Beyond the Desert Sands
by Tracie Peterson
Pub Date 05 Jul 2022
Bethany House,Bethany House Publishers
Christian| Historical Fiction


Netgalley and Bethany House Publishers provided me with a copy of Beyond the Desert Sands in exchange for my review:


Will she find peace with herself?


The last thing twenty-five-year-old Isabella Garcia wants is to celebrate Christmas in her parents' small silver-mining desert town, far from her handsome beau, Diego Morales. Moreover, she must bear the company of Aaron Bailey, the disapproving Santa Fe Railroad businessman her father has sent to escort her home.



But she is surprised by how much Silver Veil has grown and how fragile her father's health has become. One day, a surprise visitor shows up with news that completely upends her comfortable life.


She struggles to decide who she wants to be in the face of all these changes. Trouble is brewing, and some hope she stays as she is, even if it costs everything.


I give Beyond the Desert Sands five out of five stars!


Happy Reading!

Beyond the Desert Sands is the second book in Tracie Peterson’s historical romance series Love on the Sante Fe.

This is an enemies-to-lovers romance and the tension between the two main characters was excellent. I also liked how they both realized the other had good points in their arguments. And I'm glad the ending worked out as it did. I won’t give spoilers, but I couldn't wait to see how it all worked out!

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I received a complimentary copy of this book.
I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with FTC guidelines.

Spoiled Isabella chafes at her parents' guidance. As a 20-something, she relocates back to her original family home, in California, with her spinster aunt. When the aunt dies, Isabella must return to her parents and sort out what comes next.
Isabella's father, Daniel Garcia, founded the town, a mining town, where they live and serve as founders and mentors. He has run it with benevolence, but he needs someone to take over the businesses and keep the spirit of the town alive. He has found it in Aaron Bailey, though Aaron works for the Santa Fe railroad. Their paths crossed years ago and Daniel found a kindred spirit in Aaron. Plus, he knows that Daniel would run with God-led plans. Aaron, though, is less inclined to give up his career path with the Santa Fe.

Due to the many books that I have started and not finished lately due to the unrealistic, cliche or unoriginal, or lacking a faith base in a book from a Christian author or publisher. I've found too many and am just leaving this book as a did not finish due to my not getting into the book... I have previously really enjoyed Tracie Peterson's books very, very much, she has been a favorite historical fiction author of myself and one of my sisters, however. This one and other more recent releases however have been repetitive and I haven't really gotten into them due to the fact that they seem like they were pieced together from her former works.

I really enjoyed the second book of this series.
Isabella was a real brat at the beginning but through forgiveness of herself and others, she became a good person. I enjoyed the interaction between her and Aaron and the love story of her parents.
You can always count on a good read with Tracie Peterson.

This is another wonderfully written and thoroughly researched novel penned by Ms. Peterson. I have loved her work for quite some time, she never disappoints as far as I am concerned, she keeps getting better. This is the second book in her Love on the Santa Fe series and is just as good as the first book, which you should also read.

I loved the story of Isabella Garcia, she is a bit headstrong, so that can be good, but can have consequences, too. I enjoyed visiting the small mining town and getting to know the Garcia family at he same time.
I received a copy from the publisher through Netgalley. Opinions are my own.

Beyond the Desert Sands, by Tracie Peterson, is book two in her Love on the Santa Fe series. Fans of Tracie will enjoy this book. The story focuses on a young lady who I had a difficult time liking at first. She was deceived by romantic notions that overshadowed reality of a life that truly blessed her.

From the start, when she reluctantly left California to join her parents, she was resentful, spoiled and deceived by romantic notions of love. Her deceptions clouded her judgment about her parents and a young man who would be there through thick and thin for her and her family. This young woman had so much to learn that I had hoped that she would come to see Diego for the person he was and that she would see how much her parents truly loved her.

I recommend this book to all fans of Tracie Peterson and to all the new readers who may have heard of Tracie but have yet to pick up a copy of her books.

