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Borrowed Light #2
Enduring Light
Rare book
388 pages, Paperback
First published January 8, 2012
57 people are currently reading
551 people want to read
About the author
Carla Kelly
143 books798 followersLibrarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.
Although Carla Kelly is well known among her readers as a writer of Regency romance, her main interest (and first writing success) is Western American fiction—more specifically, writing about America's Indian Wars. Although she had sold some of her work before, it was not until Carla began work in the National Park Service as a ranger/historian at Fort Laramie National Historic Site did she get serious about her writing career. (Or as she would be the first to admit, as serious as it gets.)
Carla wrote a series of what she now refers to as the "Fort Laramie stories," which are tales of the men, women and children of the Indian Wars era in Western history. Two of her stories, A Season for Heroes and Kathleen Flaherty's Long Winter, earned her Spur Awards from the Western Writers of America. She was the second woman to earn two Spurs from WWA (which, as everyone knows, is all you need to ride a horse). Her entire Indian Wars collection was published in 2003 as Here's to the Ladies: Stories of the Frontier Army. It remains her favorite work.
The mother of five children, Carla has always allowed her kids to earn their keep by appearing in her Regencies, most notably Marian's Christmas Wish, which is peopled by all kinds of relatives. Grown now, the Kelly kids are scattered here and there across the U.S. They continue to provide feedback, furnish fodder for stories and make frantic phone calls home during the holidays for recipes. (Carla Kelly is some cook.)
Carla's husband, Martin, is Director of Theatre at Valley City State University, in Valley City, North Dakota. Carla is currently overworked as a staff writer at the local daily newspaper. She also writes a weekly, award-winning column, "Prairie Lite."
Carla only started writing Regencies because of her interest in the Napoleonic Wars, which figures in many of her Regency novels and short stories. She specializes in writing about warfare at sea, and about the ordinary people of the British Isles who were, let's face it, far more numerous than lords and ladies.
Hobbies? She likes to crochet afghans, and read British crime fiction and history, principally military history. She's never happier than talking about the fur trade or Indian Wars with Park Service cronies. Her most recent gig with the National Park Service was at Fort Union Trading Post National Historic Site on the Montana/North Dakota border.
Here's another side to this somewhat prosaic woman: She recently edited the fur trade journal of Swiss artist Rudolf F. Kurz (the 1851-1852 portion), and is gratified now and then to be asked to speak on scholarly subjects. She has also worked for the State Historical Society of North Dakota as a contract researcher. This has taken her to glamorous drudgery in several national archives and military history repositories. Gray archives boxes and old documents make her salivate.
Her mantra for writing comes from the subject of her thesis, Robert Utley, that dean of Indian Wars history. He told her the secret to writing is "to put your ass in the chair and keep it there until you're done." He's right, of course.
Her three favorite fictional works have remained constant through the years, although their rankings tend to shift: War and Peace, The Lawrenceville Stories, and A Town Like Alice. Favorite historical works are One Vast Winter Count, On the Border with Mackenzie and Crossing the Line. Favorite crime fiction authors are Michael Connelly, John Harvey and Peter Robinson.
And that's all she can think of that would interest anyone. Carla Kelly is quite ordinary, except when she is sometimes prevailed upon to sing a scurrilous song about lumberjacks, or warble "Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star" in Latin. Then you m
Although Carla Kelly is well known among her readers as a writer of Regency romance, her main interest (and first writing success) is Western American fiction—more specifically, writing about America's Indian Wars. Although she had sold some of her work before, it was not until Carla began work in the National Park Service as a ranger/historian at Fort Laramie National Historic Site did she get serious about her writing career. (Or as she would be the first to admit, as serious as it gets.)
Carla wrote a series of what she now refers to as the "Fort Laramie stories," which are tales of the men, women and children of the Indian Wars era in Western history. Two of her stories, A Season for Heroes and Kathleen Flaherty's Long Winter, earned her Spur Awards from the Western Writers of America. She was the second woman to earn two Spurs from WWA (which, as everyone knows, is all you need to ride a horse). Her entire Indian Wars collection was published in 2003 as Here's to the Ladies: Stories of the Frontier Army. It remains her favorite work.
The mother of five children, Carla has always allowed her kids to earn their keep by appearing in her Regencies, most notably Marian's Christmas Wish, which is peopled by all kinds of relatives. Grown now, the Kelly kids are scattered here and there across the U.S. They continue to provide feedback, furnish fodder for stories and make frantic phone calls home during the holidays for recipes. (Carla Kelly is some cook.)
Carla's husband, Martin, is Director of Theatre at Valley City State University, in Valley City, North Dakota. Carla is currently overworked as a staff writer at the local daily newspaper. She also writes a weekly, award-winning column, "Prairie Lite."
Carla only started writing Regencies because of her interest in the Napoleonic Wars, which figures in many of her Regency novels and short stories. She specializes in writing about warfare at sea, and about the ordinary people of the British Isles who were, let's face it, far more numerous than lords and ladies.
