Reviewing Moonbow Night by Laura Frantz

Laura Frantz' latest book Moonbow Night is set in the days of Daniel Boone when our country was largely unexplored.  With a lush backdrop one could hardly expect trouble to find its way into peaceful meadows and spectacular waterfalls.  Yet, in 1777, the Revolutionary War was being fought on the one hand and surveyors were marking off land to be taken by settlers eager to own acreage. Danger surrounds the world of Temperance Tucker and  her family.  Fronting the Shawnee River, her family built the Moonbow Inn, a haven for travelers and traders alike.  Her father had trouble with surveyors and lived well hidden beyond the inn. He trained Tucker to hunt, shoot and track better than most men. Her brother, mother and dear friend cooked and cared for weary travelers.

Sion Morgan led a surveying team over the dangerous territory. Weary and hungry his team stopped at the Moonbow and here is where the story really begins.  As fate would have it, the group needs a guide into dangerous areas filled with Native Americans who have no patience for these  surveying "land stealers." Temperance is charged with guiding the team at the behest of her father.  The danger is great but it doesn't take long for Sion to realize she can hold her own to his skill with tracking and shoots as well as he.  She is an unwilling guide but the story provides her a rich journey and the love of a man worthy of her.  

I received a copy of Moonbow Night from Revell for an honest review and I enjoyed many hours reading it.   I was intrigued by the title and all the more so when I learned that "Moonbows or lunar rainbows are rare natural atmospheric phenomena that occur when the Moon’s light is reflected and refracted off water droplets in the air."   

I would love to see a moonbow!  Laura Frantz is a wonderful story teller, weaving history into the lives of the rich characters she creates.  If you enjoy historical fiction I recommend you reserve a copy of this book for your collection. I am in awe of the men and women who settled our country and faced countless trials with more courage than I can imagine. 

Sunday Reading: The Mistress of Tall Acre

Sophie Menzies is one of those forgotten women left behind after the Revolutionary War. Her father, a Tory, fled to England after a near miss with the bucket of tar, leaving his wife and daughter alone at Three Chimneys.  Her mother has died and her brother is among the missing casualties of the war. Her father's political bent has left her with is poor reputation and she ekes a living with minimal resources.  Anyone but Sophie would be bitter but she is of a good nature and pleasure in the smallest of things.  She is the ideal heroine. She is pretty, she loves with her whole heart and is sensible.

After a chance meeting with Lili Cate Ogilvy, Sophie is captivated with the motherless child. Her father, General Seamus Ogilvy, a decorated war hero has come home to Tall Acre to raise his daughter alone.  After the war he "rescued" her from his late wife's sister's home under the cover of darkness. His quiet resolve in being a father who is there for his daughter is not lost on Sophie, whose own father was distant and cruel.  She becomes a resource for Seamus and becomes a favorite inside the walls of Tall Acre.  

Mystery shrouds the circumstances of the man seen watching both Tall Acre and Three Chimneys. As the story unfolds we see the blossoming of romance between Seamus and Sophie that may or may not be.  There are shadows of the past that keep invading the calm after so many years of war.  Laura Frantz is a wonderful writer of historical fiction and Tall Acre is a reflection of good research and masterful story telling. The characters are interesting and believable and engaging enough to make you want to come back and finish the book. I did and I stayed up way too late to finish it!

Love's Fortune in Review

When I finished reading Love's Fortune, I wanted to learn more about the heroine, Rowena Ballantyne's life beyond the life between the covers. I fell in love with Wren, as she is called by her father and those closest to her. Laura Frantz really hit the mark in finding the balance between love and the innocence of a young woman raised simply in Kentucky who rises to the heights of a debutante making her debut in the high society of Pennsylvania.

Raised by her father following her mother's death, Wren follows her parents with her gift of music. She is content with her life at home with her father who handcrafted beautiful violins and was taken completely surprised when a letter arrives from grandfather Ballantyne summoning him home to Pennsylvania where he is needed.  Soon thereafter, she is on a river boat piloted by handsome and mysterious James Sackett, a handsome man who is much more than pilot of a riverboat.

With vague memories of her father's family from her early childhood Wren finds it disconcerting to be so suddenly thrust into this new life. Her grandparents are lovely, but her spinster aunt Andra finds fault with everything about Wren. When her father must travel to manage business affairs for her grandfather, he leaves her in the care of Andra, who he believes has Wren's best interests at heart.


An engagement, an untimely death, a disconcerting escort for the "season" and uncertainty about when she will see her father again make life difficult for Rowena. She must prepare for the season with  the fittings for gowns and lessons on becoming a lady. Wren is a spunky individualist though and successfully carries out part of the season in her own way.

Here is a peek at getting the cover art done and a few words from Laura Frantz:

http://youtu.be/6-pqeyQoN9Y

I enjoyed the book and spent many hours reading it over our Labor-Day weekend travels. The story had many heartwarming sub-stories interwoven seamlessly within the book. Also, given the year of 1850 when Wren makes her way to Pennsylvania there are the Abolitionist sympathizers who smuggle travelers to the Underground Railway.  Adventure, romance and a strong faith make this book a good read!