Beyond The Deset Sands is the second book in the Love on the Santa Fe series. Being that I just finished the first in the series yesterday I just read this whole book today, it was just that good. I was ready to read the third and complete the series and was VERY disappointed that the publisher denied my request for it :(
The author's books are so well researched it's obvious she puts a lot of time and effort into it.
I lived in Yuma, Arizona and Chino Valley, Arizona for some time and being that this takes place in NM which has a similar setting to those areas I could vividly visualize the descriptions.
Returning home after spending time with her aunt who lives in opulence in California and which Isabella Garcia has become accustomed to this lifestyle, she returns to spend Christmas time in the silver-mining desert town of Silver Veil. She has to leave behind her beau Diego Morales whom she desperately misses. There are rumors of his wild past life he's lived illegitimate children, debts he's run up and more. Isabella dismisses it as sowing his wild oats and believes he's matured and chalks it all up to just rumors from those who don't like him. Blindly in love she sees him through a child's eyes of blind devotion. When she starts to take another look at him after being warned by a upstanding man who has admired her for a long time that she had just blown off, her eyes become opened to the truth. With her father gravely ill how can she hope to have a relationship with this upstanding man who wants only her safety and the best for her. There is a surprise in this one that I just hadn't seen coming. Change is inevitable but Isabella has important decisions to make concerning her future. Important faith elements. I loved this book. Highly recommended.

Pub Date 05 Jul 2022
I was given a complimentary copy of this book.
All opinions expressed are my own.

A willful young woman gets the life she wanted to live in wealth and privilege back in California with her aunt and far from the desert and mining town her parents have settled in, but now after years her father has called her back escorted by an impossible man who forces her to see herself through another lens. A new to me author, but an exciting time period in the historical American southwest had me eagerly giving this one a go.

Beyond the Desert Sands is the second book in a series. I was unaware of this until later and had no trouble reading it out of order. It’s definitely a standalone story that seems to just share the same time period and setting of the Santa Fe Railroad.

Isabella Garcia is a spoiled and pampered rich young girl when the book opens. She throws a hissy fit and keeps wearing down her father to let her leave the silver mining town to return to her easy life, friends, and the family home back in Los Angeles. She is ornery and disrespectful and can’t see any other perspective. At the age of twenty-five, she is still the same, but has been fawned over by others and even courted by a charming man from good family who has reasons other than love for cultivating her infatuation. It was difficult to read the first half of the book because she is rather detestable and I really wanted to reach through the words to smack her in the back of the head (and maybe everyone else who allowed her to get this way without checking her attitude and behavior).
But, there is Aaron who works for the Santa Fe Railroad and is a friend of Isabella’s father. He agrees to escort his friend’s daughter to him. She is a beauty, but her ugly attitude toward him, her parents, and anything not of Los Angeles turns him off her and he has no compunction stating what he thinks of her rotten attitude. I thought it was hilarious during their first meeting when she tries to fling her wealthy class at him and he tells her that his family could buy her family and not feel a pinch. He is part of helping her get her head on right and develops feelings for her as she changes over the course of the story. Aaron kept me reading through the first half as well as the southwest backdrop and the mining town and railroad historical elements.

There are strong inspirational themes of redemption and forgiveness. Aaron is a Christian and part of the reason Isabella’s turned around is her new beliefs. Her parents had belief, but that made me scratch my head as to why they and Isabella’s aunt whom she lived with in LA let her behavior get so atrocious when she was still younger. But, I definitely liked seeing the changes in her and the way she started to care for family and for the Silver Veil community. She really stepped up. I’m not a better person because I wanted more comeuppance for the villains than they got.

The romance was slow burn and background because of all the other matters going on including Isabella being infatuated with a charming wastrel for a good part of the book. I thought they had a good spark between them even when Isabella and Aaron were antagonistic, but I did love seeing them partnering and coming to care for each other.

All in all, I thought this sampling of new to me author and series went well. I could see how the author gave good attention to the historical backdrop and her characters so I would definitely pick up another of her books. The audience recommended to is definitely sweet historical romance and inspirational fiction fans.

This is a beautiful story of maturity, strength, love, and redemption. Isabella and Aaron make an unlikely yet perfect match. It was hard at first to relate to Isabella as she seemed spoiled and immature, but her character developed wonderfully throughout the story. I really liked Aaron and his faith and trust in God. I really enjoyed this read.

Tracie Peterson is one of my favorite Christian authors and I read everything by her as soon as new books get published. I really enjoyed Beyond the Desert Sands. Isabella was a little hard to like at first but she truly transformed into a sweet young lady. Aaron was such a hard worker and respected Isabella's dad so much. Another great installment in her Love on the Sante Fe series.

