Thank you St. Martin’s Press and Netgalley for gifting me an E-ARC in exchange of an honest review. All opinions are my own.

I rate this book a 3.5 out of 5 Stars.

I am a military spouse, I’ve gone through deployments, trainings, the absent spouse, the PTSD. I am invested in Allison, and I can relate to almost everything she went through.

Maybe because of my ties to the Military Spouse Network, reading this book made me a bit bias. However, I think the Author did a fantastic job capturing the daily struggles, the fears, the emotions, and the crippling nature of losing someone you love.

I enjoyed her writing style, and the descriptive nature of it. I am not much of a Contemporary reader, so I find these harder to review. I think this was a quality book, and I hope to see many other readers pick it up.

I have long been a fan of Laura Trentham and her small town love stories, particularly the Cottonbloom series, which are lighthearted and sweet. With The Military Wife Trentham takes on heavier topics to do with war; loss of life, grief, and PTSD. Through Harper Lee, her 5 years old son Ben, and Ben's namesake and Noah's comrade in arms, Bennett Caldwell, Trentham also captures how grief binds people together and allows the healing process to occur. But she also shows how one is tested by this new bond and the conflict of emotions about loyalty.

Told in both past and present, the story opens with an introduction to Harper, her mother and her son Ben, 5 years after the death of her husband Noah Wilcox. Harper is wonderfully self aware and introspective. Reflecting on how she and Noah met and married, the insight she has on life as a wife in the military, and daring to explore a dream, Harper is trying to move on while respecting her memories and Ben's understanding of who his father was. When Harper finds that she needs to understand what exactly happened to Noah, she decides to approach Bennett, which sets off a series of events that drive the two closer.

Bennett is a bit of a bear, but he works his way into the lives of the Wilcox family. The chemistry between Bennet and Harper is palpable, the relationship he develops with Ben is heartwarming. Bennett and Harper find themselves at off with each other for reasons; secrets and memories of Noah conflicting with the attraction they feel for each other. Each wondering of moving n was disloyal to Noah's memory. To add to that angst, Trentham also addresses the effects of PTSD with their friends Darren and Allison She handles this with compassion and grace while addressing this all too horrifying affliction.

The Military Wife showcases Laura Tenthams' amazing capabilities as a writer. She captures and shares her characters emotions. Her writing is always impeccable making any book by her a joy to read. 4.5 Stars and recommendation.

If you enjoy a good military story put this one on the top of your list.

Women are strong and resilient people but what happens to their heart when the love of their life is taken? This is a thought provoking look into the life of a military wife and others that their men leave behind to defend the country.

Thank you to St. Martin's Griffin for the free review copy. All opinions are my own. 

I am so thankful that I got the opportunity to read this book. It deals with some hard topics that, I don't think are talked about enough. This book deals with the death of a military spouse and how moving on can be hard or seem impossible. It also tackles PTSD and the stigma that is attached to a mental diagnosis. 

I really enjoyed the character of Harper. I empathized with Harper's character. I do not read much fiction that deals with a loss of a spouse, and it opened my eyes to what people in these situations may go through. I also liked the contrast between Bennett and Darren. Both of these characters fought and were still fighting demons from their time serving in the SEALs. I liked how their struggles were similar, but they way they chose to attacked them was so different. 

I think that this book really emphasized having supports in place to help those in need. I also hope that it brings awareness to those that suffer from a mental illness and serve or have served, and it helps destigmatize mental illness.

This book was somewhat out of my normal genre. I tend to not really read anything about the military since I do not really understand it and I have only had one family member in the military and that was my Grandfather. Otherwise, I decided to just take a chance and jump on this one because it really sounded good and I am a sucker for a really good romance. I am so happy that I gave it a chance and ended up really enjoying it and the characters. It also gave me a little insight into what military wives and men go through on a regular basis and what their lives tend to be like. It was really eye opening to see the struggles of a wife trying to cope with their husband after they come back from duty or worst case scenario, not at all.

Harper met Noah when they were really young. Harper had just graduated high school and Noah had just enlisted and was leaving for boot camp. Noah could not stop thinking about Harper and the same goes for Harper. Their romance was a whirlwind and it was not long before they were married. I adored getting to see the past when they met and all the time they had spent together, even if it was just Harper’s letters to Noah.

