Treasured Grace

   BOOK REVIEW:  Grace Martindale has known more than her share of hardship. After her parents died, raising her two younger sisters, Hope and Mercy, became her responsibility. A hasty decision to head west seemed like an opportunity for a fresh start but has instead left Grace in a precarious position. When missionary Dr. Marcus Whitman and his wife agree to let Grace and her sisters stay at their mission for the winter, Grace is grateful. Until they hear from their uncle in Oregon City, the three sisters have nowhere else to go.
   As Grace adjusts to life in the West, she meets a fur trapper named Alex Armistead who intrigues and infuriates her in equal measure. But when a measles outbreak threatens lives at the mission and among the native Cayuse who live nearby, it is Alex who helps Grace use the natural healing remedies she learned from her mother to help where she can, despite Dr. Whitman's disapproval. As the death toll rises, so do tensions between the settlers and the natives, and Grace soon finds herself and those she loves in more danger than she imagined possible.

   MY REVIEW:   Treasured Grace is the first book in Tracie Peterson's Heart of the Frontier series. It tells the tale of Grace Martindale and her sisters as they journey to Oregon. Tragedy strikes along the way, and the girls end up staying with Dr. Whitman at his mission. But the area is full of Cayuse and Nez Peirce Indians, and the Cayuse are getting restless. Too many deaths have occurred that the doctor couldn't stop, and the Cayuse are sure Dr. Whitman is actually poisoning their people. When Grace leaves to help a friend, bad becomes worst.
   I don't often like reading books about Indian attacks and the like, but this one was okay. While the action was still there, it was rather subdued, and the story stayed centered on Grace and her sisters. I thought the book was well-written and I enjoyed reading it. I liked the faith that Grace and another character displayed, and that they helped others turn to God.
   I will say, as you get closer to the end of the book, you fear for an unhappy ending (for us expectant readers who want the story to end the way we want it to end).
   I don't think this book feels quite like Tracie's others. I can't say what it is, but it just doesn't seem like her. It was simply different.

       I received this book from BETHANY HOUSE PUBLISHERS in exchange for my honest review.