A Lily Blooms (Cutter's Creek #4)

Years ago, Lillian’s heart broke (very publicly!) when the man of her dreams, James Cahil, got married. Just as the town is finally forgetting Lillian’s outburst at his wedding, James is back.  He's divorced and determined to uncover what Lillian noticed about his ex that caused her to object in the middle of the wedding. With Lillian’s mother forbidding her from causing the family further scandal by associating with James, Lillian finds herself torn between her renewed attraction to James and being a filial daughter. Now James is in pursuit and her mother is falling apart, making Lillian’s faith the only thing keeping her going.  But does honoring her parents mean complete obedience, or is it time to step out of the shadows and join the community again?

The fourth book in the “Cutter’s Creek” series, “A Lily Blooms” is a short but sweet standalone novel. An interesting take on a western historical romance, James is divorced and Lillian is haunted by the scandal of interfering with his wedding. The conflict is focused on Lillian’s tug of wills with her mother, who is sensitively portrayed as being increasingly mentally unstable. However, Lillian and James lack any significant characteristics or character development to make them stand out. This lack keeps the story from being either truly gripping or spiritually up-lifting. Still, the conflict premise is unique for this genre and the story does have some nice spiritual and romantic moments. A good choice for fans of Christian historical romance.

Sarah E. Bradley