This is the 3rd book in Virtues and Vices of the Old West. It is a story about Grace Bidwell. She lost her husband and her father lives with her on her potato farm.She cares for father who they believe had taken a stroke. She always wanted children and did not have any. She has a dear friend named Ginny who wants her to start dating and fixes her up with her husbands business partner. Grace is looking for someone to help her on her potato farm and posts a ad for help. She meets three pitiful children who she buys candy for. A man Robert Fraiser applies for the job. Robert was married and his wife died and he never knew she had three children who was left for him to raise. They live out in the woods till Grace finds them and realizes they are Robert's children. This is a beautiful story on trying to trust again.

All her life, Grace Bidwell has wanted a husband and children . Being the only one taking care of her father as he gets weaker in his legs she has no time for romance anyway. She gets the brilliant idea while in town at the general store one day to advertise for a man to help her father with farm chores that she is unable to do. While in the general store she sees 3 young,rag tag children and wonders who they belong to. She ends up hiring a young man named Robert Frasier .He is desperate for a job to support the 3 young children that their mother,who he was married to briefly,told him about them right before she died so now he is responsible for them. As a farm hand he is working out well and Grace's father enjoys having him around and talking to him. 2 men are attracted to Grace,who can she trust and has her best interest in mind? Is it Warren,who works with her best friends husband or Robert? This is a beautiful and emotional conclusion to the Virtues and Vices of the Old West series,which takes place in 1860s Montana's lush Gallatin Valley.
Pub Date 02 May 2017
Thank you to NetGalley and Revell for providing me with a review copy in exchange for my honest opinion

A heartwarming historical romance! A young widow in 1866 Gallatin County, Montana finds herself in need of help to keep her farm going and care for her ailing father. The job opportunity is an answer to prayer for a poor widower and his children, but it will take more than just the right circumstances to make them into a family.

"His mother once told him there were no surprises to God...everything was part of His plan."
The characters in this story had a lot to work through, given their difficult circumstances, and the desire to not repeat past mistakes. I could understand Robert's reluctance to rely on others or grow attached to anyone, letting his bitterness prevent him from moving forward. Grace was a sweet woman, with a lot to give, struggling with her own loneliness and uncertain future. The theme of trusting in God and not our circumstances was clear, like how Grace was hoping to be happy once everything is perfect, having all her ducks in a row. What makes up a real family was also an important theme. The children were very resilient given their situation, especially sweet little Sarah; I felt sorry for them the most. The addition of real historic figures and events to the story was interesting, as shown in the author's index.

This is book three of a series, but easily reads as a standalone. Readers who enjoy tender historical romances with some faith may enjoy this one.

i loved the book Trusting Grace by Maggie Brendan. This a book I will reread in the future. set with Montana's beautiful Gallatin Valley as a backdrop the story comes to life in a way that makes you feel right at home with the characters. Maggie's blossoming romance to the struggling Robert is not without problems. I also enjoyed the side story that involved the new romance between Maggie's father and the proprietor of the local boarding house.

Times are hard in Gallatin Valley, Montana Territory in 1866. Grace Bidwell is the sole owner of Bidwell Farms after the death of her husband a few years earlier. Her ill father lives with her and between him and the farm chores, she is too busy. So, she puts a notice in the mercantile for hired help. While there she sees three raggedy children eagerly staring at some peppermint sticks and decides to purchase on for each.

The children are in town with their father Robert, who is looking for work to tide them over until the can move on. Finding Grace’s notice, Robert is able to secure the job, although he keeps the existence of the children a secret. They set up camp a little way from the farm, but on the farm property. When Grace finally learns of the children she is offers them a place to stay while Robert is working for her. She had always wanted a family, but was childless in her marriage. She loved caring for the kids and learned to care for their step-father too.

Reading this story showed just what a heightened sense of pride, hurt, and anger can do. It takes special people to overcome all of this and to make good the life that they have.

Trusting Grace

A Novel
by Maggie Brendan

Revell

Christian

Pub Date 02 May 2017

I am reviewing Trusting Grace through Revell and Netgalley:

This book transports us back to 1866 Montana Territory where we meet Grace Bidwell. Grace Bidwell is widowed and caring for her Father.

Grace Bidwell has longed for a loving husband and a family of her own for as long as she could remember but her chances of that are looking small.

Robert Fraser arrives in town with only two coins, and three children.

Will Grace Bidwell find her life's joy, will she get the family she desires?

Find out in Trusting Grace five out of five stars.

Happy Reading!

A sweet tale of emerging love without many twists and turns. The story was so well written. I enjoyed the depth of the characters plus the spiritual aspect was seamlessly interwoven in the story. It was predictable but also it was an enjoyable light read.

Recently widowed and charged with the care of her ailing father, Grace Bidwell begins to wonder if her dreams of growing old with a loving husband in a house full of children will ever come true. Struggling to balance her father's needs with single-handedly running her late husband's farm, Grace decides to place an advertisement for a farm hand. She soon begins to wonder if single-father to three newly acquired step-children, Robert Frasier, just might be the answer to both of Grace's prayers. After each has experienced so much loss and disappointment in recent years, will Grace and Robert learn to trust one another with their hearts and ultimate happiness?

Set in 1860s Montana, Maggie Brendan's Trusting Grace had plenty of potential to tell a beautiful story of love and loss against a rugged backdrop, but unfortunately falls short. Brendan introduces a host of compelling and relatable problems for many of the characters, but each one manages to virtually solve itself without much fanfare, effort, or payoff. Robert struggles to parent three children he barely knows. He kind of figures it out. Grace is jealous and threatened by her father's new love interest. She gets over it. There's something shady about the man trying to court Grace. He ends up in jail. Again, lots of potential... very little payoff. The only situation that took any real amount of time or effort to resolve was Grace and Robert's relationship, and even that was barely satisfying. Rather than solving itself, this plot line simply dragged on for about 50 more pages than it needed to. It was if Brendan felt the need to create random problems for secondary characters to work through just to prolong the story. This one was a struggle to finish, I'm afraid.

*** Review will be live on blog May 10th

The relationships between the characters is what really makes this story. Grace is a strong hard-working woman, dedicated to running the farm and taking care of her ailing father. Robert has just lost his wife and farm, and now is the guardian of 3 kids he didn’t know she had. He has come to town looking for a job and finds an opening at Grace’s farm. Can Robert learn to trust another woman? You have a sense of how this book will end very early on, but wondering how they get there is what kept me invested and I was invested the rest of the way through. There are twists and turns throughout that make you wonder if Grace will endure heartbreak again and what will happen to the kids.

I loved the father-daughter interactions, Grace shared everything with her dad, (I couldn’t imagine ever telling my dad about a kiss), and Owen challenged Grace about her feelings. The love between the two shone throughout the story. Ginny, Grace’s best friend was entertaining, she gently pushed Grace out of her comfort zone (rut) trying to help enrich her life, not all goes smoothly with this though. I really enjoyed the interactions between Grace and the kids, she treated them sweetly right from the first meeting when she didn’t know who they were. As she spent more time with them she treated them as if they were her own. Each child had their own personality shine through. Grace’s life might not turn out the exact way that she planned, but is God’s plan better? Yes! There are definitely some swoon-worthy moments included.

A couple minor things bothered me about the story, one being I couldn’t figure out the ages of the girls, Becky & Sarah. The second being how Robert was able to find Grace so quickly after she disappeared, that seemed unrealistic.

I love books about the Old West and Trusting Grace fit the bill. I enjoyed this well written book's plot and characters. I was impressed by the author's style of writing and will be reading the previous books in this series.