Counterfeit Hope

Title: Counterfeit Hope    

Series: Hidden Hearts of the Gilded Age #2

Author: Crystal Caudill

Genre: Historical Fiction, Christian Fiction, Romance,

Publisher: Kregel

Source: Library

My review:

Counterfeit Hope is the second book in the series. It can be read as a stand alone novel, but the stories are loosely connected with their characters.

I would not normally choose to read a story with abuse in it. I appreciate the author making it known right at the beginning. I loved the first story and decided to read this one anyway. I am glad I did. Abuse is wrong and hard to read about, but this story is not as heavy as it could have been.

I liked Lu immediately and found myself rooting for her throughout the story. She has to endure more than her fair share of suffering, but she always seems to bounce back. She is bound and determined that her son, Oscar, will have a proper upbringing and get away from the Thorne family. Unfortunately, they thwart her at every opportunity.

We briefly met Andrew in the first book. It was fascinating getting his story in this one! He is a complex character, facing difficult circumstances, yet he finds a way to do his job while protecting those around him.

I enjoyed this story and have already started the third one, Counterfeit Faith. I can't wait to see where it takes me.

★★★★

Synopsis (Goodreads): 

Trapped by their pasts, is there hope for a future?

When Secret Service operative Andrew Darlington is brought in to support a US Marshal case involving counterfeiters in rural Indiana, he thinks it's simply the next rung on his climb to the top of his career. But liars can only climb so high--and Andrew is keeping a dangerous secret he doesn't ever want to get out. When he clashes with the criminal family that took over the town of Landkreis and killed the Marshal he was sent to assist, his past life is in danger of being exposed.

Widow Lightning Lu Thorne has only one goal: escape the clutches of the Thorne family with her son. Her decision to be an informant and testify against the Thornes looked like the perfect answer. Until the Marshal ended up dead. Now the tether keeping her tied to her felonious family is tightening, and a forced marriage to someone else in the Thornes' clutches threatens to kill any hope of escape.

Andrew and Lu find themselves on the same team--unwillingly. They each believe the other to be the enemy to their future plans. And even if they could learn to work together, the secrets they hold could shatter all hopes and dreams. Despite the encouragement of the local preacher, they're not even sure God can be trusted--much less other humans. Can either of them escape their past--and the family that is willing to kill their own when they smell betrayal?

On the heels of her smashing debut, this second entry in Crystal Caudill's historical series maintains the excitement that readers of Michelle Griep, Liz Tolsma, and Elizabeth Camden will love.