Spires of Stone, Annette Lyon

I read this on Brittany's recommendation and it is a very sweet story. I've read a few Annette Lyon titles before and found her stories to be better than the average LDS fiction titles. This one is a retelling of Much Ado About Nothing set around the construction of the Salt Lake Temple. I really liked it. It was an interesting and had entertaining characters. It also made me want to read Much Ado About Nothing again and/or watch the movie. It's one of my favorites.

Word Gets Around, Lisa Wingate

I've been reading a lot but not writing about any of the books until today. I honestly can't remember much about this one. It's a cute story but not as compelling as the Tracie Peterson stories I read earlier this summer. I do have another book by Lisa Wingate so maybe I'll give that a try.

A Dream to Call My Own, Tracie Peterson

The last book in this series has the best cover although it did make me wonder how Montana girls of the late 19th century managed to keep their brows so sculpted. This last sister has great brows but an unfortunate circa 1980's name- Lacy. So that right there raised my hackles towards her. She also likes to wear pants instead of dresses which is just hard for me to relate to as one of my frequently stated life goals is to never wear pants again. Not in a quaint anti-feminist statement way but just because they are honestly more comfortable and molto flattering. Off of my fashion tangent and on to the book:

This was a very satisfying end to the trilogy. We hear about Lacy's struggles and her road to romance but also see her sisters as wives and mothers at this point. The mystery of the Gallatin girls' father's death is also finally solved in this installment. There is an epilogue taking us 5 years into the future which is satisfying but I would welcome further stories about these 3 sisters. I'm a Tracie Peterson fan now and plan to find some more of her books to read.

I really liked that several characters made reference to this verse as a favorite:
"Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness."
Isaiah 41:10

I also liked this quote:
plus dolet quam necesse est qui ante dolet quam necesse est
He suffers more than is necessary who suffers before it is necessary

A Love to Last Forever, Tracie Peterson

Each of the books in this series focuses on a different sister and I was worried that the switch in main characters would irritate me. But here is where I became even more impressed with Tracie Peterson's writing. Each book might have a different sister as the main event but the other sisters and characters are fully formed in each book. The books flow together smoothly and you get to know all the characters and the nascent town they live in better with each one.

I think I enjoyed this second volume the most in the trilogy, probably because Bethany was my favorite of the three sisters. Maybe because I relate a little bit too much to her feelings in this prayer: "Please show me how to let go of my fairy-tale ideals and desires and to focus instead on the way you would have me live my life." (p.157)

"Over the weeks, Beth had gradually lost interest in her books [she had an unhealthy fixation on dime-store thrillers]. Real life seemed far too interesting... she had her own romance and God was more real than ever." (p.264)

Maybe that's my problem my real life can't even begin to be as interesting as the books I read. Until things get more interesting I'm sticking with books.

"People say that life is the thing but I prefer reading." - Logan Pearsall Smith

A Promise to Believe In, Tracie Peterson

This is the start to a trilogy about a family of sisters who operate a road house on the Montana frontier in the 1880's. It seems like every Christian fiction title is either about pioneers/westward ho!/cowboys or the Amish. At least according to what is on the shelf at Borders. It's a giant wall of Amish girls staring out at you with some covers like this one in the mix.

I really enjoyed this book. The writing is of a higher quality than other Christian titles I've ventured into. The story and the romance was engaging and the religious sentiment was woven naturally into the plot. I have to say I wish there was an LDS Tracie Peterson out there to raise the bar on what is in the Deseret Book catalog. The book summaries in there are unintentionally hilarious (and yet I still manage to read them; although I'm realizing that 2009 hasn't included any so far).