Thank you Netgalley for the opportunity to read and review. All opinions are my own.

Published 5 July 2022

Beyond the Desert Sands is book two in the Love on the Santa Fe series by Traci Peterson. This is a Christian romance set in 1911 in New Mexico. As a young child, Isabella’s parents moved the family to a small mining town. As a young lady, she pushes her parents to allow her to move to her aunts in California. When her parents have her come to them for Christmas she is not happy to leave her aunt’s home, her friends, activities or her boyfriend.

This is a nicely written story that shows the importance of communication. Had Isabella’s parents explained the true situation to her, her life would have been different. She would have know the importance of the move. This is a story of forgiveness, second chances and having faith. I especially enjoyed the part of the story when Isabella was told the truth. I can appreciate how she felt about the time that was lost. I enjoyed the questions raised about her boyfriend and how his father responded to them.

I voluntarily received a complimentary copy of this book, this is my honest review.

Tracie Peterson is one of my go-to authors. In her latest release the historical romance, Beyond the Desert Sands, I must be honest and say it took me several chapters before I became invested in the protagonist, Isabella Garcia. Her pretentious behavior and sense of entitlement were off-putting until the story behind her attitude was revealed later.

Once I was more emotionally invested in young Isabella, the story moved quickly with great plot twists set in the charming town of Silver Veil, New Mexico.

The hero, Aaron Baily was strong, with great integrity. His biggest beef with Isabella is her treatment of her parents. Secondly, her treatment of those “beneath” her.

The antagonist Diego Morales was multi-dimensional rogue, and his behavior surprised me on several occasions, both good and bad.

Although I’m not giving Beyond the Desert Sands a 5-star rating, it’s a very strong 4. If I could give it a 4.5, I would.

Recommended for readers of historical romance, Christian romance readers, and stories with redemptive elements.

The publisher, Bethany House provided an eBook #beyondthedesertsands thought #NetGalley for my honest review.

What a Turn Around Isabella Makes!



I actually started out the book not liking her character and getting so frustrated. I almost put the book down because of my strong feelings. I am glad I didn’t! The romance that develops and the love that grows between Isabella and her parents was definitely worth it. I ended up really enjoying this book. 



I look forward to getting my hands on the next Love on the Santa Fe installment coming out in October 2022!

I received a complimentary ARC of this book from NetGalley on behalf of the Publisher and was under no obligation to post a favorable review.

What a journey! I adored this book and was riveted from the beginning.

I like that this series, Love on the Santa Fe, is connected via the railway line Santa Fe rather than by connected characters. That’s different and refreshing in a Peterson series. I do love when her series follow a specific family or group of friends, but this series is becoming a nice change of pace.

It was interesting to see the leading lady in this one was the complete opposite of the one in the previous book in the Love on the Santa Fe series. In that one, the leading lady was respectful of her parents even as she stopped enabling them. In this story, the leading lady was disrespectful of her parents when the book opened. She was spoiled rotten from never having difficult challenges or even household chores to keep her hands busy. I loved that her journey was to discover a new respect and love toward her parents as well as to think of other people before herself. It was a journey toward maturity, and it was very well written.

The plot was delightfully complex. The number of interesting players was good, and they each had their own goals and problems to deal with. The plot twists were fantastic. I especially enjoyed the one at the Founder’s Day picnic.

The thread about the cologne was superb! I loved how this was speckled throughout the story. It was just the bit of humor and coyness this story needed.

The cover might be absolutely gorgeous, but the faith threads were divine. From learning to honor one’s parents to repenting from one’s sins to gaining reconciliation, there were plenty of deep topics to dive into. This felt like a trademark Tracie Peterson book for how strong and bolstering the faith threads were. Very encouraging!

Content: gambling mentioned, prostitution and promiscuity mentioned, illegitimate children mentioned

My blurb …
Isabella Garcia, 25, has lived with her aunt in opulence and is not happy to return to the mining town of Silver Veil to celebrate Christmas with her parents. Her beau, Diego Morales, is left behind in California. And her father sent a railroad businessman, Aaron Bailey, to escort her home who finds her to be spoiled and selfish.

Upon arrival, she finds the town has grown considerably, and sadly her father’s health is failing, A visitor makes a surprise visit with news that turns everything upside down. Brewing — trouble, changes. Can she rise to meet them or expect others to solve them?

