Robin Lee Hatcher’s Heart of Gold is a pleasing Historical Romance with a strong faith element. As southern belle and preacher’s daughter Shannon Adair adjusts to life in Idaho, caring for a dying woman whose husband died fighting for the north, she slowly falls in love with the brother of her new friend while also growing in her understanding of what truly matters. As for Matthew Dubois, he finds what he thought he wanted out of life upended by his sister’s eminent death, caring for his nephew, and finding that his pacifist leanings are not appreciated by the woman he is growing to care for.
As the conflict of the Civil War reaches even into the town of Grand Coeur, Idaho, this story unfolds with a mix of historical fact and invention, conflict, challenges, character growth as well as growing faith and romantic love. And the Reverend Adair’s conversations with his dearly departed wife proved a high point of this story for me. While not my favorite of Robin Lee Hatcher’s Historical Christian Romances, Heart of Gold is an enjoyable and satisfying read that somehow seems to fly by.
This review refers to a paperback copy that I purchased several years ago. It is the first selection for my Backlist23 challenge on Instagram, where I have committed to reading a minimum of 23 backlist books in 2023.
About the Book
The truest treasure is found deep in the heart.
Back in her beloved Virginia, Shannon Adair loved nursing injured soldiers back to health. But in Grand Coeur, Idahothe rough-and-tumble place where her father has been called to lead the churchshe’s not sure where she fits in. Then a critically ill woman arrives, and Shannon knows her place at last: to care for this dear woman and ease her pain.
Matthew Dubois is the fastest and most reliable stagecoach driver on Wells Fargo’s payroll. But his widowed sister is dying and he’s about to inherit his young nephew. So he takes a job at the Wells Fargo express office in Grand Coeur until he can find the one thing he needs to get back to driving: a wife to care for the boy.
What neither of them knows is that God is at work behind the scenesand is lovingly bringing them together to discover the true desires of their hearts.
Heart of Gold by Robin Lee Hatcher | Thomas Nelson, 2012 | paperback, 302 pages
bookworlder 