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The McKaslin Clan: Series 3 #9
A Soldier For Keeps
Lexie Evans is not looking for a relationship with Pierce Granger. And that’s just fine by the handsome soldier. Neither one has time for romance, but they can both commit to friendship, right? Then, after months as pen pals, Pierce visits Lexie’s family ranch in Wyoming.
Face-to-face with her friend, Lexie realizes her feelings toward him have changed. She’s finally ready for love - but is Pierce ready to be hers for keeps?
Face-to-face with her friend, Lexie realizes her feelings toward him have changed. She’s finally ready for love - but is Pierce ready to be hers for keeps?
224 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published January 1, 2009
32 people are currently reading
435 people want to read
About the author
Jillian Hart
192 books602 followersJillian Hart grew up on her family's homestead in Washington state, where she raised cattle, rode horses and scribbled stories in her spare time.
After earning her English degree from Whitman College, she worked in travel and advertising before selling her first novel.
When Jillian isn't working on her next story, she can be found puttering around her rose garden, curled up with a good book and spending quiet evenings at home with her family.
After earning her English degree from Whitman College, she worked in travel and advertising before selling her first novel.
When Jillian isn't working on her next story, she can be found puttering around her rose garden, curled up with a good book and spending quiet evenings at home with her family.
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Displaying 1 - 26 of 26 reviews
November 18, 2017
As usual, this series delivers.
March 18, 2017
I loved this book!!!
February 27, 2012
Pierce and Lexie have both decided they do not want to love anyone again - because you just get hurt.
They decide they can be friends, and e-mail each other during Pierce's military deployment. Both recognize they have feelings that are more than friendship, but are determined not to let them grow or share these with the other. The happy ending came very abruptly and maybe a little far fetched for me. But I loved their time together at the college, and Pierces time with his family to swing me to a 4 star rating.
It was a happy finding that I made that this was the same Lexie character I loved from another Jillian Hart book.
They decide they can be friends, and e-mail each other during Pierce's military deployment. Both recognize they have feelings that are more than friendship, but are determined not to let them grow or share these with the other. The happy ending came very abruptly and maybe a little far fetched for me. But I loved their time together at the college, and Pierces time with his family to swing me to a 4 star rating.
It was a happy finding that I made that this was the same Lexie character I loved from another Jillian Hart book.
April 27, 2020
I have experience a broken ankle and there is no way I would have made it riding on some guys back down an advance ski slope. Maybe 20 years makes a difference but I wasn't moving around a lot for the first 3 weeks. I am also surprised a medical center at a ski lodge had the means to do everything for a broken ankle and have crutches to give out. I don't like when thing are mentioned and then never followed thru like he was going to call his sister to help her out. Overall I liked the story but I would have liked the emails going on longer like in a span of 2 years with her getting close to graduating and him only having 2 more years. Most of these books are finding your soulmate and being asked to be married in a couple of weeks so at least it lasted longer than the norm.
July 8, 2019
I found this book at a library sale and I'm very glad for that. It is one of the best stories I've ever read. Jillian Hart has created a series revolving around the McKaslin clan. A Soldier For Keeps tells the story of Lexie and Pierce. Two very different people on the outside but with very similar values and perceptions. There are several books on this series and I will be looking for them all.
July 25, 2018
great emotion. a little slow but a lovely story
September 21, 2020
sweet story. Pierce is as nice a character as you will meet. I definietly will read this book again and i do recommend it
February 26, 2015
Sacchrine 'Love Inspired' story that just held NO surprises. The only reason I picked it up was because I *LOVE* correspondence literature, and this is a letter-writing book.
Lexie is THE most boring character ever written into a novel. She's a grad student who loves horses and skis, sure, but it's completely incongruous to her personality. She's a drag - a 'bookworm' except that she has no passion for it... or horses, or skiing, or anything else. The way Lexie acts toward Pierce from moment one is... forced by the author.
Pierce is a daredevil Special Forces guy who is gung-ho and no fear, of course. But it's completely incongruous to HIS actions, which include sitting around on his butt with a boring girl with a broken leg, pontificating about the horrors of war and the desperate need to keep our nation secure. He's afraid of horses, wanders museums, is all about long games of chess, writes long e-mails...
The author needs to figure out what she wants her characters to be, for pity's sakes.
NEITHER of these characters made ANY sense. And of course the don't want a relationship the WHOLE time that they do, so it just gets reeeeeally long and tedious, after a while. Worse, they spend all of their time talking over themselves. He'll talk about his family, and instead of her saying something about what he's said, or asking questions, she's all "Yeah, well MY family..." And this happens constantly, the whole book through.
But it wasn't just that. The author wrote dumb. She writes "in a year from now"... which would either be "in a year" or "a year from now, but not both. She has his family raising cattle and over a dozen horses on ten acres. Now, I've owned ten acres. There's not ROOM for a dozen horses and cattle on a plot that big, let alone what you'd need to grow to feed 'em, hello. She introduces a possible exciting plot idea - a cougar - but never develops it, so the blah book remains a blah book.
Worse, it's crap christianity, too. She's got his brother in Heaven, even though scripture says only Messiah has ascended, as the firstfruits, and nobody else is there, yet. Spirituality is vague references to church and some dinner prayers and a few "help me, Lords". Just... really disappointing.
