Though My Heart is Torn by Joanne Bischof

Read an excerpt here.

Gideon O’Riley has two wives—but he doesn’t know it.
Settling into a simple life in the majestic Blue Ridge mountains, Lonnie and Gideon O’Riley have finally found happiness after the rocky start to their marriage. The roguish bluegrass musician has fallen in love with his gentle wife and the God she serves, and Lonnie rests secure in his tenderness for her and their young son. A heartless ruse interupts their peace, bringing them back to Rocky Knob—and forces them to face the claims of Cassie Allan, a woman who says she is Gideon’s rightful wife.

As Gideon wades into the depths of his past choices, Lonnie is stunned by the revelations. She has no choice but to navigate this new path, knowing that surviving the devastating blow will take every ounce of strength  she has.

While Gideon’s guilt  and his bitterness towards Cassie threatens to burn up his fledgling faith, Lonnie wrestles to find the courage to trust the God who brought them together in the first place. Will their hard-earned love be able to conquer all?

Lonnie only wanted her husband’s love. Now that he belongs to another, can she surrender Gideon to a God with a bigger plan?

Though My Heart is Torn by Joanne Bischof is the sequel to her first book, Be Still My Soul. It was an interesting story filled with suspense, romance, heartbreak, and forgiveness. The story is totally unexpected from the beautiful end of the first novel, and I found myself drawn into the sadness and despair of this book as it was displayed with heart-wrenching clarity. The themes of this book were clear and applicable as many people faces times in their lives where they feel abandoned and have had their lives torn apart. Joanne Bischof does a great job pointing people, through her characters, to the importance of trusting God and leaning on Him for support and love. The story is told from the perspective of Lonnie, Cassie, and Gideon in turn.

The characters of Lonnie, Gideon, Cassie, and another new face are realistic and developed well. New characteristics that Lonnie and Gideon have are discovered by the reader as both of them have to deal with Gideon's past returning to haunt him. Cassie starts out as a seemingly arrogant and selfish woman, but as she observes Gideon's unfailing love to Lonnie in the midst of separation and tragedy, her heart and attitude are softened. Gideon also experiences a softening in his heart as he realizes what he is called to do and the forgiveness he needs to give and receive because of his past mistakes.

Overall, I found Though My Heart is Torn to be an excellent, heart-wrenching novel that left me wanting the next book in the Cadence of Grace series to be out already so I could discover what happens next. I would highly recommend this series to anyone looking for a touching yet spiritually and emotionally realistic set of novels.

I received this book for free from Waterbrook Multnomah Press in exchange for an honest review.