About this book:
“A
cowboy who wants to be a preacher. An outlaw’s daughter who wants to change his
mind.
On his way to interview for a
position at a church in the Piney Woods of Texas, Crockett Archer can scarcely
believe it when he's forced off the train by a retired outlaw and presented to
the man's daughter as the minister she requested for her birthday. Worried this
unfortunate detour will ruin his chances of finally serving a congregation of
his own, Crockett is determined to escape. But when he finally gets away, he's
haunted by the memory of the young woman he left behind--a woman whose dreams
now hinge on him.
For months, Joanna Robbins prayed for
a preacher. A man to breathe life back into the abandoned church at the heart
of her community. A man to assist her in fulfilling a promise to her dying
mother. A man to help her discover answers to the questions that have been on
her heart for so long. But just when it seems God has answered her prayers, it
turns out the person is there against his will and has dreams of his own
calling him elsewhere. Is there any way she can convince Crockett to stay in
her little backwoods community? And does the attraction between them have any
chance of blossoming when Joanna's outlaw father is dead set against his
daughter courting a preacher?”
Series: Book #2 in the “Archer Brothers” series. (The first book has not
been officially reviewed.)
Spiritual Content- Many Scriptures are mentioned, read, remembered, & quoted;
Many Prayers, Thanking God, & Blessings over food; Going to church, singing
hymns, & listening to sermons; Seeing a baptism; Crockett is a pastor &
we definitely see many elements of his ministry in this book; Silas believes pastors
to be hypocrites & has no patience for religion (he believes that those at
church can be just as vile as any drunkard or thief—or worse even; *Spoiler*
When something tragic happens, he prays and asks God to help him *End of
Spoiler*); Joanna has tried hard to get her father to soften towards God; Witnessing
& discussions; Many, many talks about God, His plans, missions, & witnessing;
‘H’s are not capitalized when referring to God or Jesus; All about many
mentions of preachers/ministers, churches, church going, congregations, services,
worship, hymns, & sermons; All about many mentions of God & Jesus; Mentions
of prayers, praying, & blessings over food; Mentions of faiths &
passions; Mentions of Bibles & devotions; Mentions of those, places, &
events in the Bible; Mentions of eternity, Heaven, & angels; Mentions of forgiveness
& justice (& a couple discussion about both); Mentions of church
elders; Mentions of missionaries & missions; Mentions of blessings &
being Blessed; Mentions of sins, sinful people, & evil; A few mentions of Books
of the Bible; A few mentions of believers, godly people, & Christians; A couple
mentions of miracles; A couple mentions of religious books; A mention of a
godsend;
*Note: A couple mentions of someone
being compared to Satan; A mention of someone being called a demon.
Negative Content- Minor cussing including: a ‘blasted’, a ‘botheration’, a ‘consarn
it!’, a ‘dad-burn it’, a ‘what in tarnation’, two ‘bah!’s, two ‘idiot’s, two ‘shoot’s,
and five forms of ‘stupid’; Silas bites back an oath (curses, not written); Some
eye rolling & sarcasm; Accidentally shooting someone, helping them, getting
the bullet out, blood, & their pain (up to semi-detailed); Fighting, Being
hit/attacked, Being shot at, Being held at gunpoint, Blood, & Pain (up to semi-detailed);
Being on a train that being held up by bandits, being threatened, &
abducted; Many mentions of bandits/thieves, criminals/outlaws, gangs, crimes, robbing/stealing,
guns being aimed at people in a threatening manner, & shooting; Mentions of
a child being beaten to death (by a man who claimed to be god-fearing, barely-above-not-detailed);
Mentions of someone being beaten & almost hanged/lynched (barely-above-not-detailed);
Mentions of the possibility of having to kill someone (who means you harm); Mentions
of bullets, those who were shot, injuries, blood/bleeding & pain (barely-above-not-detailed);
Mentions of prisons/jails & arrests; Mentions of threats; Mentions of fighting
& injuries; Mentions of drinking, drunks, & saloons; Mentions of lies,
lying, & liars; Mentions of hunting & shooting animals for food; A few
mentions of fights, fighting, & injuries (barely-above-not-detailed); A few
mentions of dead creatures (varmints) & the smell (barely-above-not-detailed);
A couple mentions of cheating; A couple mentions of rumors; A couple mentions
of the possibility of injured animals & deaths of farm animals;
*Note: A couple mentions of a
mother leaving her drunk husband & young son.
Sexual Content- A blown kiss, two
hand kisses, a hair kiss, four semi-detailed kisses, a border-line semi-detailed
// detailed kiss, and a detailed kiss; Recalling a kiss (up to semi-detailed); Wanting
to kiss someone & Wanting to be kissed (barely-above-not-detailed); Touches,
Embraces, Nearness, & Flutters (and enjoying them, up to semi-detailed); Recalling
touches & embraces (barely-above-not-detailed); Winks & Blushes; Noticing
& Smelling (barely-above-not-detailed); A flirty young woman bothers Crockett
& tries to touch/embrace him often (she thinks she tempts him & brings
up the passion found in Song of Solomon; *Spoiler* he later tells her that her
forward behavior attracts the attention from the wrong kind of man and does not
belong in a Christian woman’s life; she then goes into his home and when he
tells her to leave, she rips her dress and tells her father that he harmed her *End
of Spoiler*); Mentions of kisses & kissing; Mentions of flirting & flirtatious
women; Mentions of reputations; A couple mentions of jealousy; A mention of a
man not taking advantage of a woman; A mention of a woman’s attacker (not true);
Love, falling in love, & the emotions;
*Note: A mention of a mother dying
in childbirth; A mention of Crockett enjoying being around women after only
being around his brothers (their manners, their gentle ways, and their lovely
figures); A mention of a young woman’s dress showing off every one of her
feminine curves (mentioned from Joanna); A mention of someone’s butt in a
saddle.
-Joanna Robbins, age 21
-Crockett Archer, age 28
P.O.V.
switches between them & Silas
Set in 1885
347 pages
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Somehow, I’ve never reviewed this
book on here.
And that’s just a crime. Because
this book is so fun, so wonderful, and so faith-filled to the brim. I was
smiling like a ninny at so many parts (so many parts!) and yet also
teared up at others.
I love it when I read a book where
both main characters are strong in their faiths, where the spiritually help and
uplift the other. That’s the definition to me of a healthy, God-centered
relationship. And that’s completely how Crockett and Joanna are, they’re truly so
well balanced.
If you removed the faith content from
this story, I think it would be under a hundred pages—that’s how much the character’s
faiths were shown and I love it.
This is definitely my favorite
book by this author and makes me feel so giddy because of the plot-line. I still
think it would be best for older teens because of the kisses and a part at the
end, but the faiths make the book for me.
See y’all on Friday with a new
review!
*BFCG may (Read the review to see) recommend this book by this
author. It does not mean I recommend all the books by this author.
I am listening to this one right now, enjoying it :)
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