Enter Bennett Caldwell. He is a gruff military man whom had given Harper a significant amount of money when Noah passed. Harper is determined to find out why and so she hunts him down. This is good and bad for her all the same because she gets to meet someone whom was with Noah in his final moments but bad because she starts to fall for Bennett and she is not sure if she is still over Noah.

There are lots of side characters which I can only hope will be touched upon in the next book since this is a series. I adored Harper’s friend Allison. She is one tough cookie and when her hubby starts having PTSD, she has to go through a tough time but luckily she has Harper’s help.

My favorite of all characters would have to be Harper’s mom! She is a real hoot! She is retired and is trying all kinds of interesting things during her free time. Like nude painting, and is always on Harper about finding a man. I adored her and am so hoping that I have half of her energy when I reach her age!

I am not sure if I will continue with the series but I can definitely say that this book has opened my eyes a bit and I will definitely be reading more books based off of military characters in my future!

Thank you to Netgalley & the publisher for the review copy in exchange of my honest opinion!

THE MILITARY WIFE is the story of a recently-widowed young woman, Harper, who lost her husband, Noah, a Navy SEAL, in the line of duty. The story line jumps POVs between Noah, in the past as he makes his way through SEAL training, and Harper, in the present as she struggles to figure out how to move forward with her life as a single mom.⁣
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Interwoven in this narrative is Harper’s quest to find out details about how Noah died, bringing her into contact with Bennett, a former SEAL who served with Noah. The two end up having romantic chemistry and a romantic relationship evolves.⁣
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Not only does THE MILITARY WIFE offer a romance (honestly, I wouldn’t have minded a little bit more!) but there were some very timely topics related to military personnel and mental health/suicide.⁣
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In addition, the book hit home for me as the wife of a veteran and because of my family’s connection to nearly all branches of the military across three generations, I have so much appreciation to military personnel and their families because I have seen first hand how much they sacrifice.⁣
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That being said, I did feel like the plot moved a bit slowly at times and I wish we got to see more of the chemistry between Harper and Bennett. ⁣

I enjoyed the premise of a story set around a military wife starting again. I like that a group of wives opened a coffeehouse, everyone loves coffeehouses. I wasn't crazy about the alternating of past and present which I think detracts from the pace and flow of the present story. While there are definitely moments that are touching and poignant, I didn't feel the connection between characters that I would've liked and ultimately felt it was a little predictable

4 Stars!

I was pulled right into this story. The story has laughs, secrets, pain, grief, and heartbreak.

This is Harper and Bennett‘s story. Harper lost her husband 5 years ago and she has been focused on raising their son but lately she has become more and more restless. Harper has a dream of opening coffee houses around military bases around the country and with the help of her friends and military wives she just might have that dream come true. Her friend Allison need support also as she struggles with helping her husband through a difficult time. Can these two help each other through the pain of there lives while also helping others? During her journey she also crosses paths with Bennett her husband’s best friend and former seal brother. As they grow closer, she wonders if she can build a future with someone she might lose like her husband. Can she let go of her grief and move on or will she continue to live in the past?

I felt I could connect with the characters and the story was a great read.

I recommend this book.

While I have read other books from Laura Trentham and love her other novels, this one also blew me away. This is the first military themed book that I have read from this author, and I am so glad I gave it a chance. For me, military romances are hit or miss, as I don't always relate to what they go through, not having lived with the experiences. The story was real with raw emotion, making me laugh, cry, and feel right along with the Harper, Ben and the whole cast of characters along the way. While I don't know first hand what it feels like to be a military widow or retired military, this book was so beautifully written even with just a small glimpse at what military life is like. The author does a great job in giving the reader background of the main characters, and at how events and people in their lives really shape who they are and who they will become. I had a really hard time putting this book down, and cannot wait to read more from this author in the future, despite the tears I cried while reading this book.

