My Heart Stood Still

Sisters of Mercy Flats #2

by Lori Copeland

My Heart Stood Still—the long waited sequel to Sisters of Mercy Flats.

Wily and beautiful, the three McDougal sisters can swindle a man in less time than it takes to lasso a calf---and they give the profits to the poor! When their wagon falls under attack, Anne-Marie is carried off by Creed Walker---a Crow warrior turned Union spy. Can she outsmart her captor and find her sisters?

Genres: Romance, Historical Fiction, Christian Fiction, Historical Romance, Historical, Westerns, Fiction

224 pages, Paperback

First published August 4, 1993

About the author

Lori Copeland was born on 12 June 1941. She had a relatively late start in writing, breaking into publishing in 1982 when she was already forty years old. Over the next dozen years, her romance novels achieved much success, as was evidenced by her winning the Romantic Times Reviewer's Choice Award, The Holt Medallion, and Walden Books' Best Seller award. She has been inducted into the Missouri Writers Hall of Fame.

Despite her success in more mainstream romantic fiction, in 1995, she decided to switch focus. Her subsequent books have been in the relatively new subgenre of Christian romance. She has also collaborated with authors Angela Elwell Hunt or Virginia Smith on a series of Christian romance novels.

Lori and her husband of over forty years, Lance, live in Springfield, Missouri, surrounded by the beautiful Ozarks. They have three grown sons, three daughter-in-laws, and six wonderful grandchildren, and two great-granddaughters. She and her husband are very involved in their church, and active in supporting mission work in Mali, West Africa.

Reviews

[Aerykah]

I couldn't finish this book. And I did try! But the characters and writing were really annoying me and I just couldn't get into the story at all.

May---2015

[Annabelle Garcia · Rating 5 out of 5]

A thrill a minute! Loved the relationships built through the story, Lori Copeland hit the floor running with this adventure/romance. It was perfectly balanced! I, personally, love a romance where I can root for them for all the right reasons. The biggest selling point for me is that it is CLEAN! The characters are believable and I fell in love with them, I hope to read much more by Ms. Copeland in the future.

[Lori ◡̈ · Rating 4 out of 5]

An enjoyable, action-packed little Western story. The heroine in this second book of the series was much much better than her temper-tantrum-throwing sister in the first book. She did have a few TSTL moments in disregarding warnings on her safety (since there were outlaws after her) that cause further drama for the hero to need to keep saving her, but over all it was an enjoyable story. No steam whatsoever, just barely a kiss or two. (FYI to those that care)

[Gwen Hopkins]

I thought this book started very slow.

But oh into about the sixth chapter I was spellbound. There are so many impossible situations developing and endings changing, I could not put the book down.

[M. Monahan · Rating 1 out of 5]

It is always difficult writing a negative review. Especially when you know that the person must have put so much effort into creating something. It always takes courage to create something and then cast it off into the world. For me, writing is a very personal experience. When you create a story, poem, song, script, or whatever form you fancy, it is akin to creating a child. You put your hopes, dreams, and wishes into. Sometimes you get mad, upset, or disappointed. Finally, you think you have it. It has matured into a beautiful piece of work. You release it to someone else in hopes that they will feel the same way you have come to feel towards it only to find out that they don’t see the magic that you do. They may have found problems with it, thought that it should go in a different direction, or even simply didn’t like “get it”. What I am trying to say is that writing is a very difficult thing to do. Just like any other art form people are going to interpreted differently. Sometimes you have a beautifully crafted Monet or sadly a sham and sorry excuse like E. L. James. Either way, I give kudos to anyone who takes the plunge and releases their works into the highly judgmental world we sometimes live in.

This book is the sequel to Sisters of Mercy Flats. I have not read the previous book but was still able to follow along easy enough. The summary had a gripping idea. Sisters who are able to swindle and scam people out of their money in the midwest. This definitely grabbed my attention. Sadly, that is also where it lost it.

I personally had a few problems with this book. First and foremost, there were many issues regarding the technical aspects of the book. I read this book as an ebook. That being said, the kindle formatting was truly terrible. Words were hastily pasted into incorrect orders so that sentence structures were destroyed. Now this was not the fault of Lori Copeland. If anything, I would say it was more of an error on the publishing side. Once in print, I highly, highly doubt that this will be an issue. This did make it such a difficult issue to overcome for me. I had to countless reread passages and flip back and forth to try and make sense of the story. My other problem with this story was the typos that I kept finding throughout. Again, this is not so much the fault of the author but of an editor standpoint. However, everyone makes mistakes grammatically. I am far from being the best expert when it comes to grammar. I really am probably one of the worst spellers ever. Thank God for autocorrect though (except when it comes to text messages, then it is just a hassle).

