Legends of Gold is the second book in a trilogy about a family and the possible 'hidden' gold they have a map to. I didn't have the opportunity to read the first book and while not entirely necessary, I did feel like there were moments that I would have liked to have the full picture to. This story is full of family secrets, new romances all happening in the newly developing west of California. A great Christian romance to read and imagine how life would have been when the 'west was young'.

First of all, many thanks to Netgalley and Publisher for the ARC granted to me. It took me a little to get imersed in the narrative, but once it was possible to dive in, I could enjoy a lot the story. An interesting info is that I picked this title, one- because I have read the first one from the series; 2- because the release date is actually my Bday (yes, this was an important reason haha) Anyway, it was a great book.

LEGENDS OF GOLD is the second novel in the Gold State Treasure series by MARY CONNEALY. The story takes place on the Two Harts Ranch near Dorado Rio, California in 1874. The Hart family is growing all the time, and when Tilda Muirhead arrives on the scene and becomes involved with the ongoing search for treasure things get interesting, especially when a man claiming to be her brother tries to take her away…….
The story is exciting and the characters interesting- some good and some that keep you guessing……
It is a story about family and belonging, with some sweet romance.
I was given a free copy of the book by NetGalley from Bethany House Publishers.The oinions in this review are completely my own.

A mix of family drama, treasure hunt, and smart women in one book or one series. Tilda accidentally gets caught in a situation where she has to dig up for treasure but somehow finds her lost family. And maybe for Tilda, she found that 300 years old artifacts is much more believable than a mysterious brother that suddenly came to the ranch to claim his family back.

This is a POV of a person who reads only the second book of the series. I don’t recommend reading it as a standalone because the story is a continuous journey of the treasure hunt and you may get lost of what was currently happening in the second part of the journey. At first I was overwhelmed with the character's introduction in the beginning but slowly got right on track as the story progressed. Although it is possible to read it, you might get confused at one point and have to revisit the first book synopsis several times to catch up with the story, like I did. And they did kindly explain their past journey in between the story too so if you don’t want to do all those figuring out the plot, you should read the first book first. Personally, I would look forward to reading the third book because of the interesting plot happening there but I might read the first book only if I feel like it.

As someone who reads historical fiction I was left amaze to see a lot of smart women represented in one book. It was refreshing to see women being respected instead of being called a witch every time they show a tiny bit of critical thinking skills. However it was a bit disappointing that the treasure hunt was too short as the story focused more on Tilda’s family drama. But I do understand it was a long quest of the MacKenzie treasure hunt but it feels too short than what I believe compared to the first book. Romance wise, it was short and simple. Avid romance readers might get a bit disappointed but will enjoy the treasure hunt and the dramas.

I just finished this last night. I have to admit I was disappointed in the end. Not in the way it turned out but how quickly it was all wrapped up. I enjoyed the characters and the setting of the story. Tilda was very resourceful but not very trusting. The exact way she should have been after living on the street for so long.
Thank you NetGalley for this ARC.