My Heart Belongs in San Francisco, California is a fun and sweet story. Loved it! I give it 5 plus stars.

When Abby Effingham becomes stranded in the middle of the California gold rush, her money depletes quickly even while her prospects for marriage increase daily. But Abby is on a mission to find her mother—not romance. Will a ridiculous scandal keep her from traveling on, or will it wake up an aloof innkeeper to the treasure right under his roof?

Samuel Harris runs a moderately priced hotel where Abby and her family’s elderly butler find shelter. He is looking forward to when she—and her parade of suitors—move on, though he concedes to let her work in his restaurant. When the sassy socialite is in trouble, will Samuel come to her rescue or find himself alone?

I found this book to be disappointing. I have read lots of other books by Janice Thompson and I didn't think this one was near as good. The story line was very good and I liked the characters. Flaws and all. But every situation called for a scripture verse and then it was expounded on. Don't get me wrong, I'm a Christian and there is a scripture for all our situations. The book probably could have been a novella if not for what I felt was filler.

I was given this book by Net Galley in exchange for an honest review. I was not compensated in any way.

I really enjoy this fast-paced My Heart Belongs series. Each book has a different author, and each author has her own flavor. The historical aspects and not only informative, but they are endearing.

In My Heart Belongs in San Francisco, California: Abby’s Prospects, Janice Thompson does a great job of pulling the reader in. She also has a gift of carrying a spiritual thread throughout her story. It was fun visiting the west and the era of the gold rush.

I sunk into the vivid setting and enjoyed the great cast of characters. Abby is interesting. Ms. Thompson fleshed her out nicely, making her resilient and determined. And the setting is displayed nicely. The pacing is fairly fast, with no lagging parts, and the ending is sweet and satisfying.

One of my favorite things of this story, beside the spiritual thread, is the cast of secondary characters. Families aren’t always traditional—parents, siblings, and such. Sometimes they are people who we’ve grown to love, who we can depend on, and who give us a safe place to fall. I love how this story embodies that.

If you enjoy historical fiction with a strong spiritual thread, this book (and series) is a good choice.

Cover: Love
Title: Love
Pages: 256
Series: My Heart Belongs series #8
Publisher: Barbour Books
ISBN: 978-1683224639
First Line: Never underestimate the power of coffee, Neville.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from NetGalley.

It was a quick read with a good emphasis on the spiritual life. Although, overall - it did not hold my interest.

Though I have read other Janice Thompson book previously, her installment in the My Heart Belongs series is the first of her Historical Fictions that I’ve read. Let me say, I was not at all disappointed. While I didn’t laugh out loud and cry, I did certainly laugh and grimace (at character’s actions, not Thompson’s writing) and so much more. Abby was a believable character, as were the others. I found myself rooting for all of them, shaking my head at Abby, rolling my eyes at the villain’s empty flattery, and thoroughly enjoying myself. There were a few moments when things happened just a bit too easily to be believable (Sam’s father’s decision regarding the Inn, Abby’s mother’s reaction, how much money people have been able to put away for various things) but it didn’t detract from the charm of the story. Cookie’s wisdom and verse quoting never felt forced or preachy, but fit what one would expect as good advice. This is definitely a must-read for those who appreciate light historical fiction and will likely be one I pick up again sometime.

This is a typical romance series written by a variety of Christian authors. I usually rate them a 3 or a 4 and consider them an easy read without a lot of depth. Janice Thompson rose above the standard in this book. The outstanding faith thread that was woven seamlessly into the story definitely made this an above average read. Her historical research regarding the Gold Rush period in California was excellent and made both the time period and the setting come alive.

There were so many great characters and wonderful subplots that kept this story moving from start to finish. Abigail was persistent, yet as a wealthy young woman she was not afraid to take on new challenges and learn new things. I loved Neville, Amanda's butler, who was more of a father to her than her own. Cookie took Amanda under her wing and became a mother to her. Sam was such a warmhearted, faith filled character; and his growing love for Abigail was sweet as he watched her become stronger in her faith and character. Les and Jin both added touches of the time period with women dressing like men and the influx of the Chinese to the gold fields.

