Cherished Mercy (Heart of the Frontier #3)

Title: Cherished Mercy (Heart of the Frontier #3)

Author: Tracie Peterson

Genre: Historical Fiction

Publishing Date: Sept 5, 2017

Publisher: Bethany House

Length: 320 Pages

About the Book:

The Inspiring Conclusion to Tracie Peterson’s Heart of the Frontier Series

Mercy Flanagan survived the Whitman Massacre as a child, and now her heart’s cry is for peace between the native peoples and the white settlers inhabiting Oregon Territory. Unfortunately, most of the settlers would rather the tribes were removed from the land completely, one way or the other, and tensions are rising. Mercy has grown tired of Oregon City and feels that she has a larger purpose in life, so when she learns that family friend Eletta Browning is pregnant, she travels south to the Rogue River Valley to help.
At the Rogue River Mission, Mercy meets Eletta’s brother-in-law, Adam, who has suffered a broken engagement. Mercy finds him attractive, but Adam seems determined to focus on ministering to the local tribes and keeps Mercy at arm’s length.
When tragedy strikes and tensions in the territory reach the boiling point, Mercy is pushed to the limit of her strength. She and Adam must rely on their firm faith in God in order to make it out alive.

My Review:

I have to admit that before reading this one, Mercy was the character I struggled with the most in this series because of her ability to seemingly heal so easily from the trauma in her past. I’m happy to report that this installment redeemed her for me and gave her back a character that felt more genuine. While she still put forth a strong heart of forgiveness, I was able to see more where she was coming from and how she’d grown into her healing.

I adored this chapter of the series because it’s where empathy was able to flourish. Once further removed from the massacre, it was easier to step back and start to look at things from a new perspective. It gave validation to both sides of the battle without condoning the violence from either. It wasn’t as “good guy vs bad guy” as the history books would have you to believe.

Considering that Hope is easily my favorite character from this series, I was glad to see her return with another round of healing she wasn’t quite expecting to have to experience. She is easily the hardest character for me to have to let go of in finishing this series.

I always appreciate reading stories that are fictional but based on real historical events. I feel as if they are able to transport me back in time to get a deeper understanding of the past even if the characters themselves are made up. I adored this series and know that it is one that is going to stay with me for a very long time.

*I read a copy of this book from my library. Thoughts and opinions expressed are mine alone.

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