Whispers of Fortune by Mary Connealy @maryconnealy @bethanyhousefiction @austenprose @sophiarose1816

In a land of gold and grit, can two hearts uncover the true treasure?

In 1875 California, Brody MacKenzie arrives at the Two Harts Ranch on a mission to find his runaway brothers, worried they may have fallen into harm. Instead, he discovers them thriving at the ranch's school and orphanage under the care of Ellie Hart, a woman with a heart as resilient as the land she calls home. His options limited, Brody reluctantly takes on the role of ranch doctor, and he forms an unexpected bond with Ellie, who's kept a steady eye on Brody's two rapscallion brothers. When the boys show him a mysterious journal that has been guiding their travels and may hold the key to a lost treasure, Brody and Ellie are captivated by the possibility of a thrilling adventure.

With winter approaching and his brothers threatening to bolt again, Brody and Ellie race against time to decipher cryptic clues and unearth the hidden fortune. But along the way, old adversaries resurface, threatening their newfound affection and the safety of those at the ranch.

Runaway brothers, a treasure map, fortune hunters, reunited family, and a gentle romance in exciting post-Gold Rush California.  Mary Connealy is settled in and writing strong frontier era slow-burn romance with inspirational themes and I’m there for it.

Whispers of Fortune is the series opener of the Golden State Treasure series with a tie-in with a previous series, The Lumber Baron’s Daughters.  I hadn’t dipped into that series yet, but had no trouble starting in on this series though I will be getting back to that trilogy.

Whispers of Fortune opens on a funny, awkward meet-cute when a woman answers the pounding on the ranch house door nearly getting punched by the hand pounding and then letting her big, gruff brother assume the young Dr. Mackenzie looking for his runaway brothers had attacked her.  From there, they sort out the misunderstanding on both sides to help the Mackenzie brothers sort out their family situation and whether to go for the treasure.

I loved that Brody Mackenzie is a new doctor and there were scenes with him and Ellie Hart working together to help his patients from Ellie’s family’s ranch and the orphanage school and training center they run there.

Whispers of Fortune focused on Brody’s family history and situation, and Ellie’s backstory and current situation as she gets over a bad romance experience.  Also, there was also a few other narratives happening even with the villains.  A couple of these other threads didn’t entirely tie up at the end, but no surprise since this is only the first book in the series.  However, with extra plot threads and narrators establishing the series world, there was a disjointed feeling to this story and the romance got a little short-shifted as a result.

I loved this historical setting of the California ranch post-Gold Rush and the beautiful mountains where the hunt for treasure happened.  The treasure was tied in with early Spanish California exploration and history which was really neat.  I’m eager to see where the series goes and enjoyed the hint that maybe big Josh Hart, the sailor turned rancher and the one-time orphaned orphan helper are going to get their story next.  Something tells me there is more to come about the Cabrillo treasure and I’m looking forward to it.

In the end, it was a satisfying start to a series with favorite buzz elements of ‘treasure hunt’ and ‘California history’ for me.  The inspirational theme of true treasure vs. greed was the driving piece to a plot featuring family healing, finding yourself, and sweet romance.  Recommend to Historical Romance and Inspirational Romance fans.

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Sophia

Reviewer at Books of My Heart

Sophia is a quiet though curious gal who dabbles in cooking, book reviewing, piano-playing, and gardening.Road trips and campouts, museums and monuments, restaurants and theaters are her jam. Encouraged and supported by an incredible man and loving family. A Northern Californian transplant to the Great Lakes Region of the US. Lover of Jane Austen, Baseball, Cats, Scooby Doo, and Chocolate.

As a lifelong reader, it was inevitable that Sophia would discover book blogs and the joy of blog reviewing.Sophia is a prolific reader and audiobook listener which allows her to experience so many wonderful books, authors, and narrators.Few genres are outside her reading tastes, but her true love is fiction particularly history, mystery, sci-fi, and romance.Though, sorry, no horror or she will run like Shaggy and Scooby.

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