Genre: Christian / Historical / Frontier Romance
Publisher: Bethany House
Date of Publication: June 6, 2017
Number of Pages: 336
Grace Mallory is tired of running, of hiding. But when an old friend sends an after-hours telegraph transmission warning Grace that the man who has hunted her for nearly a year has discovered her location, she fears she has no choice. She can't let the villain she believes responsible for her father's death release his wrath in Harper's Station, the town that has sheltered her and blessed her with the dearest friends she's ever known. Amos Bledsoe prefers bicycles to horses and private conversations over the telegraph wire to social gatherings with young ladies who see him as nothing more than an oddity. His telegraph companion, the mysterious Miss G, listens eagerly to his ramblings every night and delights him with tales all her own. For months, their friendship--dare he believe, courtship?--has fed his hope that he has finally found the woman God intended for him. Yet when he takes the next step to meet her in person, he discovers her life is in peril, and Amos must decide if he can shed the cocoon of his quiet nature to become the hero Grace requires.
The telegraph aspect in Heart on the Line is adorable. Even though the flirting over the telegraph line only took place at the beginning, the author cleverly intertwined it and used it throughout as they tapped messages to each other on jail cell bars, walls, and even while in an embrace on each other. Amos was charming and fascinating. He might have started off as a self-doubting, shy telegraph officer that came off as a bit of a nerd, but he stepped up his game for the woman he loved. He evolved into this man ready to lay down his life to protect his woman. He grew confidence and even a little bit of suave, which was fun to witness the transformation. Heart of the Line was enduring and engaging. It was filled with action and adventure surrounded my courageous people ready to step up and fight. The mystery to figure out which one among the town was really a wolf dressed in sheep's clothing was alluring. As the town realized even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light. There was a point in the story where a pecan grove and a man were introduced and at first I didn't really understand and was confused by the break in the story, but as it kept skipping back to that development I might have fallen in love with the side story just as much if not more than the main one. It took a while to even connect who he was because just like Helen being as stubborn as she was, he was "the man who had made her mind go soft". I got so wrapped up in his backstory and the remoteness of their situation; I forgot that the encounter might just connect to the events around town. Heart on the Line alluded multiple times to the previous book as it referenced how Emma, the woman in charge of the town became who she was, why she was so strong, and who this first man was in a woman's colony. I would recommend reading the first book in the series No Other Will Do before reading this one. I had to go back and reread my review to make sure I was picking up all the references dropped and understood them. You can find my review of No Other Will Do here: REVIEW (previous blog) There were more religious references than the first in the series and faith became a profound piece of this story. There was doubt, worry, fear, distrust, threats and love that were all brought to God with powerful messages attached. I thought the most powerful message was Helen's self-discovery as she realized to give all control of her situation to God. She quoted "If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me. For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: and whosoever will lose his life for my sake shall find it." It was relatable and commanding.
