Ramblings-n-Writings

Posts Tagged ‘Christian fiction’

ABOUT THE BOOK

The Wedding Is All Planned…
Someone Just Needs to Tell the Bride

In 1860s Seattle, redwoods were plentiful, but women scarce. Yet a man with a wife could secure 640 acres of timberland for free.

Joe Denton doesn’t have a wife. His died before she could follow him to Seattle and now the local judge is threatening to take away his claim. In desperation, he buys himself a Mercer bride–one of the eastern widows and orphans brought to the Territory by entrepreneur Asa Mercer.

Anna Ivey’s journey west with Mercer is an escape from the aftermath of the Civil War. She signed on to become a cook–not a bride. When she’s handed over to Denton, her stubborn refusal to wed jeopardizes his land. With only a few months before he loses all he holds dear, can he convince this provoking, but beguiling, easterner to become his lawfully wedded wife?

If you would like to read the first chapter of A Bride In The Bargain, go HERE

MY THOUGHTS

Deeanne Gist, the bestselling author of A Bride Most Begrudging and The Measure of a Lady, has done it again. She’s written another wonderful historical romance that’s sure to hit the bestselling list.

The story of Anna and Joe is a fun, quirky, love story filled with challenges, stubbornness, and realizations. I love the fresh setting  in this story. (I haven’t read too many books set in a lumberjack camp in the middle of nowhere. ) And I love Deeanne’s descriptions, particularly as Joe tries to win Anna’s heart.

Deeanne is known as an “edgy” author when it comes to her depiction of relationships. To me, her descriptions of how the characters view the opposite s*x add to the story, heighten the character’s emotional state, and make the story more realistic. Descriptions are not vivid (TV is far worse, IMO), however, exercise caution for younger readers. (Moms, please read first before giving to your teenage daughter.) Personally, I believe that if a person can read Song of Solomon without a problem, she should be able to read Deeanne’s stories.

Breach of Trust by DiAnn Mills is the first in her new Call of Duty series. Paige Rogers, a former CIA agent, is hiding out in Split Creek, Oklahoma. She started a new life as the small town’s librarian, attends Friday night football games, cares for the local high school kids, and finds herself falling in love with Miles Laird, the football coach. In all appearances, she’s just an average person.

But seven years ago, she “survived every CIA agent’s worst nightmare – a covert mission gone terribly wrong and a betrayal by one man she thought she could trust.” Now, she isn’t who she says she is. She’s living another life to protect her family from danger.

Then, that man she thought she could trust, the only other survivor of that mission, shows up. If she chooses to expose him for his wrongdoing, especially in his bid for governor, her family and those she loves will be his next target. Paige is forced to choose between risking her parents’ lives if she returns to the CIA or working for the man she knows is responsible for the deaths of many.

Paige’s choices are complicated by her faith in God, something she didn’t have when she was in the CIA before. If she returns to the CIA, could she handle shooting to kill or ordering someone’s death? How does a Christian agent deal with the ethics of the job?

Breach of Trust is a skilled portrayal of the world of a CIA agent – once an agent, always an agent. I like how Author Diann Mills attempts to answer how a Christian would deal with the duties required.

While Paige is a Christian, the story isn’t “preachy” – no long sermons or religious discussions. Mills uses Paige’s every day life and struggles to illustrate how a Christian should respond to adversity and how every decision should be placed at God’s feet.

The suspense element kept me turning the pages and cheering for Paige and those around her. I do have to say that I figured out who the small town “mole” was early on even though there was no concrete evidence until the person was exposed. Now, doesn’t that make you wonder what all happens in the book?
If you would like to read the first chapter of Breach Of Trust, go HERE

Watch the Book Trailer: