Sunday Review: Where Hope Prevails

If you follow Janette Oke you are no stranger to wonderful stories that capture our hearts and beg to be read again and again. Where Hope Prevails is just such a story.  Fans of the Hallmark series When Calls the Heart will delight in this companion tale of Elizabeth Thacker and her dashing Mountie Jack Thornton.  Where Hope Prevails, book 3 in Return to The Canadian West is a collaboration with Lauren Oke Logan.

Our story begins as Elizabeth returns to her beloved Coal Valley  to find some unsettling changes. While she was visiting her family over the summer, many new families have settled in Coal Valley causing is a housing shortage. Her room at Miss Molly's has been rented to someone else. She will be living alone for the first time in her life in a small apartment.

More families meant more students. As she pondered how to teach so many extra pupils she discovered that an additional teacher was hired. Not just any teacher but Mr. Robert Harris Hughes. A man with two last names whose beliefs are vastly different than Beth's with teaching style including a modern philosophical method delivered in a superior manner.  She is determined that his modern philosophical ideas will not suit her Coal Valley students.  Hang onto your seats as sparks fly with pure entertainment between Elizabeth and Mr. Harris Hughes.

Adding all these new things to the mix, she is still waiting for Jack (Jarrick) to propose.  He is notably absent in Coal Valley as his work takes him along to other small towns in the area.  It is just one more adjustment to make.  All in all she has not had the desired return she longed for when she got off the train in her beloved Coal Valley.

This is a story about change and how one young woman faces all the new and very uncertain things in her life. As she faces each change she is reminded of her hopes, dreams and her faith. In true Janette Oke fashion, we are given some life lessons.  Elizabeth learns that she can't control everything in her life. She would like to have everything in its place. People don't always embrace life the same way we would like them to. All in all, there is good in everyone, even those with whom we disagree. How much better it is when we learn to discern their good qualities and give loyalty where it is deserved. If you read just one of the books in this series, I recommend that you chose Where Hope Prevails.  Elizabeth Thacker is a wonderful heroine and in this book particularly she grows in wisdom and faith.  Four s

The Elite Guardians Rock It In "Without Warning"

Without Warning, Book 2 in Lynette Eason's Elite Guardian Series is without a doubt one thrilling suspense ride beginning with page one.  Daniel Matthews, owner of a few restaurants called A Taste of Yesterday is working late when he hears sounds in the cellar of the historical building.  Unable to concentrate, he treads downstairs only to find the door partially open, tail lights moving away and the body of a chef he had recently fired hanging from a chain.

Katie Singleton, bodyguard by profession is on the scene quickly after she noticed law enforcement lights near Daniel Matthews restaurant. His niece Riley is one of Katie's self defense students, making this incident one she just can't drive by.  Her work with the Elite Guardians frequently links her with local law enforcement members so it was no surprise to find Detective Quinn Holcombe leading the investigation.  The surprise came after she met Daniel and they received a call about a second crime, this one about a fire at his other store location.

Someone was after Daniel. That much he knew but was at a loss to fathom. The only person who had a complaint was already dead.  As the Guardians are hired by his niece Riley for protection the mystery just gets bigger.  Fearing for Riley's safety he agreed to the protection but not until after the perpetrator goes to further lengths to try to kill him.

Layer by layer this case is solved and while there were a few red herrings, I was surprised at how neatly Lynette tied up the case. I barely guessed the killer until the end.  In the meantime, this is a good read with good interaction between well developed characters.  I recommend this for your fall reading list complete with a mug of your favorite tea or coffee.  If you haven't already read the first book of  the series, Always Watching I recommend it as well. Both books can be read stand alone or one after the other. (After all, Fall is a good time for reading)