Hobbies? She likes to crochet afghans, and read British crime fiction and history, principally military history. She's never happier than talking about the fur trade or Indian Wars with Park Service cronies. Her most recent gig with the National Park Service was at Fort Union Trading Post National Historic Site on the Montana/North Dakota border.
Here's another side to this somewhat prosaic woman: She recently edited the fur trade journal of Swiss artist Rudolf F. Kurz (the 1851-1852 portion), and is gratified now and then to be asked to speak on scholarly subjects. She has also worked for the State Historical Society of North Dakota as a contract researcher. This has taken her to glamorous drudgery in several national archives and military history repositories. Gray archives boxes and old documents make her salivate.
Her mantra for writing comes from the subject of her thesis, Robert Utley, that dean of Indian Wars history. He told her the secret to writing is "to put your ass in the chair and keep it there until you're done." He's right, of course.
Her three favorite fictional works have remained constant through the years, although their rankings tend to shift: War and Peace, The Lawrenceville Stories, and A Town Like Alice. Favorite historical works are One Vast Winter Count, On the Border with Mackenzie and Crossing the Line. Favorite crime fiction authors are Michael Connelly, John Harvey and Peter Robinson.
And that's all she can think of that would interest anyone. Carla Kelly is quite ordinary, except when she is sometimes prevailed upon to sing a scurrilous song about lumberjacks, or warble "Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star" in Latin. Then you m
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 174 reviews
August 4, 2020
3.5 stars. This historical/religious fiction book is the sequel to Borrowed Light - I've read both before (and maybe even have the paperbacks, though I think I passed them along to someone else). But I picked them up again a week or so ago as Kindle freebies, and found myself unexpectedly getting into them again when I opened them up.
You really need to read Borrowed Light before this one, and there will be spoilers for that book here.
Julia Darling, who broke off an engagement in the first book and hared off to a remote corner of Wyoming to be a ranch cook for a year, is now engaged to the ranch owner, Paul Otto, who has also joined her church (Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, aka Mormons). The first part of this book is about their engagement and time as an early married couple; in the second part they go back to Wyoming and deal with various troubles: religious prejudice, the "hazing" of Julia as a new wife by the ranchers' community, and a threat posed against them and their informally adopted young son by some vengeful ranchers (the son had seen one of the ranchers burn his family's home to try to drive them out of the area, killing everyone except the son).
This book reads kind of like a slice of life, but it's an interesting slice and a well-drawn glimpse of a bygone day and the ranching culture a hundred years ago or so. Julia grows a lot in internal strength, character and religious testimony through her trying experiences. Carla Kelly is an excellent, thoughtful author - a romance writer who veers toward much more realistic characters and situations than is the norm in romance fiction. With just a couple of exceptions, I've really enjoyed most of her books, both religious and non-religious, over the years.
You really need to read Borrowed Light before this one, and there will be spoilers for that book here.
Julia Darling, who broke off an engagement in the first book and hared off to a remote corner of Wyoming to be a ranch cook for a year, is now engaged to the ranch owner, Paul Otto, who has also joined her church (Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, aka Mormons). The first part of this book is about their engagement and time as an early married couple; in the second part they go back to Wyoming and deal with various troubles: religious prejudice, the "hazing" of Julia as a new wife by the ranchers' community, and a threat posed against them and their informally adopted young son by some vengeful ranchers (the son had seen one of the ranchers burn his family's home to try to drive them out of the area, killing everyone except the son).
This book reads kind of like a slice of life, but it's an interesting slice and a well-drawn glimpse of a bygone day and the ranching culture a hundred years ago or so. Julia grows a lot in internal strength, character and religious testimony through her trying experiences. Carla Kelly is an excellent, thoughtful author - a romance writer who veers toward much more realistic characters and situations than is the norm in romance fiction. With just a couple of exceptions, I've really enjoyed most of her books, both religious and non-religious, over the years.
December 19, 2011
This was something of an experiment for me: I’ve never been an inspirational romance reader, so I thought it would be interesting to see if an author I admire could get me into the genre.
Enduring Light is a direct sequel to Borrowed Light and there’s no backstory help for readers who haven’t read the first book, so I was a bit lost at times. We jump immediately into the story where it left off: Julia has been badly injured and traumatized in a fire that destroyed her fiance Paul’s ranch, and recovers at her parent’s home while Paul rebuilds. After their marriage they encounter new challenges, as they face discrimination as Mormons, and an enemy who seeks a little boy they befriended in the first book. Through it all, strong and capable Julia and Paul rely on their faith and love for each other to help them endure.
I found it a little hard to get into this story, I think less because of the religious elements than because it’s not really a romance in the usual sense. Paul and Julia fell in love and worked out all their issues in the previous book; here they are always in harmony and all conflict in the story is external. Once I concluded that this is more a historical pioneer saga than a romance, reminiscent of books like Christy, Mrs. Mike and The First Four Years, I enjoyed it more. Which is not to say the book is short on love scenes; they’re not graphic, but have a teasing, roguish quality (to use Julia’s own word) and the characters obviously enjoy marital bliss a great deal.
