Another Romantic Christian Fiction

One of my mom's favorite authors is Tracie Peterson.  So, when Taming the Wind, book three of the Land of the Lone Star series was to be published, I agreed to read and review it.  About ten years ago, I remember Lori Wick as the most well known historical Christian fiction author.  Then came Karen Kingsbury and women like Tracie Peterson.  Some romance fiction is better than others.  Most are predictable with happy endings.  That's a discussion that I'll briefly address in this review.

In Honey for a Woman's Heart, Gladys Hunt shares a great discussion of why women do and why they should read.  One of those reasons is for enjoyment.  Taming the Wind fits into that category.  I didn't find it to be that informative about the historical time period the book is set in, but it was a good, predictable story.

Taming the Wind is easily a stand alone book, though it was the third in a series.  I just read the third in another series that was not easily read as a stand alone.  There are enough details for me, the reader, to understand the characters in this story without getting mired down in telling the previous stories all over again.    In this story, Carissa, a widow, has gone with her daughter to go stay with her sister and her family for a time.  Of course, there is the man, Tyler, who rescued Carissa from her former, abusive husband who is living nearby.

Hmmm... do you know yet what it's going to be about?  Of course!  I'm sure you can guess a large part of the plot.  The storyline centers around a cattle drive and the events before, during, and afterwards.  That's the setting for Carissa's question mark relationship with Tyler.

I can tell why so many people enjoy Ms. Peterson's books.  They are easy to read and have happy endings. On one hand, that can be a bad thing if we, as women, come to expect happy endings and the romance of stories like this.  They are romances after all and not real life.  But, if you think about it, there is a happy ending to life when you believe in Christ.  Someday, the suffering of this life will end and we will go to heaven, where we praise the Lord.

So, what's my opinion of this book?  Well, if you like Christian romances, then I'm sure you'll like this one.  It's fine.  It's a great book to curl up with in a chair and a cup of hot apple cider and escape for a few hours.

Please note that I received a complimentary copy of this book for review from Bethany House Publishing.