When Breaks the Dawn

Author: Janette Oke
Genre: Christian Fiction / Historical Fiction
Publisher: Bethany House Publishers, 1985
Pages: 250
Rating: Recommend

Synopsis: Having survived the harshness of their first year in the far Northwest, Elizabeth and Wynn, her Royal Canadian Mountie, now face new challenges. Just when they've made new friends and started a new school, they are presented with a new posting. It seems Elizabeth's dreams for a family and home of her own are not to be. Will their love for each other, hope for the future, and their faith in God carry them through the crushing disappointments?

Review: This wasn't my favorite book in the series thus far. It was a lot of hardship and sadness, but I do think Elizabeth has family come to terms with who she is and where she belongs. 

The Christmas Joy Ride

Author: Melody Carlson
Genre: Fiction / Christmas
Publisher: Baker Publishing Group, 2015
Pages: 176
Rating: Recommend

Synopsis: Miranda did not put adventure on her Christmas list, but thanks to her eighty-five-year-old neighbor, Joy, that's exactly what he's getting this year. When Joy tells Miranda that she has plans to drive an old RV decked out in Christmas decorations from their Chicago neighborhood to her new retirement digs in Phoenix - in the dead of winter, no less - the much younger Miranda insists that Joy cannot make such a trip by herself. Besides, a crazy trip with Joy would be more interesting than another Christmas home alone. Unemployed and facing foreclosure, Miranda feels she has nothing to lose by packing a bag and then heading off to Route 66. But Joy has a hidden agenda for their Christmas joyride - and a hidden problem that could derail the whole venture.

Review: Another Melody Carlson that I felt was too rushed at the end, although this ending was more plausible than that in A Christmas by the Sea. I love a good road trip, and this was a fun book.

When Comes the Spring

Author: Janette Oke

Genre: Christian Fiction / Historical Fiction

Publisher: Bethany House Publishers, 1985

Pages: 256
Rating: Highly Recommend

Synopsis: Elizabeth, the cultured young schoolteacher from the East, has braved the western frontier and spent a year teaching in a one-room schoolhouse. Now she and Wynn are planning their wedding and new life together at his outpost in the far north. While Wynn is accustomed to life in the north, Elizabeth is not. Can their love for each other sustain them through a harsh winter, loneliness, and rigors of life without any of the conveniences they're used to?

Review: I'm falling in love with this series all over again. I'm not finding anything in this book that the tv series stole and it's unfortunate. Elizabeth and Wynn had some adventures in this book that would have been fun to see on the screen.

When Calls the Heart

Author: Janette Oke
Genre: Christian Fiction / Historical Fiction
Publisher: Bethany House Publishers, 1985
Pages: 226
Rating: Highly Recommend

Synopsis: Elizabeth Thatcher is young, pretty, cultured, and educated. But when she journeys west to teach school in the foothills of the Canadian Rockies, she's completely unprepared for the conditions she encounters. Still, she's determined to succeed at the formidable task of fitting in with the locals and shaping the hearts and minds of the schoolchildren in her care.

She's just as determined not to give her heart to any of the local frontiersmen. Until she meets Wynn Delaney, a member of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police. . .

Review: I first read these books in high school - I read allll of Janette Oke's books in high school. I ate them up. Because I loved the books, I shied away from the Hallmark series of the same name. But then, over Christmas I was up late alone one evening, and decided to give the tv series a try. It became an obsession. I binge watched all 5 seasons over the course of two weeks. Then I ordered seasons 6 and 7 from Amazon.

High school was a long time ago and I knew the series was inspired by, and not based on, the originals so I was curious.

The books aren't as magical reading them now at 43, versus as a teenager, but I'm still enjoying them. I also find it interesting how the writers of the tv stories adapted different events/circumstances in the the books for television. 

It's not often I re-read books since I live by the mantra - so many books, so little time, but these are definitely worth my time.

A Christmas by the Sea

Author: Melody Carlson
Genre: Fiction
Publisher: Revell, 2018
Pages: 176
Rating: Do Not Recommend

Synopsis: When Wendy Harper inherits her family's beachside cottage in Seaside, Maine, she sees it as a way to finally pay off the debts that have mounted since her husband died. Her twelve-year-old son Jackson sees it as an exciting new start in a life that has grown rather gray without his father.

Before it can be sold, the neglected property must be renovated. Wendy and Jackson move in - temporarily, she reminds him - in order to fix the place up before Christmas. But the charming town, along with local craftsman Caleb Colton, pulls on Wendy. She knows that the most responsible thing to do is to sell the cottage and return to Ohio, but the lure of the sea - and a fresh start - is hard to resist.

Review: In a word, disappointed. I loved Carlson's book, The Happy Camper, so much that I sought out other books she had written. Even my fluffy, light books need to be able to draw me in and have some substance. This was humming along just fine, and then bam, it just ended in the most ludicrous and unbelievable of ways. There were still so many unanswered questions and undeveloped thoughts.

On another note, I can't believe it's already January 14, and I've only read one very short book so far this year. I have to get moving to hit my goal of 75.