Overall, I thought the religious elements of the story were appropriate and well blended, until the end, which felt like overkill. I doubt it converted me to inspirational romance, but I did enjoy my visit with Julia and Paul.
(reviewed from e-arc provided by netGalley)
Enduring Light is a direct sequel to Borrowed Light and there’s no backstory help for readers who haven’t read the first book, so I was a bit lost at times. We jump immediately into the story where it left off: Julia has been badly injured and traumatized in a fire that destroyed her fiance Paul’s ranch, and recovers at her parent’s home while Paul rebuilds. After their marriage they encounter new challenges, as they face discrimination as Mormons, and an enemy who seeks a little boy they befriended in the first book. Through it all, strong and capable Julia and Paul rely on their faith and love for each other to help them endure.
I found it a little hard to get into this story, I think less because of the religious elements than because it’s not really a romance in the usual sense. Paul and Julia fell in love and worked out all their issues in the previous book; here they are always in harmony and all conflict in the story is external. Once I concluded that this is more a historical pioneer saga than a romance, reminiscent of books like Christy, Mrs. Mike and The First Four Years, I enjoyed it more. Which is not to say the book is short on love scenes; they’re not graphic, but have a teasing, roguish quality (to use Julia’s own word) and the characters obviously enjoy marital bliss a great deal.
Overall, I thought the religious elements of the story were appropriate and well blended, until the end, which felt like overkill. I doubt it converted me to inspirational romance, but I did enjoy my visit with Julia and Paul.
(reviewed from e-arc provided by netGalley)
December 30, 2011
I reviewed this book on my blog at www.bookworm2bookworm.wordpress.com
To anyone that is considering to read this story before they read BORROWED LIGHT, please STOP and get the first book. You won’t be sorry, as it is the story that started it all. It’s like having a ‘pie’ without the ‘pie crust’! You’ll understand the analogy when you finish the book, but seriously, you’ll appreciate this sequel so much more after reading its prequel.
I am a very new Carla Kelly fan, but she has managed to impress me after only one book, and finding out that she has written a book (or two now) that were not Regencies, intrigued. Finding out that they were LDS based, baffled this ignorant reviewer who wasn’t familiar with ’LDS’ nor did she know what it means. When in doubt, ask is my motto, so I asked Ms. Kelly and she was more than willing to tell me about her beliefs(and if you’re like me, please find a minute to read about them at the end of my review), and the reasons for writing these two books. For more on that subject, tune in tomorrow.
ENDURING LIGHT continues the story of Julia Darling, a woman who in BORROWED LIGHT finds the love of her life on a Wyoming ranch.
As the book opens, Julia and Paul Otto are very much in love, but as he’s freshly minted Mormon, he’s not able to marry Julia for the next six months, or until one year passes from his Baptism. The separation will not be easy for either, as she prepares for their union while in Salt Lake City, and while Paul takes care of ranch business in Wyoming.
The reader is then taken on a journey of these two people who through many trials and tribulations learn the lessons of endurance. Their Father is teaching them to love thy neighbor and thy enemy while turning the other cheek and slowly killing them all with kindness. Trust me, not an easy lesson for us mere mortals to learn, but with His help and with Him at the helm, Paul and Julia, as well as the reader, come away much stronger after the lessons have been learned.
Both Paul and Julia will learn that no matter what life throws in front of them, together they CAN endure, but ONLY if they SURRENDER all of their burdens to their Heavenly Father.
I can’t even begin to tell you how much I enjoyed this story. You don’t have to be a Mormon to enjoy it. This is truly a story of love. Love of a woman for her man as much as love of One God for his children, be they good guys or bad. God loves a sinner, and there were some in here that were pretty bad.
I don’t really care which ‘creed’ you fall under, but if you’re looking for an inspirational love story, passing these two up (and you must remember the BORROWED LIGHT, too) would be such a shame.
Melanie
*Copy provided by NetGalley for an honest review.
To anyone that is considering to read this story before they read BORROWED LIGHT, please STOP and get the first book. You won’t be sorry, as it is the story that started it all. It’s like having a ‘pie’ without the ‘pie crust’! You’ll understand the analogy when you finish the book, but seriously, you’ll appreciate this sequel so much more after reading its prequel.
I am a very new Carla Kelly fan, but she has managed to impress me after only one book, and finding out that she has written a book (or two now) that were not Regencies, intrigued. Finding out that they were LDS based, baffled this ignorant reviewer who wasn’t familiar with ’LDS’ nor did she know what it means. When in doubt, ask is my motto, so I asked Ms. Kelly and she was more than willing to tell me about her beliefs(and if you’re like me, please find a minute to read about them at the end of my review), and the reasons for writing these two books. For more on that subject, tune in tomorrow.
ENDURING LIGHT continues the story of Julia Darling, a woman who in BORROWED LIGHT finds the love of her life on a Wyoming ranch.
As the book opens, Julia and Paul Otto are very much in love, but as he’s freshly minted Mormon, he’s not able to marry Julia for the next six months, or until one year passes from his Baptism. The separation will not be easy for either, as she prepares for their union while in Salt Lake City, and while Paul takes care of ranch business in Wyoming.