I received an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

THE MILITARY WIFE
(A Heart of a Hero: #1)
Written by Laura Trentham
2019; St. Martin's Griffin (352 pages)
Genre: fiction, contemporary, romance, military family, small town

RATING: 2 STARS (DNF @52%)

I am a huge fan of Laura Trentham's Cottonbloom series so I was excited to see she had a new series about Military families. I was having a hard time getting into the story, I stopped and started a few times before I finally gave up at 52% of the novel. Yes, romance novels are predictable but I love that as when I want to read a romance I am looking for a happy ending. While the ending is the same the journey that gets us there is what keeps us reading. I found that this story line has been done before and I was finding myself not really caring to see how we get to the end. I couldn't get into the characters and didn't feel the pull to lose myself in the story. This does not put me off reading more Trentham's novels at all, I just won't be reading this series. If I cannot finish book one, I can't really continue the series unless I hear really good things about book two.

***I received an eARC from the AUTHOR/PUBLISHER via NETGALLEY***

Harper is still mourning her husband after five years, however when another military family is having problems she steps in. This is the awakening she needs to do more to help others in these situations. She not only finds purpose but love.

I enjoyed this book it was heartfelt.



** I received a copy of this book in exchange for a honest review**

I am currently purchasing books for our secondary school library for our senior students. I am trying to provide a balance of genres and periods and really try and introduce them to a wide range of modern fiction. This book would definitely go down well with a hypercritical teenage audience as it has a bit of everything - great characterisation and a narrative style that draws you in and keeps you reading whilst also making you think about a wide range of issues at the same time. I think that school libraries are definitely changing and that the book we purchase should provide for all tastes and reflect the types of books that the students and staff go on to enjoy after leaving school. The Military Wife is the kind of book that you can curl up with and totally immerse yourself in and I think it will definitely go down well at my school. I think that it was the perfect blend of page-turning fiction with a strong message about love, the effects of PTSD and what family means. I think it would be a big hit with our seniors and will definitely recommend that we buy a copy as soon as we can.

The Military Wife is a touching story about a military wife who has to learn to deal with loss and then find the courage to open herself up to the possibility of another love and a happy future. Harper Lee Wilcox was an interesting character with the courage to make a life for herself and her son after the death of her husband. She doesn't expect for love to come again in the form of her late husband's former best friend, Bennett Caldwell. The story of these two as their feelings develop and they try to come to terms with them is a good one, and I loved both Harper and Bennett. There were some secondary characters who struggled with some tough issues as well, and I liked and rooted for them. Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for providing a copy of the book in return for an honest review.

Underneath the romance aspect of the story was a story of strength, unity, and the struggles of living the life of a "military wife". This element really carried this story and it kept me flipping the pages. Harper is a military widow looking for a purpose in life after her husband, Noah, was killed while he was deployed. Left with a son, Harper moves back home to grieve and to start life anew. Fast forward five years later and Harper is going through the motions with life, an unsatisfying job, and a non-existent love life. Answering a distress call from a friend living on the military base, Harper visits her old neighborhood where Noah and she shared before his life was tragically cut short. While visiting her old friend, Harper becomes curious about the guy that gave her a huge check at Noah's funeral saying that it was for a "brave award". She goes out on a mission to find Bennett, Noah's Seal partner and best friend, to confront him about this huge amount of money. Sparks fly when they finally meet face to face for the first time.

This book took me through different emotions and some were good while some were not so good. First off, this book goes back and forth between the present and the past and I liked that view point of the story. It allowed me to see how relationships were formed between Noah and Harper and also Noah and Bennett. I almost wished that Noah never died because he was a very likable character and he and Harper had such amazing chemistry. Their young love was so cute and fresh. This story carries us through the maturity of Harper and the progress of Noah in the Navy Seal through the eyes of Bennett. Bennett was solemn character with a tragic upbringing and a man that was in love with his best friend's wife. He had all of the characteristics of a military lead in a story such as loneliness, broodiness, and toughness. Overall I liked Bennett and the author did a great job with the development of his character.


Looking for a way to help out her fellow military wives, she decides to venture into the coffee business with the assistance of Bennett. This is what I loved about Harper, she was compassionate, strong, and ambitious. The compassion and love that surrounds this group was beautiful and it really brought living within the military base to the forefront.

In contrast, this story was missing that emotional connection that I craved. I have to admit that the relationship between Bennett and Harper sort of put me off. He was vying for Harper when Noah was alive before he even met her and I didn't like that part of the story. I loved the progression of Bennett's and Noah's friendship and I loved the intense, emotional scene of Noah's last breath. This scene alone saved this book and I loved all of the characters in the story.

