Chasing Charity (Texas Fortunes Trilogy, Book 2)

Marcia Gruver
Barbour Publishing (2009)
ISBN 9781602602069
Reviewed by Olivera Baumgartner-Jackson for Reader Views (5/09) 


Charity Bloom’s life turned into a nightmare overnight. Her fiancé, Daniel Clark, left her standing at the altar and took off – if only for a moment, with her best friend, Emily. Charity feels betrayed, humiliated and utterly alone. It was bad enough losing her fiancé, but losing him to her best friend meant she lost her best friend in the process as well. In spite of all of that she has to brave the scrutiny of people in Humble, Texas, when she ventures into town for errands. While picking up her family’s mail, a chance encounter with a dashing, tall and handsome stranger by the name of Buddy Pierce takes her for a whirlwind spin.

Buddy has been told that Charity’s mother sometimes takes on boarders, so he accompanies Charity back to the house. The meeting with Bertha Bloom takes an unexpected turn when Buddy declares that there’s oil on the Bloom’s land. Not only is he tall, handsome and dashing, but he is also honest and unlike other guys chasing the black gold, he’s willing to negotiate a fair deal for the Blooms. Things start to look positively rosy – maybe Bertha and Charity will finally be no longer poor! Then the fickle human nature intervenes. Daniel wants Charity back. An old friend of the family turns out not to be a friend after all. Emily does not cease to sneak out of the house. And Buddy’s and Charity’s budding romance all of a sudden seems utterly doomed.

Set in Humble, Texas in 1905, during the oil boom, “Chasing Charity” by Marcia Gruver is an old-fashioned and very sweet Christian romance. What I’ve enjoyed most were the very spirited and not so run-of-the-mill characters, particularly mama Bertha; great interactions between them and lots of local color. If you are looking for a romance, and not a bodice-ripper, you can not go wrong by picking “Chasing Charity.” Well crafted characters, suspenseful storyline and sparkling dialogue will entertain and delight you.

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