Garden of Her Heart (Hearts of the War Book 1)
by Shanna Hatfield
Ms. Hatfield gives us a touching read of strength, fear,
courage, evil, hate of one race (I am not sure we have come too far from that
day still), love, hopes and dreams in this sweet clean read. I really love how
she wove the history into this read taking us back to a time when war was the
first word anyone said. The author
really brings home the injustices done to the American-Japanese
in World War II. I loved how she
entwined the romance with a war hero. Her details are so vivid you can almost
see the little rooms that housed them when they were taken from their homes.
This is a touching romance that was a
joy to watch bloom into love. I enjoyed the clean read with wonderful
characters. There is a little boy here Petey that will steal your
heart with his quick words and his strength. He had me laughing at times with
his cute wording.
It really broke my heart at how bad Mimi
was treated but fear brings the worse out of most of us. Rock sure is name correct
he is a rock that any women would be proud to lean on. I found this to be a
good realistic read that is very believable and could really have happen. The supporting characters were great giving
lots of support. When you come to the end you will still have a few questions
but the author follows up answering all your question from the illness to the
death. I was feeling a little loss until I read on. I feel that should have
been covered in the story but it was nice to see the answers. As always she gives
a wonderful recipe at the end I can’t wait to try.
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Summary
The moment the Japanese bombed Pearl
Harbor, life shifted for Miko Nishimura. Desperate to reach the Portland
Assembly Center for Japanese Americans, she’s kicked off the bus miles from
town. Every tick of the clock pushes her closer to becoming a fugitive in the
land of her birth. Exhausted, she stumbles to her grandparents’ abandoned farm
only to find a dying soldier sprawled across the step. Unable to leave him, she
forsakes all else to keep him alive.
After crashing his plane in the
Battle of the Atlantic, the doctors condemn Captain Rock Laroux to die.
Determined to meet his maker beneath a blue sky at his family home, he sneaks
out of the hospital. Weary and half out of his mind, he makes it as far as a
produce stand he remembers from his youth. Rather than surrender to death, Rock
fights a battle of the heart as he falls in love with the beautiful Japanese
woman who saves his life.
A poignant, sweet romance, Garden of
Her Heart proves love can bloom in unlikely places even under the most
challenging circumstances.
Don't miss out on this beautiful
happy ever after. Get your copy today!
Excerpt:
Miko came to her senses as she reached a road she recognized in the predawn light. It led to a farm owned by one of her grandparents’ neighbors. If she cut through their pasture, it would save her a few miles of walking.
Excerpt:
Miko came to her senses as she reached a road she recognized in the predawn light. It led to a farm owned by one of her grandparents’ neighbors. If she cut through their pasture, it would save her a few miles of walking.
She pushed down the wires of the
fence and stepped over it, then reached back for her suitcase. The barbed wire
caught her coat. Miko jerked it away from the snag and rolled her eyes in
frustration when the fabric ripped.
Anger fueled her steps. Indignation
lent her spent body strength as she hurried across the pasture.
Relieved when she reached the far
end of the pasture, she hurried over the fence and along the edge of the trees
that circled the vast acres her grandparents owned.
The first fingers of dawn stretched
across the drab sky as she stepped from the trees and swallowed back a sob at
the sight of her grandparents’ produce stand. As long as Miko could remember,
her family had sold produce from the red-painted structure filled with shelves
and bins to hold every type of vegetable and fruit the fertile soil would grow.
A hundred yards behind the produce
stand, a white picket fence surrounded the cheery yellow bungalow home her
grandparents had built in the mid-1920s. A wide porch and a plethora of flowers
surrounding all four sides made the house appear welcoming.
With a prayer to find her family
waiting inside for her, she raced up the front steps of the porch and tried the
door. The knob rattled but didn’t turn, locked from the inside. Miko set down
her suitcase and rushed around to the back door. In her haste, she tripped over
the body of a man as he sprawled across the back step.
Unconscious, the uniformed soldier
shuddered against the chill in the air, his clothes every bit as wet as hers.
At least his jerky tremors assured her he wasn’t dead.
Panicked, she pounded on the door.
“It’s Miko! Open the door! Please!” Fist banging against the wood, she called
out to her grandparents, willing them to be there.
All remained eerily silent in the
house. Single-minded in her efforts to enter the dwelling, Miko stepped over
the man and lifted a brick from the border edging the flowerbed.