The reader is then taken on a journey of these two people who through many trials and tribulations learn the lessons of endurance. Their Father is teaching them to love thy neighbor and thy enemy while turning the other cheek and slowly killing them all with kindness. Trust me, not an easy lesson for us mere mortals to learn, but with His help and with Him at the helm, Paul and Julia, as well as the reader, come away much stronger after the lessons have been learned.
Both Paul and Julia will learn that no matter what life throws in front of them, together they CAN endure, but ONLY if they SURRENDER all of their burdens to their Heavenly Father.
I can’t even begin to tell you how much I enjoyed this story. You don’t have to be a Mormon to enjoy it. This is truly a story of love. Love of a woman for her man as much as love of One God for his children, be they good guys or bad. God loves a sinner, and there were some in here that were pretty bad.
I don’t really care which ‘creed’ you fall under, but if you’re looking for an inspirational love story, passing these two up (and you must remember the BORROWED LIGHT, too) would be such a shame.
Melanie
*Copy provided by NetGalley for an honest review.
December 12, 2011
Can I just say I love Carla Kelly's writing! This is my third book of hers, and I loved it too. She has an ability to draw you in and keep you there, totally in love with her characters and their stories. Julia and Mr Otto's story picks up were we left off at the end of Borrowed Light. I was so glad I had the second book handy so I could be ready, I had to know what was going to happen after that big ending. Paul (Mr. Otto) has a big revelation in this story to tell Julia, which had me jumping up and down and really excited for them. Julia and Paul are separated for a time while she is recovering and making preparations for their up coming wedding! (hurray) and he is busy with the ranch and anxiously awaiting the wedding. Which does eventually come. It was so fun to be apart of the preparations, and the big day. I was so happy for them. They have been through so much to finally make it to this big day. Paul is such an amazing guy with Julia, he is so in love with her, as she is with him. They treat each other so well too. I love the romantic scenes that Mrs. Kelly lets us in on. They are clean and fun, and at the same time you get to see how sweet and in love they are with each other with out all the details but still just enough. They are soon back on the ranch, greeted with a big surprise from friends. It was pretty neat what they did for Paul and Julia, made me tear up a little. They are really put to the test by fellow ranchers, and old grudges resurface. Julia is one brave women, that round up she was on oh my, I don't know how she did it! Paul is one brave chivalrous man! They face their trials head on and with courage and strength from the Lord. They were awesome! Such a delightful, and wonderful story about love, enduring well, family, friends, and forgiveness. Wonderfully written in Carla Kelley's wonderful way.
Clean language
Clean romance for adults
Copy provided by Netgalley and Cedar Fort Publishing. Thank you!
Clean language
Clean romance for adults
Copy provided by Netgalley and Cedar Fort Publishing. Thank you!
December 16, 2011
I was looking forward to the 2nd instalment in this series. I'm enamoured with the time period and I wanted to learn more about Paul and Julia. This story takes place directly after Borrowed Light. Julia has been burned by the fire on the ranch, and Paul's home on the Double Tipi has burned to the ground. What trials await for Paul and Julia?
This story is so full of love and longing. There are so many twists and turns that I never saw coming. We get to see so much more of Julia and Paul's personalities in this book. We learn about them as a couple and how much they compliment one another. I loved that. This is practically drowning in Latter-day Saint stereotype again, so if you aren't LDS I'm afraid you won't understand a lot of what is happening. It could have used less of that. But, I still enjoyed the story. If you are looking for an old western LDS love story, then this is your book! It is quite beautiful!
Quote:
He nuzzled her neck. "I've been wanting to do that for months and months. Tell me when to stop."
This story is so full of love and longing. There are so many twists and turns that I never saw coming. We get to see so much more of Julia and Paul's personalities in this book. We learn about them as a couple and how much they compliment one another. I loved that. This is practically drowning in Latter-day Saint stereotype again, so if you aren't LDS I'm afraid you won't understand a lot of what is happening. It could have used less of that. But, I still enjoyed the story. If you are looking for an old western LDS love story, then this is your book! It is quite beautiful!
Quote:
He nuzzled her neck. "I've been wanting to do that for months and months. Tell me when to stop."
February 8, 2012
I was pretty disappointed with this book. For being advertised as an LDS author and an LDS book, I thought her sexual innuendos were too much and there was too much talk about sex. I am disappointed in Bonneville Books for allowing this. When it says in the book, "Just squeeze your thighs around the horse like you squeeze me when we're..." Excuse me?? that is just too much for an LDS marketed book in my opinion. Maybe I'm a prude but I thought certain standards were to be upheld...maybe not. If this book was published by another publisher, I would expect this type of sexual talk, but not from Bonneville/Cedar Fort. Once again call me a prude...and I will say that I'm proud to be one! Especially in this day and age!!
Another thing that I didn't like...calling your wife "Sport"? That is just dumb and then the ladies calling their husbands, "our best guys" that got old REAL fast. Actually both got old, sport this and my best guy that. Yuck! I really liked Borrowed Light but was sorely disappointed with this one.