Now the story itself had many faults in my opinion. I had to force myself to read this book from the very beginning. I dragged my feet trying to finish this book. Honestly, I wanted the book to disappear from my kindle so I wouldn’t have to. The main character is this young woman who is by all means a Mary Sue. It revolves around her romance with a man that she detests. Sound familiar right? This was the same story line of countless other works. It lacked originality in that regard. It had a plot line that couldn’t be easily differentiated from any other of the same. Also, these characters didn’t have that fleshed out feel needed to compensate for the disappointing story line. I don’t even recall the actual names of the main characters. That is how much on an impact this book had on me. This smorgasbord of Mary Sues and Marty Stues weren’t able to come across as relatable in any real way. That is one of the reasons why I was unable to connect with them on any real substantial level.

It is with this honest review that I recommend that you think hard about reading this book. If you like Mary Sues and overly repeated story lines, then this book is for you. I myself was disappointed with this book. It has such a prospective idea but lacked in many regards. I sadly give this book 1 out of 5 stars.

✭✩✩✩✩

[Jessica · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a great sequel to, “Sister's of Mercy Flats.” In this second book, we follow Anne-Marie and her Indian rescuer, Creed Walker as they try to escape from their assailants. They are joined by Quincy, an African-American friend of Creed's. Together, they work to uncover a plot to steal army money.

I liked this sequel much better than the first book. It didn't have anything that I was frustrated with in terms of story flow. I liked the trio. They made for a fun and comical bunch. The contrast between Creed's confidence, Quincy's fear of closed in spaces, and Anne-Marie’s daring temperament made for fun reading. Especially when you threw into the mix the fact that Anne-Marie was afraid of lizards. It was so fun!

Normally, I don't like stories that involve Indians. Not because I'm prejudice at all, but because of how they are written and how the Indians are always portrayed. Fiction books tend to start out with them being savages in need of God's love and an English education or respectability. That repetitive plot line can be boring after a while and I'm sure to many of the culture/heritage, probably a bit offensive (even if the history is true, we English did some pretty terrible things to the Indians, too). Also, there is always that lack of good communication between the two races that is a main theme more often than not. I find these recycled plot lines in terms of the Indians a bit repetitive. So, I went into this book worried that such circumstances would come up yet again. But that wasn't the case. I was very pleased with how Creed, the Crow Indian, was portrayed. His character had such great layers and it wasn't because he already spoke English. I found him very likable and loved the glimpse into both his English and Crow past. It was nice to see the domestic side of an Indian camp and also how the tribe was bound together as a family and support system. Also, the honor that they had in being men of their word and keeping their vows was excellent. I really enjoyed this wonderful glimpse into the Native-American heritage. It was a refreshing change from the fiction stereotype.

The scrapes that the three main characters kept getting into were so entertaining. I loved the slow change in Creed's opinion of Anne-Marie and also their sweet love story. I was so engrossed with this book that I read it in a day. I can tell you that as a slow reader, it is quite an accomplishment for me. This book was such a page turner!

The only thing I didn't like was that it was just a bit too convenient how Creed's engagement was broken off. At first I thought that his fiancé, Berry Woman, was going to die and just be cut from the story all together. Copeland saved it a little by having her fall for another guy, but it was still a bit too convenient in my opinion.

Other than that, I thoroughly enjoyed this book and can't wait for the third book of the series. Finally, I get to see the sister's reunited!

[Dawn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Anne-Marie and her sisters are beautiful thieves. But they got caught. Disguised as nuns, the sisters find themselves in a jail wagon heading off to jail when a Comanche party attacks the wagon. Each sister is rescued by a different man and sets off in a different direction. They each vow to meet up again at Mercy Flats. Anne-Marie finds herself rescued by the Crow warrior, Creed Walker. Creed is a man of secrets and few words. The more time that he spends in Anne-Marie's company, the more that he is drawn to her. When they find themselves seeking refuge with the Apache tribe Creed was adopted into, Anne-Marie hopes to learn more of the man she is falling for. She doesn't expect to meet the woman he is promised to. Add some outlaws after the gold they inadvertently stole, Anne-Marie and Creed have what appears to be insurmountable obstacles to overcome before they can find happiness together.

