Summary: Secrets of my Heart (Willamette Brides #1) by Tracie Peterson
Portland, Oregon, 1879. Nancy
Pritchard finds herself a widow with a world of problems when her deceased
husband's schemes start to come to light. As she searches through the pieces of
her loveless marriage, Nancy realizes there is a lot that she didn't know about
this man.
Seth Carpenter is a childhood friend of Nancy's who has recently returned to Portland. He's delighted to see her again, and as a lawyer, he is able to help her sort through the legal aspects of her husband's death. But there's more to him than meets the eye, and his job will take him into a darker side of Nancy's life--a side she didn't even know existed. As they search for the truth behind her husband's death, their attraction to each other creates complications, and the threat to Nancy increases. Can Seth be honest with her about who he really is and why he's come to Portland? And can Nancy bear another betrayal?
Seth Carpenter is a childhood friend of Nancy's who has recently returned to Portland. He's delighted to see her again, and as a lawyer, he is able to help her sort through the legal aspects of her husband's death. But there's more to him than meets the eye, and his job will take him into a darker side of Nancy's life--a side she didn't even know existed. As they search for the truth behind her husband's death, their attraction to each other creates complications, and the threat to Nancy increases. Can Seth be honest with her about who he really is and why he's come to Portland? And can Nancy bear another betrayal?
Book Review: Secrets of my Heart (Willamette Brides #1) by Tracie Peterson
Following her husband’s, death Nancy Pritchard finds
herself in an entangled mess of race issues and criminal activity. She has to
protect herself from dangerous men threatening her for information about her
late husband’s affairs. Her childhood friend and lawyer, Seth Carpenter, comes
to her aid.
Secrets of my Heart is installment #1 in the Willamette Brides Series by Tracie Peterson. We get to follow Nancy Pritchard’s struggles following her husband Albert’s mysterious death.
He is found dead in the river and seems to have been involved in criminal activity selling fire arms and whiskey to Indians. Now his dangerous accomplices come after his wife Nancy and threaten to hurt her family if she doesn’t do as they ask. Nancy’s childhood friend and lawyer, Seth Carpenter, comes to her aid offering to deal with the late husband’s legal affairs; only he doesn’t tell her the truth about why he is really in Portland. I did not know much about racial issues in Oregon in 1800s. This was the first time I got opportunity to read about it in a fictional work, which I found very interesting. I particularly enjoy books set in the Western USA. Being European I find these plots exotic
Secrets of my Heart is installment #1 in the Willamette Brides Series by Tracie Peterson. We get to follow Nancy Pritchard’s struggles following her husband Albert’s mysterious death.
He is found dead in the river and seems to have been involved in criminal activity selling fire arms and whiskey to Indians. Now his dangerous accomplices come after his wife Nancy and threaten to hurt her family if she doesn’t do as they ask. Nancy’s childhood friend and lawyer, Seth Carpenter, comes to her aid offering to deal with the late husband’s legal affairs; only he doesn’t tell her the truth about why he is really in Portland. I did not know much about racial issues in Oregon in 1800s. This was the first time I got opportunity to read about it in a fictional work, which I found very interesting. I particularly enjoy books set in the Western USA. Being European I find these plots exotic
Nancy Pritchard became a widow under mysterious
circumstances. Her life with her late husband was not a happy one, so she is
not grief stricken, but she feels very insecure about whom she can trust. Nancy
tries to stay active and get back on her feet, so she starts a boarding house exclusively
for women. I can relate to her need to be of use after her husband’s death. I
find her a character easy to like and she is my favorite in this story. She struggles
with anger towards God and feels He has abandoned her ever since her beloved little
brother died.
Gerome Berkshire is Albert Pritchard’s best
friend and local politician. He offers a dodgy presence in the story and I
really didn’t like him. While I didn’t like his political views at all it was
also pretty clear from the start of this story that he was up to no good.
I found the writing flowed well and the dialogue was interesting
and well crafted. Tea parties with good conversations on Nancy’s porch appealed
to me and they drew me into a feeling of coziness and protection.
My favorite part of the story was descriptions of the
4th July celebrations at the time. They seemed to be so nice and entertaining
for all. Quite grand and exotic to me, compared to the 17th May
celebrations in Norway.
There is a strong element of faith running through the story with a number of discussions relating to Nancy’s struggles. I enjoyed Nancy’s process moving from struggle to being at peace with God.
There is a strong element of faith running through the story with a number of discussions relating to Nancy’s struggles. I enjoyed Nancy’s process moving from struggle to being at peace with God.
Secrets
of my Heart #1 in the Willamette Brides Series is a sweet and entertaining
story recommended for fans of Tracie Peterson and for readers of historical
romance fiction.
Thank
you to Bethany House Publishers and NetGalley for this eARC which gave me the
opportunity to share my honest review. All opinions are completely my own.
My
rating: 4 stars / 5
Book Details (from Amazon)
Print Length: 320 pages
Publisher: Bethany House Publishers (March 3, 2020)
Publication Date: March 3, 2020
Sold by: Amazon.com Services LLC
Language: English
ASIN: B07VPL18RN
About The Author
Tracie Peterson is the
bestselling, award-winning author of more than one hundred books. Tracie also
teaches writing workshops at a variety of conferences on subjects such as
inspirational romance and historical research. She and her family live in
Montana.
Visit Tracie's web site at: http://www.traciepeterson.com
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