As far as Thea Michener is concerned, it’s time for a change. With her husband murdered and her much-anticipated baby stillborn, there is nothing left for her in Ladreville. Having accepted a position as Cimarron Creek’s midwife, she has no intention of remarrying and trying for another child. So when a handsome Texas Ranger appears on her doorstep with an abandoned baby, Thea isn’t sure her … heart can take it.
Ranger Jackson Guthrie isn’t concerned only with the baby’s welfare. He’s been looking for Thea, convinced that her late husband was part of the gang that killed his brother. But it soon becomes clear that the situation is far more complicated than he anticipated–and he’ll need Thea’s help if he’s ever to find the justice he seeks.
Amanda Cabot invites readers back to Cimarron Creek for a tender story of loss, betrayal, and love in the majestic Texas Hill Country.
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A Tender Hope is everything I could have possibly dreamed of for Cimarron Creek and much, much more. Cabot has outdone herself yet again in this heartbreak yet heartwarming conclusion to a beloved trilogy.
What exactly makes it heartbreaking? Well, other than the fact that it’s a conclusion, Cabot brings to life many tragedies that make you cover your mouth or place your hand over your heart. From lost spouses to abandoned children, this novel covers all the heartbreak you need. That doesn’t mean there aren’t “aw” moments though.
As expected with Amanda Cabot’s writings, she spills a beautiful tale of redemption, love, and even forgiveness. The reader can’t help but to adore the main characters such as Thea, and Jackson. One fantastic aspect of Cabot’s work is how she involves her characters past. You aren’t left wondering about the things they try forgetting. Instead, the reader is given answers at the perfect time.
While A Tender Hope is part of a trilogy, it can easily be read as a standalone. I know this simply because while I did read A Borrowed Dream, I have never read book one (I hope to change that as soon as I can get my hands on a copy of A Stolen Heart because I have fallen hopelessly in love with this storyline.) Yet, each novel makes perfect sense.
I highly recommend for everyone with a heart to pick up A Tender Hope because you will adore it. Five stars all the way!
First off, this book being part of a trilogy can really stand on its own. I wasn’t lost or felt like I was having to connect pieces in order to understand the story.
Thea is moving to a new town after her husband was murdered and her child born stillborn. With a new setting she hopes to put everything in her past, aside. She travels with her friend Aimee to this new location and encounters a Texas Ranger who is looking for her, Thea. But before he gets to Thea he comes upon an abandoned baby on the trail.
Shew! If it sounds like a lot in that small snippet, that’s nothing in comparison to the story itself.
There are many characters and we have at least three different romances going on with couples. There is a murder to be solved, a robbery and a gang. In addition, we have Aimee, Thea’s friend looking for her mother that gave her up for adoption.
That said, while I enjoyed the book to a certain point, I wish that the story line had remained focused on Thea or Aimee. There were too many characters and too many romances happening, that there wasn’t enough focus on just one situation. There were at least two competing with one another.
Still, it was an enjoyable read and I would consider reading more from Amanda in the future.
The publisher has provided me with a complimentary copy of this book or advanced reading copy.
I’ve read the first two books in this series and I had to know what happened next for the sleepy little town of Cimarron Creek.
This is the last book in this series and the author does an amazing job of wrapping up all of the personal storylines and making sure there is plenty of happily ever afters for the citizens of Cimarron Creek. This book focuses on Thea and Jackson, but there are also storylines for Warner, Patience, Nate, and Aimee. I enjoyed how each story interconnected with others and I found myself rooting for each character and whom they might end up with as their soulmate. Along with the romance, there is action and suspense when it comes to the Gang of Four and their search for Thea because they think she knows things that her deceased husband might have told her. There were times I wondered what could possibly happen next to these characters and would everything turn out ok in the end?
There are plenty of cameos from characters in the first books like Lydia and Travis and even Andy and Catherine. I was excited to see Grace reunite with her daughter, but not without some trials and tribulations to get to that point.
We give this 5 paws up and highly recommend this trilogy – but start with A Stolen Heart and then A Borrowed Dream before reading this one mainly for continuity. You could read out of order but it will make more sense to read in order.
A Tender Hope, the final book in Amanda Cabot’s Cimarron Creek Trilogy, is probably my favorite of the three and that’s saying something because A Stolen Heart and A Borrowed Dream are fantastic novels in their own right.
It’s the fact that events came to a satisfactory conclusion here. It’s because everyone’s stories, especially the couples’ have hopeful endings/beginnings. And it’s definitely because it had me smiling when I closed the book after finishing it.
Being immersed in the Cimarron Creek series is like traveling in time to an era that is both gentler and harsher than the present. Ms. Cabot’s imagined world of apothecaries and mansions, of buggies and prams, of Rangers and outlaws, of midwives and stagecoaches, is a place I enjoy visiting. Being a foreign-born transplant to Texas, I appreciate this recreation of a past I know nothing about except for what I read in books.
From the first scene, A Tender Hope literally and figuratively takes the reader on a journey. Thea and Jackson travel separately to Cimarron Creek carrying their physical and emotional baggage: Thea with her heartbreak from losing her husband and son; Jackson with his hunt for the outlaw who killed his brother. An abandoned child, along with their respective jobs, brings them together in a way that aided their growing attraction to each other and hastened their discovery of what they really want in life. Amidst the danger posed by a vicious gang, they realized that what they want is to build a family in Cimarron Creek, their found home.
I love every aspect of Thea and Jackson’s romance: the constant desire to be in each other’s company, the honest conversations, their mutual respect, their belief in the other’s capabilities, and their support of each other’s careers. What had me swooning is their observance of proper courtship, something that is missing in contemporary romance and even in many historical romance these days. I enjoyed reading it here.
