"Ever Faithful" by Karen Barnett

About this book:

  “Vibrant historic Yellowstone National Park comes to life in this romantic mystery about a man hiding the truth, braving the west to become something more--and the woman who must confront his deception.
   A man who can't read will never amount to anything--or so Nate Webber believes. But he takes a chance to help his family by signing up for the new Civilian Conservation Corps, skirting the truth about certain "requirements." Nate exchanges the harsh Brooklyn streets for the wilds of Yellowstone National Park, curious if the Eden-like wonderland can transform him as well.
   Elsie Brookes was proud to grow up as a ranger's daughter, but she longs for a future of her own. After four years serving as a maid in the park's hotels, she still hasn't saved enough money for her college tuition. A second job, teaching a crowd of rowdy men in the CCC camp, might be the answer, but when Elsie discovers Nate's secret, it puts his job as camp foreman in jeopardy. Tutoring leads to friendship and romance, until a string of suspicious fires casts a dark shadow over their relationship. Can they find answers before all of their dreams go up in smoke?”


Series: Book #3 in the “Vintage National Parks” series. Review of Book #1 Here! and Book #2 Here!


Spiritual Content- A few Scriptures are mentioned, quoted, & talked about; Prayers & Praying; Talks about God, forgiveness, & God-given dreams; ‘H’s are capitalized when referring to God; Elsie has difficulty trusting God; Nate thinks God doesn’t like him because he believes that he’s dumb; Mentions of God & Jesus; Mentions of prayers & praying; A few mentions of blessings & being blessed; A few mentions of Jewish people; A couple mentions of miracles; A mention of a godsend;

             *Note: An ‘ungodly’ (when referring an unfitting size); A mention of a fire looking like the devil lives there.

Negative Content- Minor cussing including: a form of ‘heck’, a form of ‘shut up’, a ‘sissy’, two ‘blasted’s, two ‘idiot’s, four forms of ‘stupid’, and six ‘dumb’s; Some eye rolling; Fires & smoke (barely-above-not-detailed); Some fighting/punches, injuries, & blood (barely-above-not-detailed); Many mentions of fires, smoke, arson, injuries, & a death of a baby (barely-above-not-detailed); Mentions of Nate’s brother’s death in the line of duty (barely-above-not-detailed); Mentions of blood & injuries (barely-above-not-detailed); Mentions of thieves, stealing, & shoplifting; Mentions of prison & jail; Mentions of fighting, punches, injuries, & blood/bleeding (barely-above-not-detailed); Mentions of Nate’s father being verbally and physically abusive & a drunk; Mentions of cigarettes & smoking; Mentions of lies & lying; A few mentions of gossip; A few mentions of rodent/animal waste & smells; A couple mentions of alcohol; A couple mentions of gambling.

Sexual Content- Almost kisses (barely-above-not-detailed), three hand kisses, a jaw kiss, two cheek kisses, seven barely-above-not-detailed kisses, three semi-detailed kiss, and a border-line semi-detailed // detailed kiss; Remembering kisses (barely-above-not-detailed); Wanting to kiss & touch; A bit of staring at lips (barely-above-not-detailed); Touches, Embraces, Dancing, & Hand holding (up to semi-detailed); Noticing (including muscles and bare chests), Nearness, & Smelling (barely-above-not-detailed); Many mentions of kisses, kissing, almost kisses, wanting to kiss, & seeing couples kissing; Mentions of a bet between men to see who can kiss the most girls; Mentions of crushes, dates, & dating; Mentions of a girl’s obsession with the male species; A few mentions of jealousy; A couple mentions of a couple canoodling or spooning in a car; A mention of making beautiful babies (teasing); A mention of a honeymoon; A mention of boy crazy girls; Love, falling in love, & the emotions;

             *Note: A couple mentions of women gaining curves; A mention of a low neckline of a dress.

-Elsie Brookes, age 22

-Nate Webber, age 24
                                P.O.V. switches between them

                                              Set in 1933 (Epilogue in 1937)
                                                        341 pages

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Pre Teens-

New Teens-

Early High School Teens-

Older High School Teens-

My personal Rating-

Since I really enjoyed the first book of this series but not the second book due to content, I was curious to see how this one would be. I’d say it falls in the middle. I liked Elsie and Nate and learning their stories, but because this novel was set during the summer, their romance was a quick one. It was pretty touchy-kissy because of this.

The fires were an interesting plot-line that I wasn’t expecting, and I believe that the author handled them well with Elsie’s reaction to them. The culprit wasn’t necessarily shocking, but it explored the topic of metal illness which is something we are starting to see more of in Christian Fiction. I wish it would have been discussed a little bit more at the time, but it was interesting to see. I did really like the epilogue for this story, though, and found Elsie and Nate to be a cute couple. :)

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 received this book for free from the Publisher (Waterbrook) for this honest review.

"Where the Fire Falls" by Karen Barnett

About this book:

  “A beautiful piece of art. A stunning cathedral of trees. Both perfect for keeping truth hidden in the shadows.

Watercolorist Olivia Rutherford believes an avant-garde persona is key to becoming wildly successful in California’s 1929 art scene. When she lands a lucrative contract to paint Yosemite Nation Park for a travel magazine, she reluctantly takes on the project, hoping the money will keep her past hidden from anyone traveling in the nouveau riche art circles.

