit take down the innocent and let the evil one go free?

This was a book that catches your interest from the beginning and has you wondering what is going to happen next.  I must say I wasn't expecting the ending but liked it very much.  Wickedness and abuse were evident, but God's love and faithfulness will never leave nor forsake the righteous - we just need to learn the lesson that Luke and Emma did, that we need to wait on the Lord and see how He will work all things out.

GIFTS OF HOPE by Angela Hunt

This was another good story in "The Gift Series".  I will say that I liked book one, "Gifts of Life", slightly better then this second story, but both were very good. Although you could easily read this as a stand alone, you will meet people from book one in this story.  It was a story as the title says, of hope.  A hope for a second chance at a love someone thought was gone for good.

Daniel Mason is a rising piano player who by a freak fishing accident injures his hand and needs physical therapy to  hopefully regain usage in his fingers and be able to continue in his love of what he does.  He finds himself seeking the help of Julia Grant who is good at what she does in the physical therapy field.  The "problem" is that he left Julia years ago to go after his dream, Julia has since married, had a child and lost her husband.  Can they both rebuild the relationship they once had?

I liked the dynamics of Daniel slowly working his way into the hearts and lives of the Grant family.  Abigail, Julia's daughter, was a little girl with the ability to keep up with the best of the adults and I enjoyed getting to know her and her antics.  Julia is harboring a secret though that she will need to eventually share with Daniel, but it will be hard for her to open up and begin to trust him again.

These seem like very real people, with very real problems and I liked the way the author brought the gospel message into her story line and how it will eventually change hearts and give people that "gift of hope".

The look, does God really care what I wear? by Nancy Leigh DeMoss

If you want an excellent short book (its only 50 pages long) on the impact of what we as Christian women wear, then I highly recommend you pick this book up and read it.  If you have young teens who don't think it matters what they wear, then go through this book with them.  It is "Biblical, practical and motivating".  So whether you are a parent, a woman, or a teen take the challenge and discover truth about clothing and modesty and make wise choices about what you wear based on God's perspective.

GIFTS OF LIFE by Heather Hunt

Natalie Mercer is a flight nurse married to Donovan a trauma surgeon.  She thought life was going good for her - she liked her job, she was in love with her husband and about to tell him the news that she was expecting his baby.  That all changed in a tragic moment in time that will take you by surprise.  Fast forward. . . . Natalie is now working as a flight nurse for Mountain EMS and learning to live independently on her own, pregnant and without a husband.  The pilot of the EMS is Jake Adams, who doesn't exactly hit if off with Natalie, but they will soon become very close friends, and watching the romance build will capture your heart and win you over.

I loved how the author captured your attention right off and how quickly you got to know Natalie, Jake and his adorable nieces, and the folks at the EMS.  These were delightful people who captured my heart.  I adored how Jake took Natalie under his wing and become her birthing coach and how good these two were together.   Although there is sorrow in this story, there is joy that comes forth that makes you feel good about having sat down and gotten to know these people in the "Gifts of Life".

This is book one in "The Gift Series" and I will begin book two next, "Gifts of Hope".  Be prepared for trauma, but be encouraged by the tender love that develops between two wonderful people.  Enjoy!

A LOVE OF HER OWN by Maggie Brendan

This is book 3 in this "Heart of the West" trilogy and by the time you finish the book you will be familiar with the folks in Lewistown, Montana and feeling right at home there.  I especially liked Miss Margaret who runs a boarding house in the town with her two daughters.  She is a woman full of wisdom and love.  And she will need to use both in dealing with April McBride.

April arrives in town almost late for her brother Josh's wedding.  Then he and his bride leave on their honeymoon and April sticks around until they will return.  She is very hard to like until you get about half way through this story and then the Lord begins to work in her life.  Romans 12:3 will become real for her: "For I say, through the grace given unto me, to every man that is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think; but to think soberly according as God hath dealt to every man the measure of faith."  A good verse for us all, but one especially good for April who was always thinking way to highly of herself and treating others so bad that I almost felt she was beyond liking.  Don't give up on her though, the Lord will do a work in her life.

Wes is trying to become a better person (you meet him in book two, The Jewel of His Heart") as he trains and sells horses on his ranch near town.  He is learning how to treat the ladies with respect and be a gentleman around them, but April makes it very hard for him to practice what he knows is right.  They don't exactly hit it off at first, but over time they both will see the good in the other person.

This was an enjoyable series of stories.  This one you could read as a stand alone book, but you would miss out on a lot of the background you would gain from reading the stories in the order they were written.  I encourage you to sit back and enjoy these folks who live in the "Heart of the West".