A Life Once Dreamed

Fordham (Yours Truly, Thomas) delivers another winning inspirational romance in this lavishly detailed tale set in the Wild West. In 1880, 24-year-old Aggie Pratt builds a life as a schoolteacher in the town of Penance, within the Dakota Territory, after fleeing her well-to-do family in Buffalo, N.Y., six years earlier, when she learned she is actually the illegitimate child of her mother’s sister and was adopted by her parents. Despite being ill-prepared for life on the frontier, Aggie grows into a strong, independent woman. Then a new doctor comes to Penance, and it turns out he is James Harris, Aggie’s childhood friend and lifelong love whose interest in marrying Aggie inspired her parents’ confession. Upon his arrival, Aggie’s friends try their hands at matchmaking, and Aggie’s inner turmoil slowly fades as James defies expectations by accepting her. Their shared faith and the friendships they develop become the loving community Aggie worried she would never find. This sweet tale of frontier romance will appeal to fans of Tracie Peterson. (Aug.)