Where Trust Lies by Janette Oke and Laurel Oke Logan

Image from Goodreads

Title: Where Trust Lies
Author: Janette Oke and Laurel Oke Logan
First Published: Jan 2015
Published By: Bethany House
Format Read: ARC Ebook, Kobo
Genre: Christian/Inspirational Fiction, Historical Fiction, Canadian Fiction
Read: Feb 5 2015
Rating: 4/5

I received an eBook ARC of Where Trust Lies by Janette Oke and Laurel Oke Logan, from the publisher Bethany House, in return for an honest review.

Where Trust Lies is the second book in the Return to the Canadian West series. The first book (which I have yet to read) follows a young Ontario woman named Elizabeth who travels to a small mining town in Alberta, to teach. This second book in the series begins at the end of her teaching year, as she returns home to her family in Toronto for the summer. Her departure from Coal Valley was very bitter sweet as she had to leave behind a Mountie named Jarrick who she has begun a relationship with. Upon returning home Elizabeth learns that she is about to embark on a cruise on the St. Lawrence with her Mother, two sisters, nephew and family friends, thus putting even more miles in between her and Jarrick. While on the cruise Elizabeth juggles trying to understand her overprotective mother, while trying to reign in her spirited younger sister Julie, who has befriended some questionable shipmates.

I knew that I would like this story once I learned that it not only is it historical fiction, but it is set in Canada. It is my goal this year to read more books set in Canada and by Canadian authors. Where Trust Lies takes its readers on a cross country journey beginning in Alberta to Ontario, Quebec, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island and Nova Scotia. The cruise also brings the Thatcher and Montclair families to a few states in the US as well. I enjoyed this part of the book very much. The descriptions of each port they stopped in was beautiful. I learned of several places I hadn’t heard of before and it made me long to take a cruise or vacation of my own. As a result this lead me to do some research into the places the characters in this book visited. This also helped me to paint a picture of the setting in my head, so to speak. My one problem, however was the lack of description of the brief time spend in Toronto. While on their stop in Halifax, Elizabeth is surprised as to how short the tress were in that city. This was due to the Halifax explosion that happened several years before the novel took place. I was surprised that the characters didn’t know much about this disaster. Especially considering that Elizabeth was an educated teacher. I wondered if this was due to their select sheltering of their wealthy standing. Another point this brought up was the way technology has advanced the way we receive information now as compared to that of the time this book was set it. This would make for a great book club discussion.  

Where Trust Lies, at its heart is about the relationships between mothers and daughters and sisters. What makes it even more special is that this book is written by a mother and daughter writing duo: Janette Oke and Laurel Oke Logan. Elizabeth wants her mother to understand and support her relationship with Jarrick and she seeks to understand better why she is as overprotective as she is. Although some differences, the woman are more similar than she realizes. Set in a time when women are starting to take their own paths in life and dismiss the old fashioned rules of their elders, younger sister Julie longs for independence. An example of the changing of times that stayed with me, was that a woman couldn’t even cut their own hair without the authorization of their family, more specifically their father. However this I attribute to the fact that they come from a wealthy and religious family. Elizabeth takes it upon herself to chaperone Julie as she befriends two flapper sisters: Janis and Penny and a young man named Nick. There were times when I felt as if the older sister was a bit of a wet blanket, so to speak. Or as Nick puts it “a flat tire”. It would have been interesting (in my opinion) to have seen things more from Julie’s perspective. Although I foreshadowed that her new friends would lead Julie into trouble, I didn’t think that it would go exactly in the direction it did. The reason I thought this was because the majority of the book was very light hearted and although the faith was still evident near the end, it did take a darker turn.

As I mentioned I have yet to read the first book in the series, however after really enjoying this second book, I can’t wait to purchase a copy for myself. I also plan to purchase a physical copy of this book as well. In the GoodReads description of the first book in the series I learned that When Calls the Heart was turned into a Hallmark Channel series by the same name. Hopefully I will be able to find the first season on DVD, as I’d like to purchase it as well.

In conclusion I would recommend this book to those who enjoy Christian/Inspirational fiction and historical fiction. This would also make a great mother-daughter book club read. I’m looking forward to reading more by Janette Oke in the near future.  

Additional thoughts:

Upon discovering that the the first book was turned into a television show I needed to know more. I went to the Hallmark Channel's website, hoping that I would be able to watch episodes there but unfortunately I can't. So I will just have to find it on DVD.

Image Source: http://www.hallmarkchannel.com/when-calls-the-heart

Here is a picture of the cast from When Calls the Heart. Yes that is Lori Loughlin, Aunt Becky from Full House. So excited to watch this show. Although I've heard that there are quite a few differences from the book, but thats typical right?




For more information visit the website:
http://www.hallmarkchannel.com/when-calls-the-heart


Also, how awesome would it be to go on a cruise along the St. Lawrence? Just another trip that I've discovered from a book. Added that to my bucket list for sure!


Check out these websites for more information:
http://www.cruisesaintlawrence.com/EN/index.aspx
 http://www.stlawrencerivercruise.com/index.cfm


Wow, just beautiful! One day, one day!