Picture someone 9 years old, living in New Orleans in 1853 (having imigrated over with your parents and siblings as Irish laborers). Your parents die and you are forced to live with relatives who really don't want you; so they give your 2 youngest sisters away and then take you and your other sister and drop you off at a brothel house where you become in high demand. Not exactly a good start to life or one that we would ever wish on anyone. Now fast forward to 1874 (21 years have past) and this little girl is now all grown up (her name she has changed to Laura Foster). She has moved to Texas with alot of money she has finally made in the brothel house and wants to start over as a "lady" who has lost her husband. So she opens Foster's Boardinghouse and becomes well known and liked in the community. But can her boardinghouse and new lifestyle really disguise the woman she'd been and the life she has led??
Now enter the pastor in town, Brand McCormick who is a widower with two small children (Janie and Sam who are really hard not to like even though they tend to get in trouble alot). He starts to show an interest in Laura and she tries to tell him nicely that she will never marry. But Brand is a hard man to take no for an answer (and that is one of the reasons I liked him so well). So what happens and who will get hurt?? Hopefully I have sparked your interest and you will want to read the book and find out.
This is the first book I have read by this author and I thought she did a great job of putting you there at the time and helping you really understand these two main characters and what they were going through. There were many spiritual lessons to be learned in this story, like "things don't bring us happiness. Happiness is something we carry in our hearts. Like love." and how people who go to church and say they believe in forgiveness have to really prove it when they have to open their hearts and live the truth they claim to believe. Brand was "cheerful, eternally optimistic and compassionate". He had a quiet confidence and alot of charm. I loved the way he reached out and drew Laura in. Hopefully you will too!
There are two other books in this series, which I hope to read also; Heart of Lies and Heart of Glass.
Now enter the pastor in town, Brand McCormick who is a widower with two small children (Janie and Sam who are really hard not to like even though they tend to get in trouble alot). He starts to show an interest in Laura and she tries to tell him nicely that she will never marry. But Brand is a hard man to take no for an answer (and that is one of the reasons I liked him so well). So what happens and who will get hurt?? Hopefully I have sparked your interest and you will want to read the book and find out.
This is the first book I have read by this author and I thought she did a great job of putting you there at the time and helping you really understand these two main characters and what they were going through. There were many spiritual lessons to be learned in this story, like "things don't bring us happiness. Happiness is something we carry in our hearts. Like love." and how people who go to church and say they believe in forgiveness have to really prove it when they have to open their hearts and live the truth they claim to believe. Brand was "cheerful, eternally optimistic and compassionate". He had a quiet confidence and alot of charm. I loved the way he reached out and drew Laura in. Hopefully you will too!
There are two other books in this series, which I hope to read also; Heart of Lies and Heart of Glass.
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1 comment:
Judy,
Thank you for the lovely review. I'm so thrilled you enjoyed Heart of Stone. Aloha, Jill Marie Landis
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