What Hope Remembers by Johnnie Alexander

When you need a new beginning, sometimes

the best place to start is home.

When Amy Somers loses her job as a lobbyist, she moves to Misty Willow, well aware that she's crossing bridges she'd burned years before. With all the mistakes she's made and the uncaring things she's done--even to her own family--she can hardly believe that happiness will find her, especially when Gabe Kendall, her first crush and her first kiss, rides back into her life atop a buckskin mare.

A former Marine, Gabe is at loose ends after serving a prison sentence for being in the wrong place at the wrong time. He sees beyond Amy's hard exterior to the girl he once knew and loved, and he longs to see her open her heart. Yet with his vision clouded by shame for his past and fears about the future, he finds it difficult to see the path ahead.

But the memory of that long-ago kiss just may have the power to reignite a romance that brings out the best in both of them.

Publisher: Revell, 2017

Genre: contemporary romance

My Review

What Hope Remembers is book three of Alexander's Misty Willow series and is a nice conclusion to the Somers family saga. Set in rural Ohio, this romance features two broken characters fighting for a fresh start. With pasts that both bond them together and makes their future relationship challenging, this story brings the Somers family together, heals, and brings true faith to light. The twist at the end caught me completely off guard, which was nice as that doesn't happen often. This book reads as a standalone novel, however, I recommend reading the entire series in order to better appreciate Amy's character. I give this book four stars, and I'm looking forward to what Ms. Alexander brings us next!

Where She Belongs by Johnnie Alexander

Can Love Redeem

A Broken Past?

Shelby Kincaid is ready to move on from her grief. With high hopes for the future, she longs to purchase her family's ancestral homestead so she can raise her young daughters in the only place she ever truly belonged. She plans to transform the abandoned house into the perfect home of her memories. But she'll have her work cut out for her.

AJ Sullivan never wanted the homestead. Inherited as a punishment from his grandfather, it has sat empty for fifteen years and fallen into ruin. He's glad to finally unload it. But a clean break isn't possible when he can't get the young widow Shelby off his mind.

Welcome to Misty Willow, a place that will have as great a hold over the reader as it does over its inhabitants. With writing that evokes a strong sense of place and personal history, Johnnie Alexander deftly explores the ties that bind us to home--and the irresistible forces that draw us to each other.

Publisher: Revell, 2016

Cover Design: Studio Gearbox

Cover Collage: Shutterstock

Author Photo: Jodie Westfall Photography

My Review

A beautiful novel that explores the meaning of home and the people we share it with.

Widow Shelby Kincaid returns to the family farm established by her ancestors to raise her two daughters in a place that holds so many wonderful memories for her. Upon her arrival, she meets AJ Sullivan, the man who inherited Misty Willow, who has finally agreed to a rent-to-own contract. Their families have been rivals for years, and Shelby can't wait to have the farm back in her family's possession. But as time passes, Shelby realizes AJ isn't like the rest of the Sullivan's and despite her attempts to shut him out, he slowly works his way into her heart. 

Full of twists, emotion, and lovable characters, I recommend this book to anyone who enjoys contemporary romance, family sagas, and those who believe in the meaning of home. I give this book 4 stars!

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Johnnie Alexander is the award-winning author of Where Treasure Hides. Johnnie is an accomplished essayist and poet whose work has appeared in the Guideposts anthology A Cup of Christmas Cheer. In addition to writing, she enjoys reading, spending time with her grandchildren, and taking road trips. She lives near Memphis, Tennessee. Learn more at www.johnnie-alexander.com.