I enjoyed this book much more than the first in the series. I think the reason for that is that Anne-Marie was rather funny. The situations she found herself in were humorous. And the chemistry between her and Creed was fun to watch develop too.

I don't think that this was up to the standards I've come to expect from Lori Copeland. I've read almost all of her books, and this one just didn't seem quite as developed as some of the others. Still it was an enjoyable read. I look forward to the third book in the series.

I received the Kindle copy of the book for free from NetGalley for the purpose of reviewing. My thoughts and opinions are my own.

Recommended to fans of Lori Copeland, Lori Wick, Janette Oke

Rating - 3.5 stars, 3 stars on Amazon & Goodreads

[Sharon · Rating 1 out of 5]

This series has been such a disappointment. There is no flow to the story and the characters are unbelievable and just plain annoying. Especially the bumbling villains that could not have possibly pulled off the events in the book.
I've read many of Lori's books and enjoyed them, but this series is lacking on so many levels that I could barely finish these.
Maybe it's because these were originally published as secular romance novels and so much content had to be removed to make them clean inspirational reading that the story became disjointed.
I'm only reading the third book so I can find out how the sisters get back together.

[June · Rating 5 out of 5]

The adventure of stealing gold and keeping it from other thieves makes a great story about sister number 2. Anne-Marie is rescued by a Crow Indian. When they both find themselves in jail, the story takes a new twist. You'll laugh, you'll cry, and Anne-Marie and Creed Walker try to keep the gold for the North. Plenty of adventure, suspense and heart warming love.

Love this story by the great story teller, Lori Copeland.

[Jeanette Durkin · Rating 4 out of 5]

I always enjoy books by Lori Copeland! She brings the characters and settings to life!
Anne Marie is rescued from a jail car by an Indian. In the process she is separated from her sisters. Creed, the Indian doesn't make conversation with her and drops her off at the next town. Once there she is thrown in jail along with Creed because she's being accused of selling stolen cattle. Quincy, Creeds friend breaks them out of jail and Anne Marie tags along. Unfortunately the wagon is full of stolen gold. The three find themselves being chased by renegade outlaws. Befriended by a nearby Indian tribe they hatch a plan to escape the outlaws and keep the gold. Anne Marie finds herself falling for Creed but he is promised to a woman in the tribe. They succefully escape but lose the gold. Creed finds himself falling for Anne Marie. They hatch a plan to get the gold and succefully accomplish it. Creed finds out that the promised woman marries another and he's able to proclaim his love to Anne Marie. They return the gold to its rightful owner and continue on their quest to find Anne Marie's sisters. So much more happens. Read the book! You won't be disappointed!

[Donia · Rating 1 out of 5]

The concept behind all of the stories in this series is one that has great potential. I don't enjoy insulting authors especially one that decides to give Historical Fiction a try. I say try because though these books are supposedly based in history, the characters are anything unlike real people; their behavior, their circumstances...everything.

I was profoundly disappointed in the execution of this story. I had tried another in this series because the premise and promise gave me hope that maybe a second novel would be an improvement. But such was not the case. This book was much worse than the previous one. In this story, the behavior of the characters is so cliche, the plots unfold as if they are fairy tales or in comic books. There is no substance, no depth nothing. The scenes are executed so rapidly that there is no time for the reader to get engaged in the story. I am surprised that the characters in this book don't sprout wings and fly. They might as well because they do everything else unlikely.

[Nicole · Rating 3 out of 5]

A cute story in a cute series, I just preferred the first book to this one. I felt like this one got swept into a "ready" pile before it actually met the editor. I've come to expect a few details lost in the shuffle when going from book to book with this author, and I'm totally fine with that. I'm just looking for a fun quick read, and hers always fit the bill! But there were some details that got switched same page in here, some things that I felt were only half-explained, and eventually I couldn't help but wonder if the editor even read the book... The slips were getting obvious.
That being said, I did enjoy the fun misadventures of this trio. And Quincy!! Oh my goodness, he was hysterical! He definitely made the book worth it for me.
On to book #3!

