The Gold in These Hills

GIVEAWAY

BISCHOF, JOANNE

THE GOLD IN THESE HILLS

One wild and mysterious ghost town. Two second-chance love stories. And the century-old legacy that binds them together.

Upon arriving in Kenworthy, California, mail-order bride Juniper Cohen is met by the pounding of the gold mind, an unnamable landscape, and her greatest surprise of all: the kind of loving man who awaits her. But when the mine proves empty of profit, and when Juniper's husband, John, vanishes, Juniper is left to fend for herself and her young daughter in the dwindling boomtown that is now her home.

Juniper pens letters to her husband but fears she is waiting on a ghost. Perhaps worse, rumours abound claiming the man she loves could be an outlaw. Surviving in a ghost town requires trusting the kindness of a few remaining souls, including the one who can unlock the mystery of her husband's disappearance -- and Juniper's survival depends not only upon these friends but also the strength of heart she must fight to maintain.

Present day. Trying to escape the heartache of his failed marriage, Johnny Sutherland throws himself into raising his children and restoring a hundred-year-old abandoned farmhouse in what was once known as Kenworthy, California, in the San Jacinto Mountains. While exploring its secrets he uncovers Juniper's letters and is moved by the handwritten accounts that bear his name -- and as a love story from the past touches his own world, Johnny might discover yet that hope and resilience go hand in hand.

With The Gold in These Hills, acclaimed and beloved author Joanne Bischof returns with an absorbing masterpiece of faith, perseverance, and love that changes the course of history.

My Review:

Not what I was expecting but oh, so good! Love the dual timeline aspect centered around a mining ghost town. I was expecting more romance in both timelines, but they are on the lighter side while the main characters' stories focus on their personal struggles and faith journeys.

So in present day we have Johnny who is grappling with the reality of an impending divorce. Bischof does an incredible job of capturing the depth of his pain and inner conflict. I was gutted! And really interesting to see this situation from a man's perspective Usually I'm reading about a heroine who's been dumped by the love of her life and trying to put her life back together so the role reversal was a refreshing twist.

And in the historical timeline, Juniper is in limbo, waiting for word of her husband who has mysteriously disappeared. The mine the town was built around has failed and only a handful of people remain, making Juniper and her young daughter's lives all the more precarious.

Wowzers, but does this author know how to set a scene! Her writing is descriptive without being overly flowery and it's so easy to lose yourself in her world building. I could picture everything so vividly! And the way the past and present come together is brilliantly done...though the author deliberately leaves some things open-ended which gave me the poetic license to imagine my own continuing storylines. I do so love it when characters linger in my mind long after the book officially ends!

GIVEAWAY OPPORTUNITY:

This giveaway is for a paperback or ebook copy -- winner's choice.

If you would like a chance to win a copy of The Gold in These Hills leave a comment below or email me at kavluvstoread AT yahoo DOT ca. If you add your email to a comment, remember to use AT AND DOT instead of @ and . in order to protect yourself from spammers. If you enter the Draw via email, please add the title to the subject line so it's easy to spot your entry. Draw will be held and winner announced on Saturday May 21 2022. Offer open to International Readers.