Love on the Line.

Love on the Line is another enjoyable historical novel by Deeanne Gist. I have read all of her novels so far, and I have loved all of them except one (and I liked that one okay). She has a knack for choosing interesting settings, eras, and plots that set her novels apart from the typical Christian historical fiction.

This novel is set in rural Texas in the early 1900s. It's based around Georgie, a switchboard operator, and Luke Palmer (Lucious Landrum), an undercover Texas Ranger posing as a worker for the telephone company in order to capture an elusive and popular train robber and his gang.

Overall, I really enjoyed Love on the Line. It isn't my absolute favorite of her novels, but it was a fun read. Deeanne Gist's writing style is always easy to read. The plot was engaging and there was a good bit of excitement towards the end. Georgie is likable enough, though her bird obsession was a little extreme at times (I've never been someone who's really into birds). Luke is a great hero. It was interesting how, at the beginning of the book, I found myself being biased toward Frank Comer and against Lucious Landrum, just as the local townspeople are. But as the plot progresses and I learned more about each, my opinions changed. :) One other thing that bugged me just a little bit was how Duane, in the course of just a chapter or two, seems to instantly transform from being a slimy, distasteful young man into a slightly goofy, likable character. It just happened a little too fast for me, I guess?

One more thing- I know that some readers of Christian historical fiction feel that Deeanne Gist's books tend to have too much romance (by that they probably mean kissing :) in them. This one contains about as much of that as any of her others, though maybe a little less. And in opinion, it also seemed like the faith factor was downplayed, compared to most of her other stories.

Until next time,

{I received this book free from Bethany House Publishers, in exchange for my honest review.}