Another thing that I didn't like...calling your wife "Sport"? That is just dumb and then the ladies calling their husbands, "our best guys" that got old REAL fast. Actually both got old, sport this and my best guy that. Yuck! I really liked Borrowed Light but was sorely disappointed with this one.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
November 26, 2012
Sequels to romance novels are always a bit tricky, I think. The narrative arc and the possibilities of the stand-alone book are well established, but once the parties are openly admitting their love for one another, what's left? That's a silly question, of course, but it's how the genre works.
In this sequel to Borrowed Light , Kelly does her best with external obstacles. Her lovers aren't married by the end of their first book, so the first part of the second derives most of its tension from their impatience to wed. After that, it's the hardships of ranch life and, especially, of the bigotry they face as Mormons among non-Mormons.
The only difficulty for me with the first part was, I hope, really my problem. Julia's sympathetic, understanding parents are really, really sympathetic and understanding about how much she wants to get married so she can finally have sex with Paul. Which ... mostly this is great! I love romances with sympathetic understanding parents who strongly approve of their child's partner! And in theory, I think everyone must be better off if the parents do not feel awkward and in denial about their adult children's happy sex lives. Also, authority figures in inspirational romance novels don't have to be prudes about sex -- super! BUT OH DEAR I couldn't really handle it. And now I have to contemplate the possibility that I am more prudish about sex than LDS authority figures. (I don't know if it's a LDS thing, or just Carla Kelly, or just me. Anyway, these books are making me curious about LDS culture.)
Well, Julia and Paul get married and the sexual frustration goes away (mostly). I continued to enjoy the details of ranch life that interested me in Borrowed Life. Some of the problems get resolved in rather implausibly satisfying ways, but that's okay because it's romance. (I think the implausibility only really came to my attention because of the gritty realism of some of the problems -- and that's a good thing.)
Kelly is a bit awkwarder with her non-white characters here than in Borrowed Light, I think -- there's one African American character whom I really liked, but apart from that we have (1) lots of gratuitous musings about how Indians are quiet, and (2) Charlotte. Charlotte is a Shoshone woman, one of Paul's cousins, who comes to help Julia cook and keep house at the ranch. Now, I know that Carla Kelly can write really memorable secondary characters, but except for a couple of scenes, Charlotte is a lot duller than I think she deserves. (I guess that's what happens when the writer thinks all Indians are quiet?) We learn that Charlotte went to a boarding school and didn't like it; I got the sense that Kelly does know some of the bad things about Indian boarding schools, but (1) didn't want to burden her story with them and (2) thought that Charlotte's Anglicization made her more relatable to readers and a better friend for Julia. I spent the whole book hoping that Charlotte was keeping in close touch with all her Shoshone lady friends who weren't in the story.
In this sequel to Borrowed Light , Kelly does her best with external obstacles. Her lovers aren't married by the end of their first book, so the first part of the second derives most of its tension from their impatience to wed. After that, it's the hardships of ranch life and, especially, of the bigotry they face as Mormons among non-Mormons.
The only difficulty for me with the first part was, I hope, really my problem. Julia's sympathetic, understanding parents are really, really sympathetic and understanding about how much she wants to get married so she can finally have sex with Paul. Which ... mostly this is great! I love romances with sympathetic understanding parents who strongly approve of their child's partner! And in theory, I think everyone must be better off if the parents do not feel awkward and in denial about their adult children's happy sex lives. Also, authority figures in inspirational romance novels don't have to be prudes about sex -- super! BUT OH DEAR I couldn't really handle it. And now I have to contemplate the possibility that I am more prudish about sex than LDS authority figures. (I don't know if it's a LDS thing, or just Carla Kelly, or just me. Anyway, these books are making me curious about LDS culture.)
Well, Julia and Paul get married and the sexual frustration goes away (mostly). I continued to enjoy the details of ranch life that interested me in Borrowed Life. Some of the problems get resolved in rather implausibly satisfying ways, but that's okay because it's romance. (I think the implausibility only really came to my attention because of the gritty realism of some of the problems -- and that's a good thing.)
Kelly is a bit awkwarder with her non-white characters here than in Borrowed Light, I think -- there's one African American character whom I really liked, but apart from that we have (1) lots of gratuitous musings about how Indians are quiet, and (2) Charlotte. Charlotte is a Shoshone woman, one of Paul's cousins, who comes to help Julia cook and keep house at the ranch. Now, I know that Carla Kelly can write really memorable secondary characters, but except for a couple of scenes, Charlotte is a lot duller than I think she deserves. (I guess that's what happens when the writer thinks all Indians are quiet?) We learn that Charlotte went to a boarding school and didn't like it; I got the sense that Kelly does know some of the bad things about Indian boarding schools, but (1) didn't want to burden her story with them and (2) thought that Charlotte's Anglicization made her more relatable to readers and a better friend for Julia. I spent the whole book hoping that Charlotte was keeping in close touch with all her Shoshone lady friends who weren't in the story.