The starring part of this book though was how well done the faith thread was. Cookie was the center of the cast and she always had an appropriate Scripture verse for anyone in any situation. Her explanation of the salvation message was written beautifully.

Definitely one of the best books of this series that I have read.

FAVORITE QUOTES: "Just reminding you that God uses every road we travel to teach us lessons, so keep your eyes open.

"Truth is, we're all His children, clean or dirty, good behavior or bad. Makes no never-mind to the Almighty where we come from or how messy we are. When He looks down at us, He sees His children."

"We do the right things out of obedience and love for our heavenly Father, not out of fear. Fear will only cu7ase you to line up and walk straight for so long before you finally give up and do the wrong thing again. It's a vicious circle."

This was an okay book. A little on the preachy side. The main characters don't seem to like San Francisco much until almost the end when they are starting to get attached to people, not the place. A lot of the problems still exist at the end of the book that were at the beginning. And everyone kissing in the kitchen? That would have never happened in that era, they would have been way more discrete.

I received this copy from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

If you enjoy a lighthearted melodrama, you’ll love this sweet historical by Janice Thompson. Of course, it’s a melodrama without the fainting heroine (Abigail Effington can take care of herself, thank you very much). In fact, Abby thinks nothing of traveling to boomtown San Francisco rather than wait for road repairs at Fort Hall as she makes her intrepid journey from Philadelphia to Oregon in search of her mother. The family’s trusty butler, Neville, travels with her and protects her along the way.

San Francisco turns out nothing like Abby expected. The wooly, dusty, seemingly lawless town makes her wonder a bit about her choice. Neville wants to purchase return tickets the day they arrive in town. But Abby has high hopes of reuniting her estranged parents, and vows to stick it out. She determines to take a job at the Gold Rush Inn in exchange for wages and a free place to stay. Neville, of course, stays with her—after all, he’s faithfully served the family from England to Philadelphia.

At her new job, Abby learn how to work for the very first time. She also learns to appreciate the very reliable (and handsome) Sam Harris. The cast of supporting characters helps Abby realize the truth about herself, as well as the villainy of the not-so-evil-but-just-bad-enough villain. Cookie, the Inn’s famous cook, has theology that seems a hundred years ahead of her time (but it’s good, solid, theology), and the other good guys don’t harbor any of the usual era-appropriate prejudices against the Chinese. All-in-all, this sweet romance will keep you smiling from start to finish.

When her pursuit of her wandering mother is blocked, Abby Effingham makes the decision to take herself and her chaperone, the family butler, to San Francisco. Sam Harris rescues the impetuous beauty from herself and the two drift closer and closer to love.

While I did like the detailed description of the time period and era -the mucky streets, the attitude of those who had caused the city to explode in size-, I did not much care for the main characters. I found Abby to be an immature, selfish woman who didn’t grow as much as I would have liked. Sam made no impression on me and I can't really think of any positive or negative personality traits.

Neville, the butler, was adorable and my heart went out to him for being dragged all over. His loyalty to Abby was admirable, and his discomfort was exactly what I would have expected. The plot seemed to drag in places, and I found myself skimming pages in search of something to happen.

Overall, a clean romance but not a favorite.

I received an ARC copy from netgalley for my honest review,  so thank you netgalley and publishers for offering me this book! ♡
These are my favorite type of books! It is historical, and has lots of historical elements and information from the era, but it is still fiction. This book is inspirational and I love that it is biblical with real verses and has actual morals, but not so much that it overwhelms the story.
This was my first book by this author,  I absolutely enjoyed every second of it. But i also enjoy hallmark movies so that could be why. It was fast paced and just alltogether an easy read. ♡ I give this book a 5 star rating!

These books are a lot of fun! They are historical, and full of little tidbits of history and information from the era, but they're definitely fiction. They are inspirational and filled with Christian verses, scriptures, and character / morals, but not so much that it overwhelms the story. The naivete of the main character was both endearing and irritating at times, but it contrasted nicely to the jaded male main character...and in the end, it all works out beautifully!