Wednesday, July 22, 2015

Book Review: Hearts Made Whole by Jody Hedlund

Caroline Taylor has been running the lighthouse at Windmill Point since her father's death. Truth be told, she has been running it much longer than that. She takes pride in her excellent work, and even though there have been no complaints ever lodged against her, Michigan laws say that a single woman may not run a lighthouse alone. Since it's all she knows how to do, Caroline is worried that she will not be able to take care of her siblings if she is forced to leave.

Ryan Chambers is plagued by dreams, guilt, and the physical wounds of war. Turning to a bottle and pills to help him deal with the pain, he has had a difficult time holding down work and setting down roots. The lighthouse job will be perfect for him. A life where no one will ask about his wounds and he can live a quiet and peaceful life.

When their worlds collide, Caroline and Ryan agree to help each other out for a while until both can get settled on their feet. But there is danger, rules, and attraction to battle and things are just starting to get complicated.

This was a neat story. It is the second book in the series but I hadn't read the first and found it fine as a stand alone novel. I always like reading a story in a setting that I have not read before. It's interesting to learn about rules and ways of life from another time and a lighthouse was a great surrounding for this tale. The plot had some great twists that kept me reading and hoping til the very end. I liked that the problems the characters faced were deep and complicated and that they were not easy fixes. I'll probably re-read this on at least once in the future.

Thanks to Bethany House Publishers for a free copy of this book to review.

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