Lying and Romance just don't mix!!
I just finished reading Beyond This Moment and all I can say is...WOW!!!! This is now, by far, my favorite Tamera Alexander book!! I absolutely loved it! It's even better than Daniel and Elizabeth's story, From a Distance (Book 1). Please, please, please rush out and get your own copy ~ you will not be disappointed!
From the back cover:
"When Dr. Molly Whitcomb, Professor of Romance Languages, steps off the train in Colorado Territory, she makes a choice ~ one that goes against everything she stands for. Yet it's the only choice that offers her a chance to regain a fraction of all she's lost.
Sheriff James McPherson's instincts about people rarely miss the mark. He senses Professor Whitcomb is hiding something. he just doesn't know what. When James learns Molly's secret, his own reputation is undermined. And when Molly Whitcomb's reinvented life begins to unravel, it threatens his job, the stability of Timber Ridge, and what he always knew to be true about himself."
My thoughts:
When Molly Whitcomb is forced to leave her position as a Professor at Franklin College in Athens, GA, and take a teaching position in the town of Timber Ridge, located in Colorado Territory, she is less than enthusiastic. As we learn more about why Molly has come to Timber Ridge, the more we understand why she felt she had to make the choices she did. Very quickly, Molly realizes the secrets she carry are going to hurt the kind people she's already met. As she looks deep inside her heart, she realizes that she not only blames herself for her current predicament, she blames God as well. Why didn't He see fit to keep these things from happening to her? As we follow Molly on her journey, we eventually understand why it was in God's plan to lead Molly to Timber Ridge.
The very first time Sheriff James McPherson lays eyes on Molly Whitcomb, as she steps off the train in Sulfur Falls, he feels something he's never before felt for any woman. The feeling grows the more he gets to know her, but he feels that she's not being completely honest and honesty has always been important to him. However, James has secrets from his own past that have been gnawing at him for quite some time. He also has additional burdens that are weighing on him as he worries about how to keep his sister, Rachel Boyd, and her two sons, safe from the constant threats he feels as the Sheriff of Timber Ridge.
Beyond This Moment is a very emotional book, in my opinion. Neither Molly, nor James, realize the extent of hurt that could come from the secrets they carry. I laughed and cried (mostly cried!) right along with them. There are quite a few secondary characters that add depth to this story, and I enjoyed getting to know them as well...most of them anyway!
This is a wonderful continuation of Tamera Alexander's Timber Ridge Reflections series. I can hardly wait to see what happens next in, Within My Heart, which will be Dr. Rand Brookston and Rachel Boyd's story.
