"Embers of Love" is the first novel in the latest trilogy by Tracie Peterson.

The story begins in 1885 in Philadelphia as two young women, Deborah and Lizzie, graduate from college and begin their adult lives. Lizzie is engaged to be married to a wealthy future politician, Stuart, but she decides that she does not love him and flees with Deborah to Perkinsville, Texas, which is Deborah's hometown. Texas is where the adventure really begins.

While Lizzie deals with her former fiancée, a possible new love in the person of Deborah's brother, and her suffragette mother, Deborah is trying to find her place in the world. She went to college in order to return to Texas and take care of the bookkeeping portion of the logging business that her family owns. However, she finds herself drawn to the medical sciences and to the new doctor in town.

Overall, I think this book is what the Christian historical fiction genre should be. There are several characters involved in intertwining storylines, and the accounts are based on what was going on historically in Texas and in the United States at that time. Although at times this novel got rather "preachy" for my taste (about social issues, not about God), there were interesting points made about the issues of slavery, women's rights, and the environment. I especially enjoyed reading this story from the perspective of a town that is a "company town." I had heard of this concept before but didn't really know what it was. The company that started the town in "Embers of Love" is a lumber mill company, and most everyone in the town works at or for the mill. I also enjoyed seeing the medical advances that were being discovered at that time in history and the interest the character of Deborah had in the medical arts.

As a fan of Tracie Peterson and of Christian historical fiction, I really enjoyed this book. I liked the Texas setting much better than I thought I would. Although not every story in "Embers of Love" completely played itself out, it ended in a way that did not feel abrupt. I will be interested to read the second and third books in this series when they become available.

Thank you to Bethany House and Baker Publishing Group for giving a review copy of this book to me!

When I began Embers of Love, I felt like the beginning was rushed, almost as if I was starting a sequel. It seemed the characters had already been introduced, but I'd been left out of the introductions.

There were a few moments that I thought I might be reading about modern-day Emma. Well-intentioned matchmaker. But, then it wasn't. But, then it was.

I had a hard time figuring out many of the characters. Sometimes Euphanel spoke with a soft drawl and other times she seemed to speak primly and properly. Same with G.W. It was difficult for me to connect with any one character.

Really, Embers of Love wasn't bad. I've just read better books by Tracie. I am quite interested to see what happens with the second book in Tracie's Striking A Match series, Hearts Aglow (February 2011). I would love to see if Deborah will be able to pursue a medical career.

Reading this book was a breath of fresh air from Tracie Peterson. I've felt that her last few series haven't been up to par with some of her best works. The last two series, I was a bit disappointed after reading them. However after finishing this book, I have high hopes for this new series. There were many things I liked about it and I hope that they will continue in future books.

The story begins with friends Deborah and Lizzie having finished up their college degrees. That intrigued me from the beginning it's very rare to read historical fiction that involves women finishing their degrees. You read all the time about them starting up their first year but then they usually end up dropping out due to getting married or not being able to put with the pressure. Therefore it was really interesting seeing them after they've gotten their degrees and then figuring out what they are going to do next. The situation involving Lizzie and her fiance/husband is VERY interesting because it involves the case of what is an actual marriage. It might be one of the few Christian books that upholds an annulment.

I don't know if this is a coincidence or if in later books it will play a part, but I found it quite interesting that there are two characters named Deborah and Jael. If you are familiar with the story of Deborah the Judge from the Bible (which I am since I am named after her), then you will know that these are the names of the two women prominent in the story. While I've seen Deborah used every now and then in books, I've never seen Jael used before so it was slightly intriguing for the use of these names.

My only qualm was that I felt the cowboy character was brought in at the last moment to create some romantic tension between Deborah and Dr. Clayton. It just felt completely unnecessary to have him show up in the story and he didn't really add anything to it. Other than this however I really liked this story. The characters seemed real and engaging, almost reminiscent of Peterson's Ladies of Liberty series. I hope to read more about them in future books.