Donna C. Van Cleve

Donna Van Cleve does a great job of weaving the historical facts of the town of Galveston and the flood/storm that almost wiped the island off the map, and the fiction side which shows the steadfastness of Grace and Finn. Although at times during the reading of this story I felt like she spent too much time on the descriptions of the town, by the end of the book I was ready to pack my bags and go visit this place called Galveston! This is her 5th book of the Taylor family and although you can easily read it as a stand alone, I highly recommend you read them all, because they are all great stories and many of the stories are mentioned in this book (Grace Falling Like Rain, Mercy's Face, Torn Asunder, & Anchor Point).

Grace is leaving Waco, Texas and moving to Galveston to take a teaching job after being turned down by her proposal to the man she has loved all her life, Finn. She arrives with a broken heart, but Lucius, her best friends brother who lives on the island, quickly tries to get her to forget Finn and concentrate on him. When the storm starts to hit, Finn decides to re-enter the picture and once the storm hits things start to happen fast! I must say I had forgotten what the weather was really like outside after reading the pages of this book. I felt like I would look out the window and see storm clouds, rain and lots of wind. The author did an excellent job of combining history with fiction. And a special thanks for the actual photos at the end of her book of the actual damage this storm created.

Hardcover: 290 pages
Publisher: Two Story Publishing House (February 16, 2011)
ISBN-10: 1936816008
ISBN-13: 978-1936816002
Product Dimensions: 6.1 x 9.2 x 0.7 inches… (más)

Don't let the cover keep you from reading this book. A very interesting book from start to finish. A country western superstar, Beau Hunter owns land adjacent to the original Taylor ranch, owned now by Taylor Abbott and her husband Tom. When Tom and Taylor attend Beau's big party at his ranch, Taylor and Beau end up discussing the ranches and when they end up going up to Taylor's abandoned house on her ranch they find themselves in big trouble. Without giving to much away, alot of the story takes place within a small closet, but you will not lose interest in the story, but will gain alot of love and respect for both Taylor and Beau. The ending was also not expected. I was pleasantly surprised by many things in this story and would highly recommend the reading of it.… (más)

Tom and Taylor Abbott are invited to the home of their neighbor Beau Hunter, a country music superstar, for a casual party. He is interested in buying the land Taylor owns that borders his ranch. Taylor is unwilling to sell her ancestors land. The cabin that belonged Justin and Allie still remains but needs fixing up. Someday she would like to live in it again but that won't be until they put their two children through college. While at the party Beau whisks Taylor off to talk to her about selling the land and also the bridge that they've installed across the river for better access to the cattle. They cross over the bridge to the old homestead when someone knocks Beau out and as Taylor makes a run for it the men catch her too. They tie them up and take them to a deserted storage shed where they are left. They are not sure why they are left but keep thinking that someone is asking a ransom. The story that ensues is one very different that I expected. Beau and Taylor are very different. Beau is younger than Taylor. Taylor is married and has two grown children. But, when you are in a situation such as they found themselves you find there is no hiding anything. Beau has lost himself in his stardom trying to push away guilt. Taylor has a low self esteem and is always putting herself down. Together they work through many issues. But...left on the outside is Taylor's husband and two children who are worried sick. The "gossips' are making it look like they ran away together. The fans of Beau are sucking up the news with fervor. But what happens when the gossip goes to far. Will it destroy Tom and Taylor's marriage? Will Beau learn what it is that is meaningful in life?… (más)