Heart of the Lonely Exile...Review

About the book:

In Heart of the Lonely Exile, Book Two of BJ Hoff’s acclaimed and bestselling Emerald Ballad series, readers will find heroine Nora Kavanagh struggling to build a new life for herself and her son Daniel in America. With help from a wealthy American family and friendship and support from a British gentleman, Nora nevertheless finds herself caught in a conflict of the heart.

Michael Burke, a strong, dedicated Irish policeman, desperately wants to keep his promise to his best friend Morgan Fitzgerald to marry Nora and protect her. But Nora’s instincts urge her to resist Michael’s proposal and follow her heart in a different direction… More troubling still, in the midst of her personal struggle, the heartaches from her homeland continue to plague her.

Heart of the Lonely Exile continues the saga of the Kavanagh pilgrimage—a journey of the soul in a strange new land, where all those who are exiles and aliens seek to finally find their true home.

I enjoyed this one even more than I did the first one, Song of the Silent Harp.  Nora and her family have arrived in America and as they try and build a new life for themselves, they find friendship and support, but heartache as well.

Daniel yearns to find his place in America; Michael yearns for Nora's love and acceptance of his marriage proposal; and Tierney is angry at the world.  Even fights his feelings for Nora even as Sara fights hers for Michael.  Morgan faces death as he fights for a free Ireland.  It sounds like a soap opera, but is really a beautiful story of love and friendship and faith in God.

Where Song of the Silent Harp vividly portrayed the struggle of the Irish to survive during the potato famine, Heart of the Lonely Exile shows us the plight of those immigrants who came to America with high hopes and dreams.  Here we meet those who would help these people build a new life even as we see those who would build their empires on the backs of the poor and destitute.

I think this book really sets the stage for what will happen in the next three books.  The books really should be read in order.  I couldn't put it down.  This is an enthralling, captivating series and I am looking forward to the rest.

The second of a five book series, this is a reprint of a book first published in 1991, not a new book. 

Thanks to First Wildcard and Harvest House Publishers for the opportunity to review this book.  You can learn more about BJ Hoff here.  You can read the first chapter here.  You can purchase your own copy here.

Read 9/10

* * * *
4/5 Stars

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