The Heart’s Pursuit by Robin Lee Hatcher

The Heart’s Pursuit by Robin Lee Hatcher is a compelling book of adventure, intrigue, and romance as Silver Matlock and Jared Newman travel by horseback through 19th century Rocky Mountain terrain in pursuit of an outlaw.  They think they need to find the man who ruined their lives, but they really need emotional healing.  Silver was left at the altar by her thief of a fiancé, who had run off with all her family’s money.  Jared is after the man who murdered his family and left him hurt and alone in the world. It is a beautiful story that compels you from chapter to chapter (Which in cases like myself where you can easily be addicted to a book, it creates a beautiful day devouring the entire thing in one sitting.)  Robin Lee Hatcher is an accomplished author, and I have not been let down by a single one of her books.

Though I do love the book, I must only give it four out of five stars. The reason being, it is too Hallmark.  It is inspirational and romantic and completely, utterly, and entirely predictable (though I admit that I still gasped at something I had already suspected).  It is a beautiful novel that leaves you with that aww-shucks, gooey, romantic feeling.  It is clean.  It is predictable, but it is good.  The only difference between this book and a Hallmark movie is that it didn’t make me cry.

However, I was still on the edge of my seat.  I still was compelled to keep reading.  I still wanted to know how the two stories would intersect.  I still wanted to know if they would get married, be engaged, or if it would all be implied.  I still was dragged through the drama of what would happen to the evil man they were after.  I still was left hoping that this or that person wouldn’t betray them.  I still had to know if the Matlock family would survive the robbery from Silver’s fiancé.  It is for this predictable, yet so compelling reason that I still gave it a high rating.

I also gave it a fairly high rating because I like novels that do more than entertain.  This one didn’t have a strong case for thematic lessons, but there was an aspect of forgiveness that I appreciated.  Silver even makes the powerful statement to “not let what happened harden your heart… It is you who will suffer because of it.”  She points out that the one who inflicted the pain won’t lose any sleep over it, and worrying does no good.  So many times people take it on as their right to be bitter, hard, and unforgiving, but it only hurts themselves.  I appreciated this undertone in the novel aside from the entertainment.

If you are a sucker for romantic, predictable, inspirational novels, than this is a perfect fit!

You can buy it on Amazon here.

I received this book free from the publisher through the BookLook Bloggers <http://booklookbloggers.com> book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own.

Mansfield’s Book of Manly Men

I ordered this book from Book Look Bloggers for my husband by his request, so naturally he is a guest reviewer today.  From the little I read, I can reiterate everything my husband says in his review.  Men need to understand their roles as men, just as women do.  The waters have been muddled for so long, and this is a great book to bring clarity to the subject of manly men.  Here is my husband’s review:

“Mansfield’s Book of Manly Men… Where to start? Wow, an awesome book! I would recommend this for any guy, I would even recommend this for a church small group. He takes real men from history and tells their story and what made them a manly man. At the end of every chapter there are questions to discuss or ponder internally. I will admit, I don’t feel like the manliest man in the world. I don’t prefer getting dirty and lifting weights. I am more of the guy who loves to work with computers and deal with technology. So for me I didn’t think I was that much of a man. Sure I love some manly things like guns and the Bourne Movies but sometimes I didn’t feel like I am much of a man compared to others, until I read this book. I realized that being a man takes humor, friendships, finding your own quest, taking care of your own household and other things. I realized manhood is found in God’s eyes and it takes being real with yourself and with others. It takes passing on the torch and mentoring others.

The culture today has tried to tear down the walls and boundaries between manhood and womanhood. The feminine movement has tried to tear down the man and his importance. Please don’t get me wrong, the feminine movement did some great things, it opened the doors for women to work and be treated with more respect. However America is in need of a Masculine Movement now. God created Men to be Men and Women to be Women. One isn’t more important than the other but it takes both to have a family, and for the kingdom to advance on earth. But in the wake of the feminine movement, men have lost the meaning of being a man. Women sometimes don’t let men be men. For men I would recommend this book. For women I would recommend books by Lisa Bevere. These books help define the God given roles for both genders and help both sides understand how to help each other. Once again I am not suggesting that one gender is better than another, I am just suggesting that life is easier when both sides operate inside their roles.

Not only does this book talk about being a manly man, but it has some fun extras. Mansfield has compiled a list of other books on the subject, a list of movies he believes ever man should watch (some might surprise you) and a lists of 50 manly quotes. “

I received this book free from the publisher through the BookLookBloggers®.com book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own.