This book was well written, but as I said before, the emotional connection to the book was not there. I still recommend this book because it has a powerful message and the author does a great job with bringing life in the Military through the pages.

Having read - and thoroughly enjoyed - all of Laura Trentham’s Cottonbloom series, I was equal parts excited and nervous to read this new book, which was labeled Women’s Fiction instead of her usual Contemporary Romance. But the mark of a good author is when they write something different from their usual genre, and the result is brilliant. And devastating. The Military Wife is a poignant and heart-rending story about moving on after heartbreak.

Harper Wilcox endured the devastating loss of her Navy SEAL husband shortly before giving birth to their son. She’s managed a good life, but it’s not anywhere close to what she thought it was going to be. Still, she has her precious son, and the support of her retired librarian mother.

When she gets wind that things may not be going well for her best friend, Allison, back at the base where her husband was formerly stationed, Harper makes a visit to see how she can help. When she gets there, she discovers Allison’s husband Darren is suffering terribly from PTSD, and during a support group meeting she meets several women who express struggles she remembers having when she was a new military wife.

From there, a plan is hatched. But first she needs to find out the exact source of money she received shortly after Noah’s death. Which leads her to Bennett Caldwell, Noah’s closest friend and SEAL brother.

Bennett isn’t happy to see Harper. The grief and guilt he harbors over Noah’s death is still deep five years later, and he’s not willing to unload his burdens onto Harper for the sake of filling in the missing pieces to the story of Noah’s death. But he is willing to help with her new business venture, and to help his SEAL brother Darren (at Harper’s request) get the assistance he needs to heal.

This book made me cry and made me laugh. Harper is resilient despite her profound heartbreak. And when she sees her friend hurting, she’s determined to bolster Allison the same way Allison supported her during her time of loss. Meeting Bennett and falling in love with him is an unexpected bonus, born out of her desire to help her fellow military wives help themselves.

The writing in this book is amazing. I love the characters, I love the story, I love the execution of the story. Told in alternating present and past chapters (which is a storytelling device that seldom works for me), we get a complete story that flowed seamlessly between the two time periods. The chapters about the past were used to show us how Harper and Noah met, fell in love, and sustained a relationship even though they spent so much time apart. The present chapters were about Harper, Allison and Darren, Bennett, and how they are dealing with their heartbreak - that in the past, and what is occurring now. I loved that the present chapters weren’t used to hint at things from the past, nor was the past used to foreshadow the present. I loved how even though Bennett isn’t forthcoming about the details surrounding Noah’s death and the promise he made, that fact isn’t harped on relentlessly. I loved how even though a relationship between Harper and Bennett could have been rife with drama and angst, it wasn’t (no going on and on how he couldn’t be with the wife of his dead friend, or how she couldn’t be with her dead husband’s best friend - hooray!). These were hurting characters, but they were mature and responsible, and real. I could feel their pain. Allison’s despondency over not knowing how to help her husband, and needing to protect her children, almost crushed me.

It’s been a long while since I felt so much while reading a story. I would say Ms. Trentham’s foray into women’s fiction is a resounding success. And I can’t wait to read more in this series!

* thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review

Five years earlier, Harper Wilcox’s world collapsed when two Navy chaplains came to notify her of her husband Noah’s death. Harper, who was pregnant at the time, knew that Noah’s career as a Navy SEAL was dangerous, but she never really expected to be raising their son Ben by herself. With the help and support of her mother, Gail, Harper was looking for a fulfilling career, one she discovered through the wisdom of fellow military wives and the unconditional love of a good man.

I really enjoyed Harper’s journey from lonely and drifting focused and purposeful, and her loyalty to her friends and family is admirable. I always love reading about strong women, and Harper and her friend Allison are great examples of that. Allison’s husband Darren and Noah’s best friend Bennett, both fighting their own demons, demonstrate our country’s need for more accessible help for our veterans. I’m glad this is the first in a series, and I’ll be eagerly awaiting the next installment.

The blurb on this got me because it sounded like a tortured love story. And it was, but there wasn’t enough of it. I would have liked to have seen more of Bennett’s hesitation over getting in to a relationship with Harper.

