A Heart Renewed by Karen Baney~

From the author's website... "Headstrong. Unconventional. Until life turns upside down…
Julia Colter struggles to accept life under her controlling brother’s greed. The suitors he selects would benefit him, but are far from the ideal husband for her. When her rebellion against her brother puts her life at risk, she turns to her friend for help.
Adam Larson longs to train horses and plans to head west to the Arizona Territory to see his dreams fulfilled. When his sister’s best friend shows up in the middle of the night, he agrees to help her flee. The decision changes his life, in more ways than he expected.
Can Julia forget the pain from her past and open her heart to love?"

This is the second in The Prescott Pioneers series... and as much as I loved the first novel, A Dream Unfolding,(here's my review...http://bagsbooksandbonjovi.blogspot.com/2011/04/dream-unfolding-by-karen-baney.html), I think I liked A Heart Renewed even more!

I was really drawn to Julia in the first book and was excited to read her story. Even though it was sometimes difficult to read, it made her story real. Her strength of character was evident through the book and her actions were defined by that strength as well as her commitment to her faith.

Ms. Baney uses her research to create a story that moves along at its necessary pace. By that, I mean that it just "flow". The story is not bogged down in research yet the author gives enough detail to put me, the reader, in the scene. I love this time when our country was being settled by courageous and faithful people. Their desire, like Julia's, was to make a better life. It is that desire that creates such a wonderful novel.

I've said it before but the main reason I love series is to revisit favorite characters. It takes a talented writer, IMO, to take a main character from one book and continue to write him/her in such a way to further their story. Ms. Baney has written these characters so that we know how they are doing but she doesn't allow them to overshadow the (now) main characters.

I enjoyed reading Ms. Baney's author's note at the end of the book as these always provide such great insight into the writing process. I love the little "tidbits" that fill out the story that I just enjoyed. My favorite sentence..."Look for book 3 in the Prescott Pioneers series: A Life Restored coming in late 2011." One word...YAY!!!!

~~Thanks to the author, Karen Baney, for providing a copy of A Heart Renewed, in exchange for an honest and thoughtful review,~~