Hope Reborn
In the third instalment in Caryl McAdoo’s trilogy of Christianity-themed historical romance novels (following Vow Unbroken and Hearts Stolen) opens with successful 19th century New York novelist May Meriwether feeling weary of the books she writes, even though, as her trusted servant Chester gently points out, those books pay the bills quite nicely. She has read about the Texas Rangers, and she imagines such a figure might make a good hero in a new novel. She and Chester pack up and travel to Texas, and Hope Reborn chronicles their adventures in a land May has initially underestimated as a barren wasteland.
McAdoo expertly opens her plot to romance in the form of a handsome widower, and although her narrative progresses in measures most readers will find predictable but well-executed.
The book is well-researched and energetically presented, full of sharp dialog, well-rounded characters and a good deal of homespun humor. Although McAdoo also skilfully works in strands of political intrigue and personal tension, she also adds a pervasive layer of Christianity for which readers should be prepared before they start this delightful but devout series.