January 19, 2012
*Requirements for Enjoyment*
#1 One must love "quiet" books - those where nothing terribly big and exciting happens - the type of books that concentrate more on the day to day happenings in the life of....... in this case the life of a young Mormon couple living in Wyoming at the turn of the 20th century. It is enjoyable, interesting and in some ways cozy and comforting, it just isn't exciting at all.
#2: One must have a passable understanding of Mormon culture and way of life. Much of the overt Mormon dialogue from Enduring Light's predecessor, Borrowed Light, is toned down and becomes (quite nicely) just part of the overall conversation of the book. It doesn't preach, it just shows. A working knowledge of terms is encouraged, however.
#3: One must enjoy reading books about life on a ranch during the early 1900s. This story deals extensively in this area. From the day to day tedium and isolation to the annual round-ups and cut-throat competition that existed in an era before civilization was fully established.
#4: One must love a slow burning, deeply loving but clean reading romance.
#5: Kelly's previous book, Borrowed Light is an almost mandatory pre-requisite. All subject matter has it's origins in that story.
If these requirements are met, then this book is an absolutely perfect read! For me, the slow moving pace of the book was a trial. The romance, however, was a shining standout. Julia and Paul's love had already been established in Kelly's previous book so we follow the couple from engagement through the first year of marriage. Through all the trials and hardships, their love is one every reader dreams of!
#1 One must love "quiet" books - those where nothing terribly big and exciting happens - the type of books that concentrate more on the day to day happenings in the life of....... in this case the life of a young Mormon couple living in Wyoming at the turn of the 20th century. It is enjoyable, interesting and in some ways cozy and comforting, it just isn't exciting at all.
#2: One must have a passable understanding of Mormon culture and way of life. Much of the overt Mormon dialogue from Enduring Light's predecessor, Borrowed Light, is toned down and becomes (quite nicely) just part of the overall conversation of the book. It doesn't preach, it just shows. A working knowledge of terms is encouraged, however.
#3: One must enjoy reading books about life on a ranch during the early 1900s. This story deals extensively in this area. From the day to day tedium and isolation to the annual round-ups and cut-throat competition that existed in an era before civilization was fully established.
#4: One must love a slow burning, deeply loving but clean reading romance.
#5: Kelly's previous book, Borrowed Light is an almost mandatory pre-requisite. All subject matter has it's origins in that story.
If these requirements are met, then this book is an absolutely perfect read! For me, the slow moving pace of the book was a trial. The romance, however, was a shining standout. Julia and Paul's love had already been established in Kelly's previous book so we follow the couple from engagement through the first year of marriage. Through all the trials and hardships, their love is one every reader dreams of!
December 21, 2011
Carla Kelly was a new author for me as I read & reviewed Marion's Christmas Wish a few weeks ago and really enjoyed. So I was excited to read Enduring Light as a pre-release from NetGalley. As I started reading, I realized this is a sequel to another book, Borrowed Light which I have not read. This book is so well written that I was able to keep up and enjoy Enduring Light. And even though I know the end of the story, Carla's writing is so good, I want to go back and read Borrowed Light. I really like out heroine, Julia Darling, who relieves stress by cooking up a storm - and the wonderful chemistry between her and Paul makes it an exciting and clean romance (which I am always grateful for). Because I also love to cook, I was glad to see recipes at the end of the book from a turn of the century cookbook that will be fun to try. Although there are a few traditional ones from a Western Round Up I can assure you I will never make or try.
Read my full review at: http://ldsretailers.blogspot.com/2011...
Read my full review at: http://ldsretailers.blogspot.com/2011...
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February 7, 2012I'm returning this book to the library unfinished, which is disappointing. I really enjoyed the first book, but this one is a romance novel that's slid through the cracks into the LDS fiction category. Lots of insinuation and veiled sexual references. It's not dirty, but very bedroom focused. And the plot just didn't seem to pick up. Too bad...
September 22, 2020
I liked this book more than the previous one. The loving marriage of Paul and Julia is beautifully described.
3.5*
3.5*
December 22, 2011
My Opinion:
Once again Carla writes a good romance book. It was enjoyable to get carried away with Julia and Paul. I didn’t like how they spent so much time apart but at the turn of the century that is how it was. Julia was almost killed in a fire at the Ranch she was staying at with Paul. They have to spend this time apart because Paul has to find the cattle that was lost because of that fire. As the book progressed it got better and better and they finally get to be with each other again. Julia finally gets to marry Paul like she has dreamed about. She leaves behind an easy life to be with Paul because she loves him. They have many struggles to endure because of being Mormon. Even people Paul has known for years treat him differently when they find out his beliefs. There are references to sex through the book but it’s still a clean romance. Overall, I would say this is a good romance book. The underlining of the book is God, faith and love.
I give Enduring Light by Carla Kelly 3.5 of 5 stars.
