Hearts Made Whole

Hearts Made Whole

About the book: Hearts Made Whole (Bethany House, June 2015) Can she forgive the hurting man who costs her the role she loves? After her father's death, Caroline Taylor has grown confident running the Windmill Point Lighthouse. But in 1865 Michigan, women aren't supposed to have such roles, so it's only a matter of time before the lighthouse inspector appoints a new keeper---even though Caroline has nowhere else to go and no other job available to her. Ryan Chambers is a Civil War veteran still haunted by the horrors of battle. He's secured the position of lighthouse keeper mostly for the isolation---the chance to hide from his past is appealing. He's not expecting the current keeper to be a feisty and beautiful woman who's angry with him for taking her job and for his inability to properly run the light. When his failings endanger others, he and Caroline realize he's in no shape to run the lighthouse, but he's unwilling to let anyone close enough to help. Caroline feels drawn to this wounded soul, but with both of them relying on that single position, can they look past their loss to a future filled with hope...and possibly love? My thoughts: HEARTS MADE WHOLE is the second book in Ms. Hedlund’s Beacons of Hope series, but it easily stands alone. I am torn about this review. I read it through in one sitting. I liked the sexual tension, I liked the setting, I love lighthouses, Michigan history, and … yet this story didn’t click. It was predictable. I knew who the bad “guy” was before it was revealed.  I hated that the hero spent most of the book addicted to drugs and alcohol and that she had to manage the light because he was out drunk and stoned. I wanted to put the book down several times, and if I’d bought it I would’ve. But I agreed to read it in its entirety for review. So I kept on. There was no faith message, there were the mandatory deaths, and...  The ending was okay. Not great. It didn’t leave me sighing happily. But I didn’t exactly leave it with a “thank God it’s over” either. This is definitely not the best Jody Hedlund book, but she hasn’t lost me as a reader.  Yet.  Purchase a copy: http://bit.ly/1eN4pC8 About the author: Jody Hedlund is an award-winning and bestselling historical fiction author. She won the 2011 Inspirational Reader's Choice Award, the 2011 Award of Excellence from the Colorado Romance Writers and was a finalist for Best Debut Novel in the 2011 ACFW Carol Awards. Currently she makes her home in central Michigan, with her husband and five busy children. She loves hearing from readers on Facebook and on her blog. Find Jody online: website, Twitter, Facebook

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