The heroine is an accountant but we never see her actually work. She lives in Nags Head, NC and travels a lot to Virginia Beach and Fort Bragg, but this is never an issue with her job. These are things I notice when I am not fully invested in the story.

The biggest issue was that Harper is not like other girls. She is deemed so by her deceased husband, Noah, early on in the book. Bennett obviously thinks so as well. This is one of my least favorite things in romance. We don’t have to tear other women down in order to make the heroine shine. It doesn't work that way. 7 of the 8 highlights I noted were about this. I only stuck through with this book because I really, really wanted to know how the author would let the tortured/unrequited love play out. It missed the mark for me.

The Military Wife, the first book Laura Trentham's Heart of a Hero series is an intense, thought-provoking, emotional story about second chances in life and love that revolves around military families.

Harper Lee Wilcox is a military widow whose Navy Seal husband, Noah, died during a mission. Harper had given up a promising career to follow Noah into military life and is now a single mother, raising her five-year-old son and living with her mother. Her life has been on hold since her husband died, and she's ready to start a new chapter of her life.

Bennett Caldwell was a Navy Seal and comrade-in-arms with Harper's husband. A former foster kid, the Navy became his life. He met Noah during Seal training, and a brotherly bond was formed. When Noah learned he was going to be a father, he had made Bennett promise to look after Harper and the baby if anything happened to him.

When Bennett tries to fulfill his promise by giving Harper money under the guise of a "bravery award", everything comes full circle. Harper bulldozes into Bennett's life, and they give each other the impetus to move forward with a healing relationship and work together to change their lives and the lives of other military families.

Trentham has introduced a wonderful cast of characters to start this series and also skillfully explores the issue of PTSD in military members who return home after tours of duty overseas. I definitely look forward to reading more books in the series.

I received a copy from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

With The Military Wife, Laura Trentham introduces her new Heart of a Hero Series. This book really showcases her talent for writing compelling characters and a wonderful story. It is without a doubt one of the most exquisitely beautiful, utterly heart wrenching military romances I have ever read. It is an inspirational story about love, friendship and loss, hope and healing, admirable courage and sacrifice.

The heroine, Harper, is an awesome and strong character. She is a military wife and her husband, Noah, was killed during a raid in Afghanistan. She has dealt with the tragedy with courage and is trying to rebuild her life with her young son, Ben. Bennett was Noah’s best friend and fellow Navy SEAL. He is a true hero, humble, strong and determined. He has taken risks and paid a personal price to protect others. Underneath his hard shell exterior, he is hurting from the pain of personal tragedies that run soul deep. Noah’s death has left him feeling guilty and inadequate.

Harper and Bennett are wonderful characters trying to deal with the hands they have been dealt while figuring out how they can build a relationship.

I loved this couple and their interactions together. They had chemistry but their emotional connection was what made their love so much stronger.

With each new release, I’m even more impressed by this amazing writer’s attention to details and ability to weave beautiful stories, full of heart and authenticity. Since I discovered her books, she has become one of my all-time favorite authors. Highly recommended!

I really enjoyed "The Military Wife." The characters were well-developed and sympathetic, and I found it easy to root for them as they faced up to their struggles and tried to create new lives for themselves in the wake of tragedy. As someone with several friends and family members in the military (or with spouses in the military), I applaud the author's efforts to highlight the difficulties these families face, especially the impact of PTSD not just on the soldier, but the entire family. Also, the difficulties military spouses face in finding jobs is very real. The increase in telework and home-based business has helped a lot in this regard, but it was nice to see another idea presented for how military spouses may contribute if they wish to work outside the home.

As far as the romance between Harper and Bennett, I really appreciated the realistic conflict they faced in coming to terms with the "ghost" of Noah between them. I also very much appreciated the fact that the author didn't feel the need to tear Noah down in order to make Bennett look better by comparison. (I've read too many books lately where a "big secret" was revealed about the deceased spouse that suddenly made them seem like a terrible person, especially in comparison with the prospective new spouse.) It's possible to love more than one person over the course of a lifetime, and my personal belief is that a truly loving spouse would want his or her partner to be happy after they're gone. I think Noah would have been glad to know that Harper and Bennett found each other, and that his son has a loving stepfather who will make sure that he grows up to be an honorable man like his father.

I look forward to the next book in this series!

*ARC provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.