During the civil war, Shannon is upset to leave Virginia to accompany her father to a new congregation in Idaho. Matt, a Wells Fargo driver, switches to an office job when his sister and nephew come to town. Turns out she has cancer, with little time to live and needs nursing care. Shannon steps up and Matt turns his eye to her as his wife. ( )

Robin Lee describes the West during the Civil War. The War didn't stay back East, and nor could it be ignored. The trauma and concerns faced by those in Idaho can be traced to what the war had done. I enjoyed the setting.

Although I enjoy reading the Bible, and I enjoy reading fiction, some of the verses seemed more forced to fit the situation and I found myself skimming much of the "sermons," and "conscience stabbers." They seemed not to bring change to the characters. And the motive to act didn't seem strong enough.

I struggled to finish it, for there was no real conflict between heroine and hero---only common doubts about "love." ( )

Incredibly CUTE – as in home-cookin’ comfortable. This book was like eating my childhood favorite comfort food.

For one, Shannon is NICE. She means well, although she has a few faults, like stubbornness and independent thought – which was a “fault” for the time period. Her father was SO nice, he was almost unbelievably nice, letting his daughter grow at her own pace while seeking to fulfill his destiny, praying constantly to God and talking to his deceased wife out of familiarity. The wonderful Matthew is a wheelbarrow-full of NICE, too. His only fault is former thoughtlessness, which he repents of almost from page one.

So, there’s a lot of super-nice people tossed into a dusty, dirty town, which also appears NICE. Yea, there’s ruffians and some "fisticuffs" resulting in stitches and black eyes, but it’s all delivered so NICELY… because the writing style is NICE. Sometimes it was so cute, I paused and reread the line wondering at the confidence of the writer to just spit out such layers of cute on top of each other. Lol.

There's more. I found beautiful outfits, fine dancing, delicious fried chicken and pensive thoughts about the civil war from the perspective of the confederacy. Shannon has brilliant red hair and green eyes. Plus she's just coming to "marriageable age". Whereas dating was fun before, suddenly she feels heart throbbing. Too cute.

I found two nuggets of gold in this mining town historical Christian romance:

The relationship between Shannon and Matthew is absolutely delightful and skillfully unfolded. There’s no guessing with love triangles or confusion about what sort of struggles will come up, it’s all very laid out, clear from the beginning (with one small surprise, which doesn’t take away from the trail but for a chapter). But it’s adorably cute. Mashed potato with sour cream tastefully spiced CUTE. And plenty of butter. CUTE. It’s worth reading the book, the romance is so darn cute.

The second nugget is Matthew’s sister, Alice, is dying from cancer, and I can’t call her progress “cute” but it’s heart-tugging. Oh yea, I cried… that delicious sort of “I know, but that’s sad” sort of cry.

If you’ve ever read a historical Christian romance that you liked – you’ll definitely like this one, too. If the idea of “historical” and “Christian” makes you hesitate, that’s probably a good call. Unless… you have secretly wished to be a southern belle transported to an old mining town shopping for totally CUTE dresses with lots of petticoats and falling in love with a tall, strong, broad guy with dark hair and brilliant blue eyes who steps into the middle of a fight to save a stranger from getting picked on, well, then you should read this book, too. :-D

Cover Commentary: Perfect. Looks like a Christian romance set in pioneer days - wala!! The title is amazingly appropriate - like too cutely perfect for words.

My Rating: Cute lands a solid, enthusiastic 3 in my world, but the romance was 4 without question, so I'm giving Heart of Gold a 3.5 - definitely worth the time. ( )

My lifelong love of history and romance grew from my roots deep in my home state of Virginia. I truly believe that the answers to our future lie in the questions from our past. It is very important to never forget the sacrifices made by those who have fought to preserve the American way of life. We must also remember that heroes and heroines are real people with imperfections and vulnerabilities. Their gallantry and honor often comes with a high price. The year 2011 marked the 150th anniversary of the beginning of the American Civil War. Not a cause for celebration, but one for reflection and remembrance. It is hard for many of us to imagine the scope of the Civil War. Americans fighting against each other on our home soil. Friends and family members so divided by the cause of "North versus South" that they battled with one another to the death. To this day, the American Civil War remains the conflict in which the most Americans lost their lives. The death toll? Over 600,000 lives were lost in the War Between the States. Not every state became a blood-soaked battleground. One such state was Idaho, the setting for "Heart of Gold" by Robin Lee Hatcher. This is a favorite setting for the author's historical westerns, and she writes with depth about the territory and its people in this era. When Shannon Adair's father feels the call to take his ministry to the gold mining community of Grand Coeur, Idaho, she accompanies him with great reluctance. Shannon deeply loved her home state of Virginia, and she was loyal to the Confederacy and a caring nurse to many wounded soldiers. Her first impressions of her new home and its residents leave her wondering how she will survive in a new, rough-edged society. Matthew Dubois is a top-notch stagecoach for Wells Fargo. When he learns his widowed sister, Alice, is terminally ill and he will be left to care for her young son, he takes a job at the Wells Fargo office and begins thinking of finding a wife to be a mother to his young nephew. Shannon becomes nurse and friend to Alice, and her long-held, seemingly clear-cut opinions begin to blur around the edges as she comes to care for people and a place she once wanted only to leave as soon as possible. Love will have its way, and an undeniable attraction between Shannon and Matthew takes hold of their hearts. They both must grow as individuals before their love can grow into full bloom, and many obstacles are found along the way on their path to real happiness. "Heart of Gold" is a wonderful historical romance, written by an author with a sure touch when it comes to creating involving characters and compelling story lines.

Review Copy Gratis Book Sneeze

"Love is the only gold."
Alfred Lord Tennyson ( )