Lexie is THE most boring character ever written into a novel. She's a grad student who loves horses and skis, sure, but it's completely incongruous to her personality. She's a drag - a 'bookworm' except that she has no passion for it... or horses, or skiing, or anything else. The way Lexie acts toward Pierce from moment one is... forced by the author.
Pierce is a daredevil Special Forces guy who is gung-ho and no fear, of course. But it's completely incongruous to HIS actions, which include sitting around on his butt with a boring girl with a broken leg, pontificating about the horrors of war and the desperate need to keep our nation secure. He's afraid of horses, wanders museums, is all about long games of chess, writes long e-mails...
The author needs to figure out what she wants her characters to be, for pity's sakes.
NEITHER of these characters made ANY sense. And of course the don't want a relationship the WHOLE time that they do, so it just gets reeeeeally long and tedious, after a while. Worse, they spend all of their time talking over themselves. He'll talk about his family, and instead of her saying something about what he's said, or asking questions, she's all "Yeah, well MY family..." And this happens constantly, the whole book through.
But it wasn't just that. The author wrote dumb. She writes "in a year from now"... which would either be "in a year" or "a year from now, but not both. She has his family raising cattle and over a dozen horses on ten acres. Now, I've owned ten acres. There's not ROOM for a dozen horses and cattle on a plot that big, let alone what you'd need to grow to feed 'em, hello. She introduces a possible exciting plot idea - a cougar - but never develops it, so the blah book remains a blah book.
Worse, it's crap christianity, too. She's got his brother in Heaven, even though scripture says only Messiah has ascended, as the firstfruits, and nobody else is there, yet. Spirituality is vague references to church and some dinner prayers and a few "help me, Lords". Just... really disappointing.
April 23, 2009
I love books with military heroes/heroines, so this was an easy choice to pick up. I really like Harlequin's new line of books that don't have all the sex, just the romance. This was a good book with a great start and two great main characters. I started out thinking I would give it 4 stars, but toward the end the whole "angst" thing between the two was starting to get old, as the author had started it quite near the beginning. And then the end I felt she just sort of threw on because she was tired of the angst thing, too, and didn't know what else to do or hit the required limit or something. However, despite that, I still very much enjoyed the story and characters and would recommend it for someone who wants a light romance minus the sex.
September 8, 2012
I loved this story, and enjoyed the viewpoints and lifestyle of a soldier that were woven into the plot. The characters of Lexie and Pierce were presented in such a clear way that I truly felt like I knew them, and it kept me very interested in what was going to happen. It did seem like the ending went a little too quickly from one extreme of feelings to the opposite extreme, and that made it slightly less believable. A little more time might have made it seem more plausible. For that reason only it is closer to 4.5 stars, but a great, light read when that is what you are searching for.
October 6, 2009
A Christian Romance. Lexie is looking, but not very hard, for Mr Right. She isn't haveing much luck in finding someone to meet her criteria. Peirce isn't looking at all because he is an Army Ranger and feels this is where he is needed to help protect his country. Trite but has some good redeeming humor.
February 5, 2015
Good gravy!
I really enjoy reading Jillian Hart novels . . . she has such a gentle, peaceful way of writing. But with this one, she left me hanging almost until the very end. Seriously, when you want to drop-kick the hero because he's being a doofus well into the last chapter . . .
Thankfully for Pierce, he does get it right in the end.
3.5 stars
I really enjoy reading Jillian Hart novels . . . she has such a gentle, peaceful way of writing. But with this one, she left me hanging almost until the very end. Seriously, when you want to drop-kick the hero because he's being a doofus well into the last chapter . . .
Thankfully for Pierce, he does get it right in the end.
3.5 stars
December 28, 2010
The plot and character development was great. Jillian Hart is a great author who keeps you reading but I wish she didn't wrap up the ending in this one quite so quickly, I think it took away from the strength of the storyline.
July 1, 2014
The stories in the McKaslin series are cute and entertaining, but all of them have the same basic theme: one person of a would-be relationship doesn't want a relationship with the opposite sex for fear he/she will be hurt again. Of course, that is not the final word in the relationship!
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March 18, 2009this book is really awe some it is probaly the best book i've read yet
March 21, 2009
what can I say cute Christian book about trying not to fall in love.
March 31, 2009
Great! I loved this book. A quick read too.
June 7, 2009
It was the same argument going over and over. It made the book boring for me to read. The story behind the argument was good.
September 21, 2009
This is a very good book, when you get to the end, you want more. I read this book in one day, so it is very short.
May 17, 2010
A good read. I expected more, but it was cute. Probably not something I'd reread.
June 13, 2010
Good. It was about a character who appeared in A Soldier for Christmas, but it would have been nice if she had spoken to the characters from the first book at least once.
June 8, 2013
Love, love, love the McKaslins so it can only get even better when you throw in a soldier theme, mixed with modern day romance via the internet and a hero who lives life to the fullest!
June 13, 2014
A great love story.
December 25, 2014
Sweet story
I couldn't put this book down. It was a sweet story. This was my first book from this series. I plan to read other books from this series.
I couldn't put this book down. It was a sweet story. This was my first book from this series. I plan to read other books from this series.
December 8, 2015
I liked this one quite a bit. Preachy as all of these type of books are, but if you look over that it is a pretty good book.
October 5, 2012
Loved it.
Displaying 1 - 26 of 26 reviews