Most Helpful Customer Reviews
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Pretty good..., December 24, 2008
This review is from: Dangerous Heart (Westward Hearts Series #3) (Paperback)
After reading the first two books of the "Westward Hearts"- "Defiant Heart" and "Distant Heart"- I was looking forward to the newest of the series, "Dangerous Heart." Ginger Freeman was introduced in the second book and was comedic enough to have her own little love story. Born to a leader of a shifty cowboy gang, she's determined to unleash her vengeance on Grant Kelley, the doctor who let her brother die in a stage coach robbery. A stage coach robbery that her pa initiated. Grant has his own issues; his wife died in that stage coach robbery and he's been mourning ever since. While he is prejudiced against the gang, he did treat the young man. Due to the young man's crimes, he was sent to prison and hadn't been able to contact his family since. Ginger discovers that Grant is traveling on a wagon train; her job is to join the train and kill the doctor. However, things don't go according to plan. She not only finds an adoptive family with the women there, she finds herself falling in love with Grant, and with the Savior that these kind people worship.
You can pretty much guess what happens next. After an abduction and a rescue, the heroine and hero set their problems aside and end up together. It was a good read, entertaining enough, but it just didn't measure up to the first two books. In "Defiant Heart" Fannie was such a strong, independent and remarkable heroine that you couldn't help but relate to her. And in "Distant Heart," your heart just broke for Toni, and her romance with Sam was bittersweet. Actually, "Distant Heart" was my favorite of the whole series.
As for "Dangerous Heart," it was a pleasurable book that kept me busy for a couple hours. I am looking forward to whatever Tracey Bateman comes up with next. She's one of those up and coming new authors who lends a fresh voice to the Christian fiction market.
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews
Was this review helpful to you? Yes
No
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
He loves us all -- rich, poor, faithful, or outlaw, June 12, 2009
This review is from: Dangerous Heart (Westward Hearts Series #3) (Paperback)
I was totally enthralled with this book. Literally after finishing it, I felt like I came out of a spell or deep sleep or something because I was refreshed by it!
I fell in love with the main character Ginger - a rough-edged woman trying to figure out how to live a good life and escape her past. Her heart and her desires are struggles we can all relate to whether in the past or present. Ultimately her struggle with who God is and if she could really believe in Him.
This reminds me of reading a Jude Deveraux romance, without all the "extra" information that I'd rather have left to my imagination! I would definitely pick up another one of Tracey's books when I"m looking for a great romance/adventure book to read!
Ironically, this morning in my own Bible study group we were discussing favoritism in James, which relates to this book in a lot of ways. God shows no favoritism and we should remember that. He loves us all -- rich, poor, faithful, or outlaw. He loves us. I really loved how this stuck out in this book.
The best part about this book (other than the good story you're drawn into) was a part that Tracey addresses in her letter about the book " If God is God, how can He forget?"... "He forgets for His sake." .. He blots out our past, any confessed sin because He chooses to..." a simple yet profound understanding that we have a hard time remembering. It was an eye opener for me and I appreciated the discussions in this book and choices that where made real in my heart and mind!
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews
Was this review helpful to you? Yes
No
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Inspirational story with outlaws and wagon-trains, November 16, 2008
This review is from: Dangerous Heart (Westward Hearts Series #3) (Paperback)
Perfect for : Personal reading, Book Club reading (Discussion questions are included in the back of the book)
In a nutshell: I enjoyed this book a lot, it has a great mix of adventure, romance, danger and life in a wagon-train! Having very little female influence in her life growing up, Ginger Freeman is now a little rough around the edges, but it makes her very lovable and refreshing. Raised within a band of outlaws, her original intent when joining the wagon-train was to kill Grant, the man she believes had a hand in the death of her older brother. She finds that Grant is a skilled doctor with a willingness to help others, and a faith that runs deep. Now she is faced with a choice - go through with her plan, or return to the outlaws without having avenged her brother's death. As a reader, I got to see the slow transformation of Ginger as her faith grew. Once I got into the story, I couldn't put the book down. It was a very enjoyable read, and I'd like to feel that I learned a few things about prairie life and the west.
My Review:
I really did enjoy this book, but think I would have liked it even better if I had read the two previous books. The book is great as a stand-alone book, but I did see parts that referred to the earlier story in Ginger's life, that were most likely filled in with the previous books. That said, the book really was fine to read all by itself.
Characters: Tracey's book was filled with fascinating characters such as Lane (a despicable outlaw), Sam Two Feathers (religious leader/Native American within the wagon train), Ginger (main character, raised in a band of outlaws, bent on revenge), Web (Ginger's good-for-nothing "pa" and outlaw leader), Grant (the wagon-train doctor whose wife was killed during a raid by the outlaws led by Web), I could go on and on - there were a few more important characters, but in all they were very well-developed and it was great to see some of the characters have a change of heart and gain in faith. If you get a chance to pick up the book, please come back and let me know how you like Miss Sadie. She is possibly one of my favorite characters in quite a while!
Story-Line: It was a faith-filled (but not preachy) book, teaching forgiveness and instilling hope in both the characters and the reader. Taking place in the 1850's, a wagon-train headed for Oregon runs into a band of outlaws and has to face the odds when Cholera runs through the community. If that isn't enough to encourage a person to find faith, add in three scheming outlaws (at least), a wealthy man heading west to start a new life with his two kids, a doctor who lost his wife during a raid by those same outlaws, and a girl who was raised by outlaws, who is now surrounded by open, honest, faith-filled friends. It was very entertaining and enjoyable.
Readability: I found the book easy to read. The authors style and pace were both good.
Overall: A fun book that ends the Westward Hearts trilogy very well. If you are a fan of Christian fiction, prairie life, wagon-trains, etc, you will enjoy this book.
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews
Was this review helpful to you? Yes
No
|
