This is my second book to read by Witemeyer and I enjoyed it just as immensely.

The orphan train in the beginning immediately gripped me. I loved this patchwork family—their diversities, their struggles, their secrets, and their needs. Then add Logan into the mix with his own problems, and I found a fantastic array of characters.

I thought the spiritual content was a decent balance. It strengthened more as the story progressed, and held a powerful punch at the climax. I appreciated that the characters weren’t perfect but had areas in which to grow spiritually—people to call them out and challenge them about how they’re following God.

The romance was believably progressed. Quite a few mentions of feelings and desires (noticing the brawn and handsomeness, the beauty and physical build), a few semi-detailed kisses, and, in the end, masked comments about marriage intimacy. I would recommend this content for girls 18+.

There was also a bit of violence in here with murders or attempted murders and descriptions to go with both. They fit the story, but some readers might want to be notified of such.

*I received this book from Bethany House and happily provided my honest review*

The characters in this book were so diverse: two trail-worn scouts, a traitor, and bratty general’s son? What a great combination for a wilderness mission smuggling gold!

I loved the complexity of this book all the way around—like I already mentioned, the characters were individually unique yet each with hidden secrets (some very dark) of their own. Half of the time, I wasn’t sure what would unravel next with their character. The guessing game kept my interest piqued.

And then there was the plot. Just the setting of posing as a family to safely escape the scrutiny of enemies they might pass hyped up the tension. And then there was the more intimate tension as trail-tested Matthew had to pair up with the bratty Rufus and Mercy (another scout) had to pretend her marriage to the traitor Elias. There was definitely enough action and excitement to keep the story going forward—and yet, at all times, it was very believable.

Because Mercy and Elias were pretending marriage, it did make for some crude comments by others. And then there were their whole feelings for each other. For those who like romance, I suppose the romance thread was well-done and their affections for each other took a steady climb instead of unrealistic plunge. For a conservative reader, though, I definitely wouldn’t recommend this for conservative readers under 18, due to the comments that were made.

Two of the characters were very easily seen as Christians from chapter one. It didn’t dig into their personal spiritual lives quite as much as I had hoped, but the author definitely wasn’t afraid to mention God and seeking Him throughout the characters’ lives. At the same time, I found that there were several light uses of the Lord’s Name (like, “____ but she was obstinate” type).

Reading this book makes me very interested in the other books in the series by other authors.

*I received this book from Celebrate Lit and happily provided my honest review*

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Michelle Griep’s been writing since she first discovered blank wall space and Crayolas. She is the author of historical romances: The Innkeeper’s Daughter, 12 Days at Bleakly Manor, The Captive Heart, Brentwood’s Ward, A Heart Deceived, Undercurrent and Gallimore, but also leaped the historical fence into the realm of contemporary with the zany romantic mystery Out of the Frying Pan. If you’d like to keep up with her escapades, find her at www.michellegriep.com or stalk her on Facebook, Twitter, or Pinterest.