Former Marine Jake Porter has far deeper scars than the one that marks his face. He struggles with symptoms of PTSD, lives a solitary life, and avoids relationships.
When Lyndie James, Jake’s childhood best friend, lands back in Holley, Texas, Jake cautiously hires her to exercise his Thoroughbreds. Lyndie is tender-hearted, fiercely determined, and afraid of nothing, just like she was as a child. Jake pairs her with Silver Leaf, a horse full of promise but lacking in results, hoping she can solve the mystery of the stallion’s reluctance to run.
Though Jake and Lyndie have grown into very different adults, the bond that existed during their childhood still ties them together. Against Jake’s will, Lyndie’s sparkling, optimistic personality begins to tear down the walls he’s built around his heart. A glimmer of the hope he’d thought he’d lost returns, but fears and regrets still plague him. Will Jake ever be able to love Lyndie like she deserves, or is his heart too shattered to mend?
Review
Becky Wade is one of my top five favorite contemporary romance authors. Here’s why:
What I liked:
Ironically enough, the setting. I’ve said it before and I’ll probably say it again: horses do nothing for me. Why anyone would on purpose live on a ranch is confusing to me. Which means, that rarely do I get excited when I see that horses and ranches and things of that nature are the setting for a book. But, Ms. Wade approaches it a bit differently by making Lyndie a jockey. A female jockey? How cool is that? I was sold.
The characters. This is the third book in a series. I loved seeing all the old familiar faces: Bo, Meg, Ty, etc., but Amber (who was in the first book) also gets screen time and I just loved Amber. She read to so true to me. I love that she gets the idea that she and Lyndie should go on three dates and then proceeds to go to these weird singles meetings that resulted in activities (and people) that, as a single woman, I found to be both humorous and slightly horrifying. But even though Amber was not the main heroine, I was so happy that she got her happy ending. She deserved it.
The romance. First you have Lyndie, who comes across as generally happy and excited about life and God. And then you have Jake, who was introduced to us in the first couple of books and is fairly depressed, struggles with PTSD, and on a mental road to nowwhere. I love that Jake and Lyndie have a shared past of friendship, but I particularly love the way that Jake loves Lyndie. It’s not through words, its almost all action. Ms. Wade writes the best heroes.
Spiritually, the theme of the novel is grace and it rests on the fact that God is good….all the time. Loved it.
What I didn’t like:
(spoilery).Missionary dating. Lyndie definitely starts dating Jake fully aware that he’s not committed to the things of God and then prays that she won’t fall in love. Well, for one that’s not logical and two, did that mean that it would be okay for him to fall in love with her? This bothered me so much that I put the book down for a minute. BUT, it actually fails to be a problem so go figure.
Romance Scale: 9.5
Overall, this book is well worth reading, very romantic, and many times hilarious.
**I received a copy from BethanyHouse. My opinion was not affected in anyway.**
remaininhislove 
The setting got me too even though I’m not a big horse reader! However I think that is going to change after reading this one (I just finished mine yesterday)! Great review!