It didn’t work out for me to post another book review in April, but I am one of several bloggers offered the opportunity of taking part in a blog tour. We each have interviewed the author of the book I am reviewing today. My day of the tour is Monday, May 9, so do come back to meet author Penny Zeller in my interview with her. I was privileged to receive the ARC of this book so that I could write a review before posting the interview with Penny. Now here is my review of her newly published book.
I have to be honest here. Romance novels are not the ones I typically go for anymore, but this book has not just the undercurrent of attraction going on, it also is a good story set in the rugged Montana Territory of the old West. Kaydie is book two of Penny Zeller’s Montana Skies series.
This story centers around the main character, Kaydie Worthington Kraemer, but several other interesting characters are introduced early on. Kaydie is a young woman who suffered terrible abuse at the hands of her former husband, Darius, who played a clever game to get her family wealth. After his death, she was rescued and taken in by her sister and brother-in-law to live with them on their ranch. Pregnant and facing recurring nightmares and haunting memories, Kaydie wonders if she can ever trust enough to love again. When a gentle, caring man with his own difficult past walks into her life, and then a childhood friend is sent by her illustrious parents to court her, she has a hard decision to make. Does she surrender to what she thinks she knows and return to a life of wealth, or does she trust her heart?
During the progression of the story the reader discovers Kaydie’s will to survive and her determination to heal in order to secure a normal and safe life for herself and her baby. Penny Zeller wrote in a way that follows closely to how a woman, struggling with memories and fears, thinks things through, over and over, on her way to emotional healing.
Penny included enough suspense to keep the pages turning, humour to lighten the mood when certain characters were faced with difficulties, and historical details revealing life in the early years of settlement. Admittedly, at one point while reading I spoke out loud, “No way!” To say I got pulled into the story would be an accurate statement.
Although Kaydie is a Christian-based novel, the reader will not feel overwhelmed by religious thought being pushed down her throat. (I say ‘her’ because most readers of this series will probably be women.) It is not preachy but puts forward the encouragement found in a relationship with God. Penny Zeller has taken a gentle but unwavering approach in presenting to the reader a valid option of how to deal with life’s problems.
If you enjoy romance novels, or if you have never read one but are curious, I encourage you to get this one.
You can find Kaydie listed on my BUY THE BOOK! page.
Watch for my interview with Penny Zeller, scheduled for May 9.
Thanks for reading, and … Creative Musings! 🙂
Polilla Writes 