Tag Archive | Leann Harris

Redemption Ranch… a book review

Life gets busy around Christmas what with kids and parties and gifts to make, so what better to do than add a light read while I am working no my to do list? Redemption Ranch by Leann Harris was a lucky library find. Another ranch based book (of course the title… duh), this book is much more than a horse and pretty girl story. There really is a whole lot of redemption going on.

The Second Chance Ranch is an amazing place for children, for veterans, for broken souls who need some healing. Tyler Lynch is one of those souls. His faith rocked by the death of his partner during a bomb retrieval, his soul already hardened by his life as a foster child… there is so much to love about his character. I love that this book deals with the plight of the returned veteran. The difficulty of survivor’s guilt and sleepless nights due to nightmares.

Beth is part of the family business at the ranch. Terrific with animals and kids, very intuitive with those in need. She herself has been soured in love at a young age and is honestly always acting with the very best intentions. She is optimism and joy in an amazing package.

The child in this story is the brother of the soldier that Tyler could not save. He is also a broken soul and his path to joy and strengthened faith is the catalyst for a lot of the goings on in the story.

I really appreciated how the author delved into life after war. Add in the emotional turmoil of the families left behind and you get a bit of an insight into the less than glamourous life of our returned heroes. (and those who never return) I did find a bit of the drama slightly… more… than I generally enjoy but I am finding that this is a common theme in these Love Inspired books. A call for a moment or two of extreme stress. 

Redemption Ranch was an enjoyable read with characters you can’t help but connect with. If you enjoy some horses, ranches, faith journeys and healing this could be the book for you!13261142._UY475_SS475_

 

Fresh-Start Ranch… a book review

I have continued my random grab trend at the library and this time it was not filly I mean fully in my favour. I have to admit a bias… I have never been one of those little girls who wanted a pony. A library in my own home, a couple cats, a collection of roses… these are all things I had an invested interest in growing up (though I have since ditched the rose cliche with my middle name). So this story was a bit of a rough start for me. Fresh-Start Ranch by Leann Harris is a definite horse lover’s dream.

Tessa is a tiny spitfire with a good relationship with God, a deep love of horses and a degree as veterinarian. She has come out to New Mexico from Kentucky to start fresh and prove that she is an able bodied large animal veterinarian. With a hard past and an open future she is ready to face the world. Tessa’s backstory includes, well… horse, an alcoholic gambler of a father and the constant experience of being underestimated due to her height.

She meets Ethan (who apparently is in previous books by this author about this area in New Mexico) who is also a huge fan of horses and helps with a horse rescue… do you see my dilemma? There is a great faith element to this story, an overcoming of past mistakes and feelings of guilt which I did enjoy. BUT there is a huge emphasis on horses.

The characters around these two are endearing though only a few are really developed in this story. The main focus is really the internal conflict of our two main characters and the horse rescue operation. There is a tiny bit of a mystery and a nice romance. I find the resolution a tiny bit rushed but that happens occasionally with these Love Inspired stories. Definitely a good book for the horse lover. So do check it out. Be aware it does discuss gambling issues and an abusive parent though.9780373877713_500X500

This entry was posted on 10/11/2015, in Uncategorized. 1 Comment