Cora can't wait to leave the prairie. When her city beau, George Merrill, fails to rescue her, Cora embraces the truth - this land is her home. She opens her heart to the people and discovers life is far better than she'd ever thought it coluld be. Aaron Stark has loved Cora since the moment he saw her emerging from hollowed sycamore tree after a blizzard. Of course, he knows she can never love him - he's poorly educatefd and couldf never offer her the life she once knew. But Coras has come to love Aaron..... if only he'd believe her. His claim to having been "born again" and George's arrival from St. Louis complicate matters, but Cora wants to convince Aaron of the truth of her love. Will she allow God to move her heart too?
Mildred Colvin has been writing sweet inspirational romance since 2001, and is an award-winning author of eighteen novels in both historical and contemporary themes. She is a member of American Christian Fiction Writers, and is active in two very special critique groups. She is also active in her church and enjoys special times with her husband, children, and grandchildren. Her hobbies, when she has time, include quilting, photography, and gardening. Of course, reading is more than a hobby. It’s a way of life. Mother of Jonathan Colvin
I just wanted more. Every character kind of frustrated me at some point. This concept had good bones and I mostly enjoyed what I read, but it simply felt like it didn't live up to its potential in my opinion.
Only gets 3 stars because I deliberately sought it out. Free. Predictable. Passed the time. Unremarkable save for some honest depictions of early backwoods settlers.
Before I get into what I liked, there were two things about this book that did not work for me. First, the cover shows a woman with too contemporary a look for a story set in the 1830s. Secondly, throughout the story, I kept trying to find the reason for the title, deception. Many possible titles occurred to me, but none of them had to do with deception after about the first fourth of the book. That being said, I enjoyed the setting of the book, as I was less familiar with the original settling of southwest Missouri. But again, a quick Google search showed me that the city was founded approximately two years before the time in which the story alleges it was a community of more than three hundred persons. These kinds of inconsistencies keep me from giving Colvin a chance to draw me in with the remainder of the series. It was ok, but there are so many other options out there, I don't plan to read anymore of her work unless it shows up on my free list.
Picked this one up because I read a Heartsong by M. J. Conner, which is a sister team, part of whom is Mildred Colvin. Style is definitely on par with M. J. Conner's. This one is a bit fast and has a few moments of melodrama and cliche. And it never really explains the born again concept (and I'm not entirely sure it is historically accurate, though I can't say it isn't either). On the whole, well written and realistic feeling.
loved this book! not the usual cheap cookie cutter romance paperback; rather, an excellent little love story, which includes characters accepting Christ as their Savior :) one of my favorites