[Robin Willson · Rating 5 out of 5]

I swear I heard music as I read this book. You know, like one of those western movies made in the 70s with beautiful characters, lots of action and comedy thrown in. A bit cheesy, but a really good story – very entertaining!

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Harvest House Publishers and the Netgalley book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising”. http://www.access.gpo.gov/nara/cfr/wa....

[Amy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book. It was very good and really kept your attention. Some pretty unexpected things were going on of course and that’s what kept it. Interesting. I really liked all the characters but I think I especially liked Quincy. He was too funny at times! And with the last book in this series, the character girl was pretty, interesting and fun to watch. Much like the last book, this one also landed on sort of a cliffhanger… I’m guessing that all the stories will come together in the third book and all of the endings are going to be explained. Very clever frankly… you know what they say, always leave them wanting more!

[Julynn · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed My Heart Stood Still a little less than the first and last book of Ms. Copeland's series. I think it might have been due to the precarious situations and scary settings that the main character, Anne-Marie put herself and others in. Also, with the main character, Mr. Walker, spoken for, I felt the tension and Anne Marie and Creed falling in love in that circumstance. In the end, it all wrapped up nicely which was a relief. I look forward to hearing the very end of the Sisters of Mercy Flats tales in the final pages of Amelia and the Captain.

[Marsha R. · Rating 4 out of 5]

My Heart Stood Still by Lori Copeland is another delightful read, showcasing her signature blend of romance and humor. As with all of Copeland's books, I thoroughly enjoyed this one. The heroine finds herself in all sorts of crazy predicaments, keeping you entertained and laughing out loud as she stumbles through challenges on her way to finding love. Copeland’s ability to mix laughter with tender moments makes her stories irresistible, and My Heart Stood Still is no exception. It’s a heartwarming, fun escape, perfect for fans of lighthearted romance.

[Karen · Rating 1 out of 5]

I didn't finish this book. The female manipulation was at the ridiculous level for me. I read through Anne-Marie's accompanied escape from Indians/Jail, inviting a strange Indian to sleep close to her (dressed as a nun) to obtain body warmth, jail again, escape again, help from a female friend for their little gang, and the impossible rescue of a severely injured person from a burning building. At that point, I had enough.

[Joelle Lewis · Rating 2 out of 5]

When writing about indigenous or native people groups, one should not simply string together words for names because the author likes the way they sound. Also, don't make them speak broken, stereotyped English. If they're conversing in a native language, translate as grammatically correct. And if English isn't there native language, at least don't make them sound like they're auditioning for the role of the Chief in Peter Pan.

[Lisa · Rating 5 out of 5]

Cowboys and Indians

Had I read the first book and not bought the other two I would have stopped there. Would have missed out. This book was so much better! Ann Marie was such a strong and gentle character. Creed was honorable and Quincey was an interesting addition. I really enjoyed myself and I look forward to Amelia’s story.

[Samantha · Rating 2 out of 5]

I have a pretty high tolerance for cheesy romances, but this one lost me. The characters spent the whole book making foolish decisions and I lost interest. I ended up skipping to the end and just reading the last few pages. I don't think I missed anything.

[Glenda · Rating 2 out of 5]

DNF - dissapointing. The sisters in this series are all annoying and not very remorseful about their lies and deceit. Read the first book begrudgingly. Continued in the hopes maybe the other sister was different. Unfortunately she is not so.

[Sonia · Rating 3 out of 5]

Terrible Spanish

The plot is very interesting, the story flows well. I wish authors would check their words with native speakers when using Spanish. Otherwise, it's an excellent book.

[Mackenzie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Book 2 of 3

[Julynn · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read the rerelease called My Heart Stood Still. This is the same book.

[Sharla · Rating 3 out of 5]

Clean entertainment. Easy read. Nothing deep.

[Teresa Merriman · Rating 4 out of 5]

A really fun book to read!

[Jan St Clair · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wonderful book

This is the second one book to the series. These do need to be read in order. Great series! The author nailed this series with everything you could want in a book!

[Valerie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Enjoyed this story! Such a break from the usual Christian novels. More of a story there, with great characters.

[BlueJeansAndTeacups · Rating 4 out of 5]

Just as good as book 1. Great premis, humor and heart. This book was gifted to me by a friend and my opinion is entirely my own.

[Doreen Nicolet]

Didn't like.