His Steadfast Love by Golden Keyes Parsons

Set in Texas during the Civil War, Amanda Belle is determined to care for her younger sisters after her parents pass away. When Union soldiers occupy their home for awhile, she comes to care for Captain Kent Littlefield, a Pennsylvania native. Since her brother is in the Confederate Army, Amanda is torn between love and family. She never excepts the war to last long, nor for all the pain it brings to her family. The North and South were never the same after the war, and only with God's help were both sides able to forgive their enemies. This is a typical story of life during the Civil War. A little mix of the North and South mini-series and Gone with the Wind. The reader gets a true picture of life on the battlefields, prision for the soldiers, and those at home trying to survive with very little. Thanks Thomas Nelson for providing me with a free copy of this book to review!

The Doctor's Lady by Jody Hedlund

Bethany House provided me a free copy of The Doctor's Lady to review. Set in 1836, the story begins with Priscilla White feeling the call to be a missionary to India. She has grown up with all the comforts of a wealthy family, yet has been diagnosed with infertility and feels no one wants her. A young doctor Eli Ernest comes to their church with plans to go to Oregon Territory as a missionary. He is headstrong and only wants to get to the mission field. He feels a wife would only slow him down, and the trip would be too hard for a woman. However, the mission board will only allow married couples to go to the mission field. So they agree that a business arrangement will allow them to still fulfill their mission to God, so they hastily marry and head on their journey West. Eli plans an annulment for Priscilla as soon as they arrive. This is a true story of the first white woman to cross the Continental Divide and start a mission to the Nez Perce natives. Author Jody Hedlund does a terrific job making you feel like you are on the trip west with Eli and Priscilla. I couldn't put the book down! I loved the history and adventure in the story, and a map in the front of the book to show their stops along the way really added to the story! This is the first novel I've read from Hedlund, and I will certainly read another.