  When Olivia meets backcountry guide Clark Johnson, she assumes he is the rugged mountain man he appears to be. But Clark has secrets of his own and isn’t sure if becoming a national park ranger is answering the call of the wilderness or fleeing God’s divine guidance.

  As Clark opens Olivia’s eyes to the wonders of Yosemite, she discovers that people are as vital to the park’s story as are its vistas—and that the gap between who she is and who she pretends to be could mean the difference of life and death.”


Series: Book #2 in the “Vintage National Parks” series. Review of Book #1 Here!


Spiritual Content- Scriptures are mentioned, quoted, read, & talked about; Many Prayers & Thanking God; Church going, a sermon & singing hymns; Witnessing; Many Talks about God, His creation, His will, faiths, & callings; ‘H’s are capital when referring to God; Olivia doesn’t believe in God & believed He turned His back on her family *Spoiler* But does try praying halfway through and continues few times later *End of Spoiler*; Clark was a pastor; Many mentions of God, His creation, His will, & callings; Mentions of prayers, praying, & blessings over food; Mentions of faiths & witnessing; Mentions of churches, church going, ministries, pastors, sermons, & hymns; A few mentions of thanking God; A few mentions of those in the Bible; A few mentions of blessings & being blessed; A couple mentions of Heaven; A couple mentions of hymns; A couple mentions of sins;

             *Note: A mention of hellfire; A mention of personal demons; A mention of a devilish scheme.

Negative Content- Minor cussing including: an ‘idiot’, two forms of ‘blast’, and four ‘stupid’s; A but of eye rolling; Being held hostage & at gunpoint; Fighting & a Gunshot (barely-above-not-detailed); Mentions of a murder, the murderer, & the body; Mentions of (the possibility) of people falling to their deaths & a (possible) suicide; Mentions of crimes, criminals, & the disappearance of one; Mentions of someone held hostage & gunshots; Mentions of blood/bleeding & injuries (barely-above-not-detailed); Mentions of blackmail & threats; Mentions of fires; Mentions of lies & lying; Mentions of rumors, gossip, & gossip rags; Mentions of cigarettes & smoking; A few mentions of suicides, the bodies, & the reason why they happened; A few mentions of a body; A few mentions of jails; A few mentions of drinking & drunks; A few mentions of nightmares; A few mentions of screams; A couple mentions of thinking that you might be murdered (doesn’t happen, it’s a passing comment); A couple mentions of an illnesses & a death; A couple mentions of wars; A couple mentions of con-artists; A mention of hunting;

             *Note: Mentions of painters, actors, & actresses; A few mentions of a book & its characters.

Sexual Content- a fingers-to-lips touch, two cheek kisses, two forehead/head kisses, a barely-above-not-detailed unwanted kiss, three barely-above-not-detailed kisses, and four semi-detailed kisses; Remembering kisses (up to semi-detailed); Wanting to kiss (barely-above-not-detailed); Touches, Embraces, Dancing, & Warmth (up to semi-detailed); Noticing, Nearness, & Smelling (border-line barely-above-not-detailed // semi-detailed); a ‘vamp’ and two ‘harlot’s; A married man unwantedly touches & kisses Olivia (up to semi-detailed, she smacks him away);  Mentions of a married man having a casual interest in Olivia, his roving eyes & advances; Mentions of a married woman having an attraction for her pastor; Mentions of kissing & kisses; Mentions of reputations & chaperones; Mentions of blushes; A few mentions of affairs, wondering if a couple is having one, & scandals; A few mentions of secret lovers & crimes of passion; A few mentions of dates & a boyfriend; A couple mentions of married couples kissing; A couple mentions of flirting; A couple mentions of crushes; A mention of a couple spooning; A mention of a man trying to steal a kiss; Love, falling in love, & the emotions;

             *Note: Mentions of adding a woman’s curves to a picture; A mention of drawing someone & feeling like it’s a little voyeuristic; A mention of a girl acting like a Jezebel; A mention of a man being uncomfortable when a woman rolls up her pant legs.

-Olivia Rutherford

-Clark Johnson
                                P.O.V. switches between them

                                               Set in 1929-1930
                                                        344 pages

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Pre Teens-

New Teens-

Early High School Teens-

Older High School Teens-

My personal Rating-

As I really enjoyed the first book in this series, “The Road to Paradise”, this sequel was added to my anticipated books list for 2018 at the beginning of this year. This one had some great faith content that I loved seeing and I found Olivia’s career to be fascinating. I have to admit that I enjoyed the first book better, though. “Where the Fire Falls” had some sweet moments in it, but, personally, it did get a bit kissy for my tastes at time and I didn’t like that we had a married man trying to get close to Olivia. I was very, very glad when he left. There was some other drama that felt a bit forced at times, but I did like the descriptions of Yosemite. I have never been there, so while reading, I would pause and look up pictures of the places. I think the author did a lovely job describing them and the emotions.

So, even while this one didn’t quite meet my expectations because of some of the content, I did like some of aspects and hope to read the third book when it releases. :)

See y’all on Wednesday 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 received this book for free from the Publisher (Waterbrook) for this honest review.