Sand Creek Serenade- Jennifer Uhlarik

My Rating: 3 Stars

Description: One woman with a deep desire to serve and help. One brave who will stop at nothing to save his people. Each willing to die for their beliefs and love for one another. Will their sacrifice be enough?

As a female medical doctor in 1864, Sadie Hoppner is no stranger to tragedy and loss. While she grapples with the difficulties of practicing medicine at a Colorado outpost, she learns that finding acceptance and respect proves especially difficult at Fort Lyon.

Cheyenne brave Five Kills wants peace between his people and the American Army. But a chance encounter with their female doctor ignites memories from his upbringing among the whites … along with a growing fondness for the one person who seems to understand him and his people. As two cultures collide with differing beliefs of right and wrong, of what constitutes justice and savagery, blood spills on the Great Plains. When the inevitable war reaches Fort Lyon, the young couple's fledgling love is put to the test.

My Thoughts: The Massacre at Sand Creek is one of the most upsetting massacres I can remember ever learning about. The details are horrifying and the subject dark, so I was genuinely interested in how Uhlarik would depict it. And I believe that she did the event justice in her telling without making the story graphic or needlessly upsetting.

However, I did not connect as well with the characters. Sadie, in particular, frustrated me with the way she handled most of the conversations she had with her brother and his friend. Instead of truly sticking up for herself and making her own decisions, she tended to lock herself in her room or give them the silent treatment for a while before capitulating.

And the end of the story is something that I am torn on. It makes sense with the element of supernatural dreams that is woven throughout, and gives Five Kills a miracle that would have fit naturally into his outlook on the world. Yet I didn't find it as satisfactory as the ending which I had anticipated.

Overall, this is a well told story. The writing is wonderful and the historical and religious threads woven in naturally. But there are things that I wish had been slightly different.

I have provided an honest review after receiving a copy of this book through JustRead Tours.

Like Flames in the Night- Connilyn Cossette

My Rating: 5 Stars

Description: Strong-willed Tirzah wants to join her people in driving the enemy from the land of Israel and undergoes training for a secret mission inside the stronghold of Shechem. But soon after she has infiltrated the ruthless Aramean commander's kitchen, she makes a reckless decision that puts her and her allies in grave danger.

Fresh off the battlefield, Liyam returns home to discover his beloved daughter is dead. After his vow to hunt down her killer leads to months of fruitless pursuit, his last hope is in a family connection that comes with strings attached. Strings that force him to pose as a mercenary and rescue an infuriating woman who refuses to leave her mission uncompleted.

When an opportunity to pave a path to a Hebrew victory arises, can Tirzah convince Liyam to fight alongside her in the refuge city of her birth? Or will Liyam's thirst for vengeance outweigh his duty to his people, his God, and the woman he's come to love?

My Thoughts: I absolutely love Connilyn's books. Each story is more and more interesting, telling the stories of people who are not in the Bible, but lived through the events that took place in scripture. This series in particular has stood out, as Connilyn has presented many different reasons that someone might be a Blood Avenger or else be fleeing from one.

Tirzah's story is a strong one. Unlike many novels with characters who decide to spy on their enemies, Tirzah's subterfuge is made believable by her having trained to actually preform the task she has set herself to. Though it does take some time for the two main characters to meet up, the story is engaging even without the main focus being on their relationship at the beginning.

I am sad to see this series end, but excited for what comes next from Connilyn. So far, everything she has written has placed her firmly on my 'have to read' list, as well as my recommend to friends one. Whether you have read anything else by this author or not, I highly recommend this book.

I have provided an honest review after having received a copy of the book through the author.