Once again Carla writes a good romance book. It was enjoyable to get carried away with Julia and Paul. I didn’t like how they spent so much time apart but at the turn of the century that is how it was. Julia was almost killed in a fire at the Ranch she was staying at with Paul. They have to spend this time apart because Paul has to find the cattle that was lost because of that fire. As the book progressed it got better and better and they finally get to be with each other again. Julia finally gets to marry Paul like she has dreamed about. She leaves behind an easy life to be with Paul because she loves him. They have many struggles to endure because of being Mormon. Even people Paul has known for years treat him differently when they find out his beliefs. There are references to sex through the book but it’s still a clean romance. Overall, I would say this is a good romance book. The underlining of the book is God, faith and love.
I give Enduring Light by Carla Kelly 3.5 of 5 stars.
December 19, 2011
Before you read this book, I would highly recommend that you read the first book, Borrowed Light. I didn't and spent quite a bit of time trying to figure out the back story. I knew that I was missing some key elements. To remedy that situation, I will now read the first book. A little backwards, I know.
This is a fun, clean romance. Julia is marrying the man that she desperately loves, Paul. She is recovering from a near death experience, she was burned badly on her neck and chest and doesn't think that Paul should be saddled with a deformed wife. He sets her straight and the wedding moves forward as planned.
He is a rancher in Wyoming and the climate is tough. The ranch is remote and he is dealing with religious prejudice from his neighbors. He has joined the Mormon Church and many do not like it and want to stop their business dealings with him.
This book deals with some issues, religious prejudice, insecurity, deceit, and of course, lots of love. I would recommend reading it, just don't read the book in reverse order.
This is a fun, clean romance. Julia is marrying the man that she desperately loves, Paul. She is recovering from a near death experience, she was burned badly on her neck and chest and doesn't think that Paul should be saddled with a deformed wife. He sets her straight and the wedding moves forward as planned.
He is a rancher in Wyoming and the climate is tough. The ranch is remote and he is dealing with religious prejudice from his neighbors. He has joined the Mormon Church and many do not like it and want to stop their business dealings with him.
This book deals with some issues, religious prejudice, insecurity, deceit, and of course, lots of love. I would recommend reading it, just don't read the book in reverse order.
August 3, 2016
I don't usually read romance or LDS fiction, so I was really surprised when I loved Borrowed Light like I did. I was excited to read the sequel. I was born near the ranch mentioned in the book and I loved learning about the ranching lifestyle at the turn of the century. I also thought the religious themes were well-written. But the second book has kind of fallen flat for me. It had potential, but the storyline of the James stalker was a little hard to swallow for me in a few places. Maybe overly-dramatic? I didn't like that James was not part of the story anymore in the same way. And the constant references to sex just got very tiresome. The reason I liked the first one so much was because these kinds of details were absent. I know they are married and that is great, but I am reading for the story, not the constant allusions to bedroom exploits.
March 8, 2012
Before I do the review I have to remind reader's that this is the sequel to "Borrowed Light". So make sure you read that first or you could be lost.
This book was a great sequel. I remember reading the first book and going on the internet to see if there was another written. There wasn't. Lucky for me I just needed to wait a couple months before I was handed the opportunity to review the second book.
Julia is a tough young woman who over comes quite a lot of adversity while starting a new life on the Double Tipi. Some think she is a fragile little thing, but they soon find out how wrong they are! When yet another obstacle comes into her and her now husband Paul's life, they have to turn to the Lord, even more then ever. Go ahead and pick up this book and transport yourself back to a time of hardship and trial, but also love and endurance.
This book was a great sequel. I remember reading the first book and going on the internet to see if there was another written. There wasn't. Lucky for me I just needed to wait a couple months before I was handed the opportunity to review the second book.
Julia is a tough young woman who over comes quite a lot of adversity while starting a new life on the Double Tipi. Some think she is a fragile little thing, but they soon find out how wrong they are! When yet another obstacle comes into her and her now husband Paul's life, they have to turn to the Lord, even more then ever. Go ahead and pick up this book and transport yourself back to a time of hardship and trial, but also love and endurance.
July 2, 2012
Borrowed Light was such a great book that I think Enduring Light suffers from comparisons that may or may not be fair. I still really like the characters and thought the details of ranch life were fascinating. My teenage daughter loved Borrowed Light and I'm pretty sure that the constant references to their friskiness would be icky to my daughter. I know they're newlyweds, but I could have done with a lot less of that excitement. My only other reservation about the book was the overuse of the pet names. Started to be silly and a distracting. Overall, though, another great book with wonderful details.
October 20, 2012
I read this, even though I felt it moved slowly. I got sick of all of the innuendos pretty quickly. I mean, really, I didn't need that many references to what they had done as a married couple. Nor did I need constant references to how things were done back then (almost as if getting a history lesson). At the beginning I liked the little nicknames, but after awhile it was just old hat. I preferred "darling" to "sport." I found myself questioning what sport was he referring to? I liked the general plot-line, but I think this could have been summed up to a few add-on chapters to the first book and it would have been fine!
February 4, 2013
The conclusion to Borrowed Light wasn't as endearing to me. It was mushy and kind of flip. I had to make myself finish it. I did enjoy reading about her experiences on the cattle round-up and the recipes in the end, even though I won't ever try them. The author is coming to our library in about a week to discuss her books and answer questions. That will be interesting: An LDS Harlequin romance author...
