Hearts Surrender by Marianne Evans ~ 4 stars

Hearts Surrender

Marianne Evans

Woodland series #2

White Rose Publishing

About the book:

Kiara Jordan is a sophisticated modernista, but beneath an engaging personality and super-model looks, her heart hungers, and she longs for deeper meaning in her life.

Ken Lucerne is the charismatic young pastor of Woodland Church; he's adjusting to life as a widower and copes by keeping as busy as possible with his parish and missionary work.

A home-building mission in Pennsylvania brings them together, and forces them to look hard and deep at the relationship they share, and where God means for it to go. Already bound by mutual respect and caring, love dawns, a love that takes them to a life-point neither would have expected.

After all, can a chic, vivacious woman find fulfillment within the quiet, mission-centered life of a clergyman? Can they trust God's hand strongly enough to surrender their hearts to one another...forever?

My review:

Well, I saw a marked improvement between the first book in this series, and this one. The writing was stronger, and the characters were understandable and easy to connect with. I could see their struggles, and enjoyed watching each of them grow in their faith. I especially loved when they were on the mission trip and wished more time could have been devoted to that part of the book. Such a wonderful opportunity to help others! Aside from a few belief differences, I had no real problems with this book. It was a quick, fun read. I look forward to continuing to see this author grow and write more in the future.

Thanks to Marianne for my free review copy of this book!

Hearts Crossing by Marianne Evans ~ 3 stars

Hearts Crossing

Marianne Evans

Woodland series, #1

White Rose Publishing

About the book:

"How do you feel about God, Collin?”

“I don’t.”

Collin Edwards, a former parishioner at Woodland Church of Christ, has renounced God without apology, his faith drained away in the face of a tragic loss.

Daveny Montgomery cares deeply about her relationship with God and the community of Woodland. But lately she's been in a rut, longing for something to reignite her spiritual enthusiasm.

A beautification project at Woodland seems the answer for them both. Daveny spearheads the effort and Collin assists—but only with the renovations, and only because he wants to know Daveny better.

Despite his deepening feelings for her, even stepping into the common areas of the church stirs tension and anger.

Can Daveny trust in Collin’s fledgling return to faith? And can Collin ever accept the fact that while he turned his back on God, God never turned his back on him?

My review:
I am not giving this book “3 stars” because I disliked it, but because I saw room for improvement. Mainly, the grammar and wording needed work, but the story itself was very sweet. It is a quick, fun read, but I wouldn’t recommend it if you can’t get past things like grammar issues. The plot was engaging, and I was interested to read how the author would resolve the issues between characters. I will be reading book 2 in this series, and I look forward to watching this author grow in her writing!