Though My Heart is Torn

Title: THOUGH MY HEART IS TORN

Author: JoAnne Bischof

Publisher: Multnomah

April 2013

ISBN: 978-1601424235

Genre: Historical

Gideon O’Riley has two wives—but he doesn’t know it.
 
Settling into a simple life in the majestic Blue Ridge mountains, Lonnie and Gideon O’Riley have finally found happiness after the rocky start to their marriage. The roguish bluegrass musician has fallen in love with his gentle wife and the God she serves, and Lonnie rests secure in his tenderness for her and their young son. A heartless ruse interupts their peace, bringing them back to Rocky Knob—and forces them to face the claims of Cassie Allan, a woman who says she is Gideon’s rightful wife.

As Gideon wades into the depths of his past choices, Lonnie is stunned by the revelations. She has no choice but to navigate this new path, knowing that surviving the devastating blow will take every ounce of strength  she has.

While Gideon’s guilt  and his bitterness towards Cassie threatens to burn up his fledgling faith, Lonnie wrestles to find the courage to trust the God who brought them together in the first place. Will their hard-earned love be able to conquer all?

Lonnie only wanted her husband’s love. Now that he belongs to another, can she surrender Gideon to a God with a bigger plan?

THOUGH MY HEART IS TORN is the second book in Ms. Bischof’s The Candence of Grace series. Readers definitely will want to read Be Still My Soul first as these books do not stand alone.  Even though I read Be Still My Soul last month, I was still a bit lost when I started THOUGH MY HEART IS TORN and it took me a few pages to be brought back up to speed in the story. It might help to read these books back to back and not with a month break between them.

Ms. Bischof is a very talented author. I loved her descriptive terms, making even the scenery come to life. She even took a man I didn’t like at the end of Be Still My Soul and made him someone I liked in the beginning of THOUGH MY HEART IS TORN. I hurt for these characters in this story, and can’t wait to read the third and final book in the series My Hope is Found (it is in my to-be-read pile) to see how the story concludes. The ending of THOUGH MY HEART IS TORN surprised me. I wasn’t expecting it at all.

If you like historical fiction that packs a punch, then THOUGH MY HEART IS TORN is definitely a book to consider. $14.99. 352 pages. 3 stars.