February 1, 2012
Loved the 1st book and I enjoy the characters, humor, and the story line but I almost gave this 2 stars. I would have preferred a lot less info./details of their intimate relationship and leave out some of her crying. I also thought it funny that they put in some of her recipes at the back of the book. Like I would ever be interested in cooking what she had to cook on the roundup.
November 11, 2011
Julia and Paul look forward to a long life together. Neither could guess at all the twists, turns and hardships life will throw their way! An inspiring read, even for a non-LDS reader like myself. Well worth the time.
June 10, 2012
I liked this book but not as much as the first in this series. I thought there was way too much info about the characters intimate life for this to be passed off as an LDS novel. I thought maybe I was being a prude until I read other similar reviews with the same opinion.
December 14, 2011
These are the kind of romances that I like!! Come read my review! http://booksrmyfriends.blogspot.com/2...
May 1, 2012
Just a little too formulaic, and the innuendo was way too heavy. I liked these characters better in the first book, when they had some depth.
October 26, 2016
When I first picked up the book, I thought I had already read it since it was talking about Julia Darling again. To my surprise this books is a continuation of the first book! I hate when you read the book and you want the "happily ever after" to continue and this book did just that! I was so happy!
So heres what i didn't like, followed by what I loved. At times it was a bit cheesy. Being LDS myself, there were certain aspects of our gospel that were brought up too many times for my liking and felt comfortable with. A couple references would have sufficed.
Loved- This one is a bit better than the first read, my opionion only. It tugged at my heart strings. A bit cheesy at times but that was overlooked by the great story line and characters. Loved that the story line continued from the first. And I really did like the message it left me with. Endure to the End! All and in all, a good book
So heres what i didn't like, followed by what I loved. At times it was a bit cheesy. Being LDS myself, there were certain aspects of our gospel that were brought up too many times for my liking and felt comfortable with. A couple references would have sufficed.
Loved- This one is a bit better than the first read, my opionion only. It tugged at my heart strings. A bit cheesy at times but that was overlooked by the great story line and characters. Loved that the story line continued from the first. And I really did like the message it left me with. Endure to the End! All and in all, a good book
April 4, 2019
I thoroughly enjoyed both Borrowed Light (#1) and Enduring Light (#2). I'm always up for a nice romance with a good story line, and I will be seeking out more Carla Kelly books after reading these two (the first books I've read by her). I've read some other comments that said they were reluctant to read these two books since they're Westerns, even though they love all of her other books, but if her other boos are better than these, I'm in! I love the humanness of the characters, the harshness of life for Wyoming cattle ranchers, and the scene about Rocky Mountain Oysters had me in absolute hysterics!
There are some "LDS/Mormon" undertones throughout the book, so readers will want to consider that before deciding whether or not to read this book. Although I've heard that Kelly will strictly be writing for members of The Church of Jesus Christ from now on.
There are some "LDS/Mormon" undertones throughout the book, so readers will want to consider that before deciding whether or not to read this book. Although I've heard that Kelly will strictly be writing for members of The Church of Jesus Christ from now on.
July 8, 2025
I loved the ending of Paul and Julia’s story. The 1800’s was no joke and the Wyoming range was even harder. I love how they brought their faith in God into the story and how they dealt with their problems. I also loved when Paul was questioning, Julia put her foot down and called their meeting and laid down the law and didn’t let him speak and then closed the meeting and walked away. Classic boss behavior. Loved it! I love how the Julia was able to show how the tender mercies showed in her life. Such a great story of strength and love. Totally recommend!
February 27, 2018
This was a pleasing continuation of Borrowed Light. Be prepared for a very intimate newly married couple that speak frankly and enjoy one another's company. This may make some readers uncomfortable so I'll mention it, but I found it refreshing to see such a strong love between a married couple expressed so freely and without shame. I enjoyed the time period and the cowboy life depicted in these books (this was book 2). I plan on reading more from Carla Kelly.
April 27, 2018
I loved Borrowed Light but was really disappointed in this sequel. I don't feel like Julia and Paul's characters remained consistent from book to book. There was a lot of "stuff" in this that I feel was included to appease some of Carla Kelly's long time Harlequin fans. I am unaccustomed to reading that kind of "stuff" in books produced by Cedar Fort. Certainly nothing R-rated but still unnecessary and unappreciated.
September 13, 2017
I'm glad that I got the second (and I think final) book of this series. The first book ended in a very satisfactory place...but it is usually fun to see what happens next. I don't think that there will be more to this series, unless it branched off and talked about previously side characters.
That said, I didn't love the book. I probably won't read it again.
That said, I didn't love the book. I probably won't read it again.
December 31, 2020
Light and easy read, 2nd in series, with historical background. The 1st book must be read first, in order to understand relationships and follow the plot. As mentioned by others - this is a historical fiction, romance and religious inspiration read. I enjoyed the writing style, plot with it's twists and turns.
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