Brother's Keeper

Mysterious Ways #2

by Terry W. Burns

Mistaken identity. Robbery.
False arrest. Race riots.
It's just another day in the Old West. James and Ross Campbell are identical twins—and that's where the similarities stop. Ross is an outlaw with a Texas Ranger on his trail; James and his mother run the quiet family farm. But a twist of fate forces them to seek out Ross, accompanied by the lovely Mary Jane McMinn, who gives a new meaning to the term "Calamity Jane." Before long the trio finds more adventure than they ever crossing the Mississippi, facing false arrest, and meeting up with a certain traveling preacher. When the family comes face-to-face with danger, Ross begins to understand the undeniable bond between twins, the heart of sacrificial love, and the full meaning of being your Brother's Keeper. Download the Readers' Guide.

287 pages, Paperback

First published December 15, 2005

About the author

Terry Burns has been with the Hartline Literary agency for ten years, more than five years as an agent, and has a substantial list of clients, a growing list of credits, and a reputation for presenting to conferences all over the country. Terry comes from a writing background, has over forty books of his own in print, most recently adapting a Christian movie script to print for the movie Footprints, a Young Adult novel entitled Beyond the Smoke, which won the Will Rogers Medallion, the three book Mysterious Ways series from David C. Cook, and a book on the skills needed to get published entitled A Writer s Survival Guide to Getting Published that was developed out of the month long course he held for the American Christian Fiction Writers. A bookstore of his available works as well as a periodic blog can be found at terryburns(dot)net. Terry has a BA from West Texas A & M and did graduate work at Southern Methodist University. He's a member of the Association of Author s Representatives (AAR).

Reviews

[Valerie (Val's Vicinity) · Rating 3 out of 5]

The storyline: James and his mother have been struggling to farm their little patch of land, but after several years of no crop and bank loan extensions they can't pay, they are forced to leave their home. They decide to go out west in search of a fresh start, and also in search of James' twin brother, Ross, who they haven't seen or heard from in several years.

Mary Jane, an orphaned young-lady has waited two years for Ross to come back to town to get her. She believes he cares for her even though she hasn't heard a word from him since he left. After being fired from her waitress job due to mis-fortunes and clumsy accidents that seem to always happen when she is around, she decides to tag along with James and his mother as they go searching for Ross.

My opinion: This wasn't a bad story, but it was maybe a little bit too long or repetitive, I'm not sure which... It seemed alot of the book was comprised of people traveling by wagon or horseback across the country, stopping to meet and talk to people on the way. I liked Mary Jane's character, but the clumsy accidents that she constantly caused seemed a bit too much. In spite of all this, there were some humorous moments. All in all, this is a good clean western that would probably interest men or women.

Mysterious Ways is the first book in the series, and although you wouldn't have to, I would recommend reading it first as it covers the story of a few of the characters that play a smaller part in this book.

[Karol · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the second book in Terry Burn's "His Mysterious Ways" series. It definitely stood on its own, with the main characters from the first novel playing a smaller role, while the story focused on new characters in this second book.

One thing I find interesting in these stories: at one level, Burns' books are easy to read, entertaining, and somewhat light-hearted. Yet, there are strong undercurrents of themes that make me think about things in my own life. In this novel, I found myself thinking about the meaning of "family" and the responsibilities we have to family members. Forgiveness was another theme, as was simple faith that somehow, the Lord will work out all the details.

These points hit home with me as I watched the relentless search for an outlaw by his family on one hand, and a Texas ranger on the other.

Just as with the first book, once I picked this one up I did not want to set it down.

[Terry]

I'm the Author

[Donald Parker · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another great book. The antagonist from book one played a minor role in this one but it was a good read.