Skip to main content

Lonestar series by Colleen Coble

 
Good evening all my fellow booklovers. I hope everyone is enjoying their Saturday :)
 
As I mentioned in my Bookish Resolutions post here: http://www.thepreppybookprincess.blogspot.ca/2016/01/bookish-resolutions.html
 
One of my reading goals for this year was to read more inspirational fiction. Its a genre that I honestly love, but I haven't read too much of it in the last little while as I always seem to be choosing books from other genres first. but I'm very glad to say that I've been reading more of it this year already, and I'm definitely enjoying doing so.
 
To sound redundant, I also discovered this series from one of Book Outlet's amazing sales (yes I do know I have a book buying problem,) as Lonestar Sanctuary was one sale for only .74 cents!!! Yes that is correct, this book cost me less than a dollar. At the time I had no idea it was a series, since my only other experience with Colleen Coble was reading Alaska Twilight a couple of years back, which I enjoyed immensely, but since it was a stand alone I never really connected that this book was part of a series. I read Lonestar Sanctuary last year, but only got around to reading Lonestar Secrets, and Lonestar Homecoming this month. And I've recently discovered that this series also includes a fourth book and a novella so I'm looking forward to reading those within the next couple of weeks as well.
 
I have to say that after reading the first book in this series and really enjoying it, I was a bit apprehensive about continuing on with this series. This was simply because the plot of all the books sounded so similar. Each book in the Lonestar series is about a woman on the run from something in her life, with her young daughter, ending up in this small Texas town, and agreeing to a marriage of convenience to protect their child. I was really skeptical about how Colleen Coble could write this same storyline several times, and have it remain original. After all, how would it be possible to give each runaway single mother of a young girl agreeing to a marriage of convenience, running from her past with a bit of suspense and horses tossed in, their own unique story? But at the same time I was intrigued, because I honestly enjoy novels where a marriage of convenience is the center focus, as I love seeing the characters learn to love each other after the marriage has already happened, but it's something I've only ever read before in historical fiction, never in contemporary fiction. As this review is for three books in the series, I'm not going to list the synopsises as I feel it would tie up too much of the post, and instead I'm just going to give my overall thoughts on this series.
 
First and foremost I will say that Colleen Coble proved my initial doubts wrong. It was possible for her to write three stories similar in idea, and yet make each one unique. I loved how each couple, Allie and Rick, Shannon and Jack, and Gracie and Michael, agreed to a marriage of convenience for the sake of their children, but for many varying reasons. I especially enjoyed Lonestar Homecoming as I found Gracie and Michael's story to be especially endearing with the addition of his two kids in the mix, and not just hers. Plus I found this novel to be the most suspenseful of all the books, as it was about the Mexican drug cartel, and the many issues surrounding it. I loved seeing how each of the six characters learned to rely on God, even through the hard times, and how the horses often played a bit part in teaching them to do so. I also loved how Colleen Coble, in my opinion, made each of these novels realistic, and it was implied that many problems may never be fully resolved, but that is part of life. I would highly recommend these books to anyone looking for an inspirational fiction book to read, especially if you like suspense books. I found these books to truly be unique from a lot of other books I've read, because of the marriage of convenience angle, and I gave each of these three novels 4 out of 5 stars. I'm looking forward to continuing on with this series in the next few weeks.
 
Also, for my favorite quote I'm going to be changing a bit from how I usually do this. I had several quotes picked out from each book which may have been my favorite, but it was honestly reading the acknowledgements in book three, Lonestar Homecoming, that I truly found a quote that I fell in love with. While it may not be a quote directly form one of the novels, I felt it perfectly describes these books, and I loved how Colleen Coble worded it. Here it is: "A good marriage doesn't just happen. All marriages are between flawed people who have to figure out a way to meld their differences into a relationship that works. It's about learning how to give when you'd rather take. It's about agreeing to watch golf when you'd rather watch  The Biggest Loser."
 
Thanks everyone for reading. I will be back soon with more bookish posts, and I hope everyone enjoys the rest of their weekend.
 
This is not a sponsored post. The book was not provided for review, and was purchased by me. The photo was taken by me with my IPhone. I am not affiliated with Book Outlet.

Comments

  1. I read this series after reading your review. Loved it!!!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Aww thank you! That makes me so happy to hear. I'm so glad that you ended up loving it. Colleen Coble writes some of the best suspense stories ever. :)

      Delete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

First Line Friday: Carolina Breeze

Happy Friday Everyone :) I hope you're all having a great week! Mine has actually been pretty good. We've had some really nice days, and my husband and I were finally able to put our garden in, and various flowers and the like. We've also had a couple of lovely, rainy days as well, and I love how green everything is looking in our yard right now. For today's post, I'm excited to once again be linking up with the lovely Hoarding Books  for another edition of First Line Friday. This fun weekly meme simply consists of sharing the first line of the book you're currently reading. For this week's first line, I'm going to be sharing from Denise Hunter's recently released title that I ended up absolutely loving. Carolina Breeze by Denise Hunter: About The Book: A jilted bride. A struggling innkeeper. And a romantic mountain getaway that changes everything. Rising Hollywood star Mia Emerson is looking for a safe place to land in the wake of a public breakup a

First Line Friday: Just As I Am

Happy Friday Everyone :) I hope you're all having a great week, and looking forward to the weekend. Since it is Friday, it's time once again for First Line Friday, which is hosted over at Hoarding Books. For today's first line, I'm going to be featuring a recent debut novel that I had the opportunity to read and review. About The Book: Adeline Rhodes has spent years locked away in a New Orleans apartment controlled by her criminal boyfriend. After a daring escape, she realizes just how far she has grown from the things in which she once believed. Declan King has lived a life of solitude and duty for the U.S. Army. When the deaths of his grandparents bring him home to his family farm, he is forced into contact with people who know too much about his past to simply leave him alone. When Adeline’s past catches up to her, the two strangers find themselves thrust into a fake relationship to protect Adeline from her vengeful ex. As their chance meeting begin

First Line Friday: Courting Mr. Emerson

Happy Friday Everyone :) Since it is Friday, I'll once again be participating in First Line Friday which is hosted by Hoarding Books .  For this week, I'm going to be sharing the first line from Melody Carlson's newest book, Courting Mr. Emerson. About The Book: When the fun-loving and spontaneous artist Willow West meets buttoned-up, retired English teacher George Emerson, it's not exactly love at first sight. Though she does find the obsessive-compulsive man intriguing. Making it her mission to get him to loosen up and embrace life, she embarks on what seems like a lost cause--and finds herself falling for him in the process. A confirmed bachelor, George vacillates between irritation and attraction whenever Willow is around--which to him seems like all too often. He's not interested in expanding his horizons or making new friends; it just hurts too much when you lose them. But as the summer progresses, George feels his defenses crumbling. The quest