The Quarryman's Bride (Land of Shining Water)

I loved how Emmalyne Knox followed the Lord's Commandments, no matter the heartache that presented itself. With her heart broken she takes care of her Mother, and Brother and Father.
At first I did not like the Father, what a grumpy personality. He sure is a "Me Person". Some of the things that have

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happened in his life are really tragic, but he needs to find his way back to God. Both his daughter and his wife feel he doesn't "Love" them, and he treats them that way.
We meet more tragedy in this small MN community, it comes from different directions, and seems to be linking back to the Unions??
We also meet Emmalyne's former Fiancé, Travis MacLachlan. We read and can hear the deep brogue spoken, almost like we are there, through the author's writing. I loved hearing it.
Will Emmalyne ever have her own personal happiness? Their is the new Dr in town who likes what he sees in her. Will her Mother ever be able to live again, so much grief and heartache. Will her Father ever come back to his Lord, and live a happy life? The answers are here in this wonderful read. I recommend you pick it up, you won't put it down until finished.

I received this book through Litfuse Publicity Book Tours, and was not required to give a positive review.

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The Quarryman's Bride by Tracie Peterson
1880's, St. Cloud MN. Loved the first book in this series, The Icecutter's Daughter and the timeframe. Was so happy to learn I could get this one and the next.
Emmalyne Knox and her father are staying at her fiancee Tavin MacLachlan family house due to the

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tornado that wiped out not only the younger girls but their house and Emmas' future.
She can not marry-now it's her responsibility to care for her father and mother=because now she's the youngest in the family. She chooses to obey God and not her heart...
11 years later we find Emma, Angus her brother and parents moving back to St. Cloud. Mr. MacLachian has a house they can rent and she's learned Tavin probably went to Maine to find quarry work after they had left the area.
The others in her family no longer had time for God, she still believed in his qualities to guide her in life.
The new doctor Jason, comes to see to her mother's ailments and he is taken with Emma. Emma is busy cleaning and whitewashing the rooms downstairs as the house is a disaster. When Angus becomes sick the mother, Rowena seems to have spark in her life again along with her faith in God.
The story also follows the MacLachian family and the hardships they endure at home with the sister and at work with union worker's problems and failure of equipment.
Tavin is to return home and help his father run the quarry. He has furthered his career working with stone. He is still in love with her and will hate working where her father and brother work but he gave his father a promise he would work for the contract.
Loved hearing how the stone is alive and can tell stories...Scotish traditions of churning the butter sound so magical-driving the fairies away.
Love how things are solved, not with fists but talking. The priest also helps them to understand that they must have faith in God about all the circumstances that occur to them and friends. Others talk more freely of God also and that sways others to think about Him.
Like that there are two families and few characters to keep track of-with a few others mixed in. So easy to keep track of the people. Love hearing all the detailed descriptions of things-I learned so much.
Many scriptures are quoted to help aide them in decisions and their faith.
I received this book from Net Galley via Bethany House in exchange for my honest review.

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I read this book in a day and a half. I loved the main character Emmalyne and I hoped through the whole book that she would end up with Tavin. From the start of the book I didn't like her father at all but I hoped that by the end of the book he would see how much he family loves him and let

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Emmalyne marry Tavin. I felt like I was there with the characters and I understood how Emmalyne felt a lot of the time. I love Tracie Peterson's writing and this book didn't let me down. If you love her writing and I know you will love this book as well.

FTC:I received a free copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. The opinions expressed in this review are 100% mine.

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This book was really different in a way of a Romance book. You some what learn to keep faith along with hope. Some things really happen once tragically happen to one particular family. Things begin to change though out the book. Doe god start to heal their hearts and wounds?

I think two stars is a generous rating. This book was boring at best and senselessly depressing at worst.

I just did not enjoy this book. I admit, I did not read the first one, because I did not realize this was a series. And After reading the first few chapters, I did skim the next twenty percent

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of the book.

The only positive thing I have to say is that it was a breath of fresh air to read about a heroine who was obedient, humble and servant, rather than a fierce, ahead-of-her-time pistol. But I felt this character was wasted. We are introduced to a heartbreaking situation, fastforwarded ELEVEN YEARS LATER with no time spent, not even blips, in their lives. This story could have been stronger if we had been taken along on that ride and could have seen firsthand how Emmy grew to despair for her mother, find companionship with her brother and grew to resent her father. But nope, the author obviously feels these are all unimportant when contrasted to her broken engagement; they're briefly brought up later and quickly resolved.

And, despite her admission of such feelings, I didn't see that her actions followed suit, making it unbelievable. For example, many women would be hardened, turned weak or bitter or angry etc, after so many years of pain and suffering and unappreciated sacrifice. The first man to pay her attention (and a possible escape) would have certainly at least proved to be a temptation. Not so with Emmy.

Anyway, the story picks up with us being dropped in eleven years later to see that nothing has changed, but they are packing up and returning home. I think the lack of change was unrealistic. And I was completely bored by the next TWENTY PERCENT of the book being spent on talking about how she spruced up the dump and made it a home. Ugh.

I was surprised by Emmy's friend, Fenella's, storyline. I just couldn't see the point.

