About the Book

Book: Return to the Wilderness

Author: Andrea Byrd

Genre: Christian Historical Romance

Release date: October 22, 2024

Two outcasts. One marriage of convenience. A love story forged in the fires of adversity.

Muireall Blair has finally found a comfortable life at Fort Harrod—until she experiences a recurring nightmare that warns of impending doom for her sister. Unable to shake the weight of foreboding, Muireall cannot sit idle anymore and risk the dream becoming a reality. With her near-sightedness a closely guarded secret, she seeks the help of Jude, a man with his own hidden past, to reach her sister.

Jude Browne has been gifted with a life of fighting for survival, not one of finding acceptance. Half-blinded as a youth, the scars across his face and the knowledge of his illegitimate birth serve as a reminder of his worthlessness. However, when his mother falls ill, she finally lays bare all the secrets she has kept all his life. Secrets that point to his one chance of finding who he truly is.

Jude and Muireall soon realize that a marriage of convenience is the key to reaching Pitman Station safely. But when their secrets unravel and danger closes in, will they succumb to the shadows of their pasts, or will they find the strength to forge a new future together?

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My Thoughts:

Muireall and Jude both need to travel to the wilderness. Muireall to meet up with her sister and Jude to find his father. However, to travel together, they must marry. In this marriage of convenience story, both the bride and the groom have some secrets they are keeping from one another.

I really enjoyed this story of virtually two strangers starting out on a dangerous trek, supporting one another, and eventually falling in love. That is after they deal with the secrets each of them has and the dangers that seem to keep finding them. I also found this book to be about forgiveness. Especially since I was quite shocked how both reacted to the secrets.

This was a page turner as I was so hoping for a happily ever after for these two.

I was provided a copy of this novel from the publisher. I was not required to post a positive review, and all views and opinions are my own.

About the Author

Andrea Byrd is a Christian wife and mom located in rural Kentucky, who loves to spend time with her family in the great outdoors, one with nature. Often described as having been born outside her time, she has a deep affinity for an old-fashioned, natural lifestyle.

With a degree in Equine Health & Rehabilitation gathering dust and a full-time job tethering her to a desk eight hours a day, Andrea decided it was time to show both herself and her children that it is truly possible to make your dreams come true. Now with over 1,000 contemporary Christian romance novellas sold, Andrea is pursuing her passion of writing faith-filled romance woven with a thread of true history.

More from Andrea

I love to read books that have historical facts, especially little-known ones, woven into their pages. Within my books, I strive to do the same and Return to the Wilderness is no exception.

This book comes in after the unrest of what some call the “Indian Wars,” in Kentucky. During that time, attacks by the native were frequent and brutal. Many of the Station Masters and long hunters in the area lost family members. If you read, Rescue in the Wilderness, you have seen a glimpse of this time and how devastating it could be.

Due to these attacks, stations and settlements were often abandoned. Sometimes the families returned after this time period came to an end and sometimes the buildings were simply left to deteriorate and become shells of a past time. I do not want to give any spoilers, but if you decide to read Return to the Wilderness, you will find out just how this little piece of history impacts the main character, Muireall (the sister from Redemption in the Wilderness).