Another courtship I enjoyed is that of Aimee and Nate’s. These two brought some lightness and comic relief to balance the more serious themes of the novel. Also ably supporting are Warner and Patience, Travis and Lydia, Grace, and other members of the small town.Their various subplots and the menace of the villains help enrich A Tender Hope’s overall storyline.
I’m really going to miss the wonderful people in this fictional community but I trust in Ms. Cabot and I’m sure her next series will be as fantastic as Cimarron Creek had been.
A TENDER HOPE. By Amanda Cabot
1881 Thea feeling free, her horse and items of her trade was all she was taking with her. Thea had secrets and afraid someone would find out. She was now headed to Cimmaron Creek, a position as a midwife. To shed the black garments and all that was lost. A friend, Aimee she had recently meet was going with her. Upon arriving into town and awaiting for her on the doorsteps of her new home, was Ranger Jackson, with a baby he found. He was in town looking for three men and a woman that were part of a gang. She recognized him,did he her. Interesting and enjoyable to read, about new beginnings, will she find happiness and friends. For Aimee will she find her mother .
Given ARC for my voluntary review and my honest opinion from Net Galley and Revell.
This is the third and final book in the Cimarron Creek Trilogy by Amanda Cabot. This book focuses on Thea, a midwife. Thea wants a new beginning and moves to Cimarron Creek to move on from her past. She recently became a widow and lost her unborn child. A friend comes with her so that she is not alone. She is in search of connecting with family in the area. Together, they embark on a journey to a new town to face a new beginning. However, there seems to be trouble that may be following Thea. A Texas Ranger, Jackson, appears with an abandoned baby for Thea to care for while he looks for the child’s mother. Upon finding the mother, Jackson determines that she bares a similar likeness to Thea. Jackson has his own issues from his past haunting him. He is on a mission to discover the truth about Thea and her previous husband. This book can be read as a stand-alone, but after reading the entire series, I would suggest reading all three. They all tie in together for a beautiful conclusion. I highly recommend this book! You will love this historical novel!
***I was given a free electronic copy of this book from the publisher. This is my honest opinion. Even though I received this copy free, this is my own opinion.
It was great getting to read Thea’s story. Thea and Jackson’s falling in love was so sweet and not the “insta love” that is sometimes how it is described. (Now admittedly Aimee and Nate have that in this story, but it isn’t an it instantly works out either). This book wrapped up a lot of storylines that have happened through the series and that was nice. I felt like Thea’s story sometimes fit perfectly with Paper Roses and sometimes felt just the slightest bit off. Overall, I throughly enjoyed the book
The final installment in the Cimarron Creek series is filled with new characters and ones that were in the previous books. Thea and Ranger Jackson past held pain and grief but they were attracted to one another even though there was a trust issue. This book brought plenty of action, romance among the residents in Cimarron Creek, suspense and learning to trust God and others. I recommend this series to readers of historical fiction, even though the books could be read as a standalone I highly recommend reading them in order to appreciate all the characters have endured and overcame.
I received a complimentary copy of this book from the author as a winner on a blog giveaway. I was not required to write a review but have shared my own thoughts.
A Tender Hope, the third in the Cimarron Creek trilogy, offers a sweet romance, but the overall story touches on the serious topic of family, especially children.
Some characters overlap, and all three books are a complete delight. In A Tender Hope, Thea and Jackson offer another dynamic romance that builds and blossoms with every page. As the town’s new midwife, Thea is a strong, independent widow, but her late husband left her with doubts of his love for her and left her doubting her own ability to trust and love again. Jackson, a Texas Ranger, is on the trail of the Gang of Four, which is actually a gang of three now that Thea’s husband is dead. When Jackson finds an abandoned baby just outside of Cimarron Creek, the mystery of who and why takes off and doesn’t let go until the harrowing climax. Did Thea know about her husband’s thieving ways? Will the gang come after her thinking she knows where her husband hid the gold? Why was a young mother tortured and killed and her baby abandoned? Can Jackson resist Thea’s charms? You’ll find the answers and whole lot more in this third enjoyable book.
Amanda Cabot’s writing is as sweet as the budding romances in A Tender Hope, but not everything is as candy coated as the confectioneries coming out of the town’s sweet shop. As Jackson dives deeper into the mystery and draws closer to capturing the gang, the tension and danger escalate and intensify.
Some tender moments are sprinkled throughout as three men in the story struggle to figure out how to woo the women they love. The men’s bumbling efforts add some comedic relief to the seriousness of the overall chilling action.
Children and parents are the focus in this last book, and the author adeptly incorporates several levels of family that show the importance of love, acceptance, and forgiveness. In A Tender Hope, embracing a mother, a daughter, a brother, a sister, or even a child who is not your own is the sweetest joy and offers the promise of new hope, new love, and new life.
“Family was important for children, but love was even more critical to their happiness.”
Danger! Suspense! Romance! Amanda Cabot has written an attention grabbing story in early Texas. Your heart will go out to midwife Thea Michener who is moving away for a new beginning after the death of her husband and baby. Handsome Texas Ranger Jackson Gutherie finds a baby along the trail. The Ranger believes Thea has information on the gang her husband was involved with. Life gets complicated when the ranger is attracted to Thea! Thea’s friend Aimee is newly arrived from France and searching for her birth mother. There is lots of action in this historical fiction book. I recommend A Tender Hope to anyone who enjoys historical fiction. I received a complimentary ebook through NetGalley. This is my honest opinion.