I have witnessed people doing 180 degree changes in personality. But this happened SO rapidly and we didn't really get insight into Luthias' feelings or motivations. I was confused by some contradictions where he was concerned, like his questioning Tavin on his feelings the first time. His conversion was not gradual at all.

Things wrapped up too smoothly at the end, which was just not believable for me, especially not where Fenella was concerned. I have siblings, in laws and friends and I can't imagine behaving the way ANY of the characters did if this happened to one of my family or friends.

And I did not get pulled into the subplot of the trouble with the union. I just couldn't get into it.

*I was given a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.*

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This book was really different in a way of a Romance book. You some what learn to keep faith along with hope. Some things really happen once tragically happen to one particular family. Things begin to change though out the book. Doe god start to heal their hearts and wounds?

I enjoyed the historical setting, and Tracie's research applied to the era.
The dialogue was frustrating: telling things that the people in the plot would already know, just so I would know.
I also struggled with the doctor's lack of confidentiality with his patients. (I know HIPAA wasn't around

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then, but there still would have been confidentiality with his patients...the hipocratic oath and all that sort of stuff.)
Some of the plot was not believable...would the doctor really bow out gracefully and actually encourage the reunion?
I appreciated the escape into another time, but it came with a lot of frustrations.

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With "The Quarryman's Bride", author Tracie Peterson returns readers to Minnesota of the late 1890's. As the twentieth century approaches, and modernization invades, many of those whose families work as manual laborers wonder what the future will bring. Emmalyne Knox has a father and brother who

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depend on the rock quarry trade to earn a living. Her father, Luthias, had begun as a laborer, but his way with figures led him to work as a bookkeeper and office manager. Emmalyne's brother, Angus, worked in the quarry itself. More than a decade had passed since a devastating storm had passed through their home area of St. Cloud, wreaking havoc and taking lives, including those of Emmalyne's two younger sisters. The Knox family was emotionally torn apart, and Luthias moved the remaining family to Minneapolis, forcibly ending Emmalyne's engagement to Tavin MacLachlan. Claiming an old Scottish tradition, Luthias declared that with his two oldest daughters married and living a distance away, and his two youngest daughters dead, it was Emmalyne's familial duty to remain with her parents and care for them as they grew older. Already a harsh and unyielding man, Luthias could not be dissuaded from this heartbreaking path. Tavin begged Emmalyne to elope with him, but she was a dutiful and devout daughter, and she would not go against her father's wishes. Tavin bitterly let her go, leaving Emmalyne in despair. Now the Knox family has returned to St. Cloud, and this time her father and brother will work for Tavin's father, Robert, who has his own quarry business. Tavin had left St. Cloud not long after the Knox family moved away, and he and Emmalyne had not seen each other or had contact in all those long years. Tavin has traveled and worked all around the country, and when word reaches him that his father had been ill, he returns to St. Cloud to help his father with the quarry business. He is unprepared to be working with Luthias, the man who ruined his life, and when he sees Emmalyne again, he knows that he loves her still. Emmalyne is overjoyed to see Tavin again, but his bitter attitude is still very much in evidence. As circumstances bring them more and more into each other's company, the longing for what should have been grows deeper and deeper. Emmalyne's father is just as dictatorial and demanding as ever, and her mother has grown weaker and more melancholy as the years have passed. Is there hope that abiding faith and true love can change the hardest of hearts? Can the future leave the hurt of the past behind? When threats to the safety of the quarry and their families force them to fight side-by-side, will old wounds be healed? A stirring addition to Tracie Peterson's "Land of Shining Water" series.

Book Copy Gratis Bethany House Books

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It’s 1886 in St. Cloud, Minnesota and seventeen year-old Emmalyne Knox was engaged to marry Tavin MacLachlan in a few weeks. But tragedy struck the town and her family especially and now because of an old family tradition, she is now the youngest daughter and is expected to remain living with her

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parents to care for them the rest of her life. There was no changing her father, Luthias Knox’s mind. He packed up and moved his remaining family away and for 11 long years all Emmalyne did was care for her parents and brother, Angus (the only bright spot in her life) and daily wonder about Tavin. Her heart breaking each time she thought of all she had lost.

Luthias Knox is a very hard, unyielding man. He has no love in him and it shows in the way he treats his wife, daughter and son. He ruined his daughter’s life, yet she felt like it was her duty to honor her parents as God had said in His Word. Now after 11 long years circumstances change and they move back to St. Cloud, Minnesota. Her father will be working with Robert MacLachlan, Tavin’s father. He now owns a quarry and has offered Luthias a job. But Emmalyne is scared. Will Tavin still be there? Will he be married and have children? Can she bare to see that and will her heart break into again?

But as with all things, God has a master plan and although this book is full of pain and heartache, it’s also full of love, redemption and restoration. I loved reading every word, even thought sometimes I got so mad at Mr. Knox! This is a wonderful book and anyone who loves historical romantic fiction that is not sappy, but gritty and tense and not always the “happily ever after for everyone story” will love this book. It keeps you wondering what will happen between Emmalyne and Tavin and there’s a new doctor in town that has his eyes on Emmalyne too. I highly recommend this book and series. This is not the type of series you have to read in order. Each book is separate, they are just all set in Minnesota. So just go pick one up and enjoy!

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