Settlers' Hope
[d-w12830]

5 of 5 Stars Fans of pioneer stories and the Oregon Trail will not be disappointed in the second installment of Kathleen Bailey's, Westwern Dreams series. Right from the beginning, sparks fly between Bailey's hero, Pace Williams, and her fiery, Irish heroine, Oona Moriarty. I loved the witty banter between the two that often had me chuckling out loud. Once again, Bailey's description of life in the untamed Oregon Territory paints a vivid picture that transported me through time to the early nineteenth century. Bailey doesn't shy away from tying in spiritual topics that are relevant today like prejudice, injustice, and revenge. While each main character has a past that is haunting them, one is determined to seek revenge while the other is the object of it. In the end, both characters realize there is a difference between seeking justice and exacting revenge. This idea of the futility of revenge is also found in a secondary plotline where discrimination and violence threaten the one black family in Hall's Mills forcing both the main and supporting characters to look inside their own hearts and decide whether the Jackson's should "move on" or stand their ground. Although its a sequel, Settler's Hope reads fine as a stand-alone. Settler's Hope is an action-packed adventure laced with a sweet romance and a message relevant for today's historical romance reader.