Betrayal by Robin Lee Hatcher (RITA Nominee )

Betrayal by Robin Lee Hatcher
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I often stray away from Christian romance, primarily because I feel that there will be oddly placed Biblical references throughout the book that will stray me away from engaging with a trashy romance read. And if it were up to someone overbearing like my mother, then Christian fiction would be the furthest thing away from trashy romance reads. But when you have a romantic plot that just does not seem plausible at all, of course it’s going to go on the “to-read” list by Smart Bitches. We have a hot religious cowboy (who knows how to read! Ahhh! ) and right away I’m swept off of my feet…And I was just looking at the cover folks.
There are two separate plot lines going on in this story: first, “Betrayal” is the second novel in Hatcher’s “Where the Heart Lives” trilogy, but you won’t need to have read the others to understand what is going on. Each novel in the series focuses on one of the Brennan children, who were separated when they were younger and sent to different foster families. So if you want the full story, check them out. “Betrayal” focuses on Hugh, the big brother in the Brennan clan, and his happened-by-chance encounter with widowed Julia Grace. On his way to Idaho to search for his sisters, Hugh meets Julia and agrees to work around her ranch doing all of the manly work. Right away, the reader’s reality check alarm goes into play—he just mysteriously happens to have horse trouble when he encounters a widow’s ranch? Hmm…
However, the story does have some valuable morals to it. Both the hero and heroine use their religious beliefs to influence their choices, “God give me strength” and what-not. What I found particularly interesting and actually realistic was how Hugh and Julia connected romantically with a religious foundation. Each of them wanted an independent life with their separate goals--Hugh wants to find his sisters, Julia wants to keep her ranch, but is still haunted by the memories of her abusive deceased husband—and they solve their problems through God’s word.
Personally, I started the story and ignored the religious parts for fear that the novel would turn into a Bible lesson. But once you get involved with Hugh and Julia’s chemistry, you’ll want to see how it turns out.


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