My review …
What drew me to this book was the author, Tracie Peterson. It wasn’t the cover or the title; neither of them convey the genres that fit the description. Having read eight of her books, I trusted the Christian genre, as well as historical fiction by #NetGalley, would be handled appropriately.

Characters
Isabella, I have to warn you, is a spoiled brat. Totally self-centered. Everybody is out of step except her. And her poor my-parents-don’t-understand-me pity parties get old really fast. In other words, she may be 25 but she has a long way to go before she grows up.
Diego is about as charming as a rattlesnake in a matador costume.
Aaron is the perfect choice to escort her “home” to Silver Veil. He can read her like a book and isn’t impressed by her behavior. Yet stays a gentleman.

Plot
The plot of a dying father wanting to reconnect with his daughter should pull out our heartstrings. But I couldn’t quite get to that point since the parents let her go off and live with her aunt. Let her never come home. Basically allowed her to easily mature to the age of 25 and yet act like a bratty 12-year-old. Sympathetic? Yes. Empathy? Sorta.

Another plot revolves around Diego who does not (no surprise) walk on water the way Isabella thinks.

What will happen to the town when her father passes? He and his wife did SO much for the people. Will that legacy continue or fall totally on her mother’s shoulders?

Isabella’s aunt is a key character that I never felt I got to know about her. Why did she let Isabella stay with her all those years? Why didn’t she curb some of the uppity behavior? Does she see Diego for who he is? And she is a senior lady — what happens to the California estate when she dies?

Of course, Aaron is our hero but again, I liked him but … Was it the swirling plots & sub-plots that bothered me or the characters?

The setting is different than most western genres that seem to gravitate to somewhere in the Rocky Mountains.

Tracie Peterson is a competent author. I have loved some of her books; others not so much. And sadly, "Beyond the Desert Sands", falls into the latter category. For me, it was a solid three-star read. For you, it may be more.

I received a complimentary e-ARC copy of Beyond the Desert Sands via NetGalley from the publisher, Bethany House. A positive review was not required; the opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own.

#BeyondTheDesertSands #NetGalley #TraciePeterson

Genre Christian, Historical Western
Pages 297
Series Love on the Santa Fe, #2
Release 5 Jul 2022
Publisher Bethany House
Cover Nice but doesn’t quite fit
Rating 3 stars

This was a good read about transformation and maturity. It took a long time for Isabella to realize that she needed to grow in her faith and in her maturity. She the realizes all the years that she lost by being bitter and angry. Those feelings never really solve anything. She closed herself off so she would not love anyone, friends or family and be hurt again. It took a lot of growth for her to see that she hadn't really been living at all.

It is 1904, Isabella Garcia has been living with her aunt in California where her every wish has been satisfied. Now her father has insisted she return to her parents in small Silver Veil, New Mexico. Isabella is furious because she loves Diego Morales and feels he is close to proposing, but little does Isabella know what a scoundrel he is. Will this move to New Mexico change her from the spoiled innocent she is to a caring young lady or not?

Tracie Peterson never disappoints with her Christian Fiction, and this particular historical fiction series has been wonderful. Watching the changes in Isabella as she learned about real life was rewarding especially as she came to realize the scoundrel that Diego Morales was as well as the quality characteristics she saw in Aaron. Also the development of her care and concern toward the people of Silver Veil and the choices her parents made in not informing her of her father's health issues. Overall, a well written and enjoyable book. As a youngster, I grew up riding trains including the Santa Fe, so this brought back great memories. I look forward to the last in this series.

**I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher through NetGalley. Opinions are mine alone. I was not compensated for this review.

Great redemption story set along the New Mexico rail lines!

Isabella Garcia has hated her life since she was ten years old when her parents tore her away from the family and estate that she loved in California and moved to New Mexico to start up the town of Silver Veil. She has gone back to stay with her aunt many times, but always loathes to return. Now at twenty-five, she feels that she is entitled to remain in California and marry her childhood crush Diego, who can manage her inheritance from her grandparents. But once again, she must make the trip to Silver Veil to spend time with her parents for Christmas. The only thing worse is that she must be accompanied by Aaron Bailey, who she has been at odds with for five years when he called her out for her selfish behavior.

Upon arriving in Silver Veil, she sees that the town has grown and learns that her father’s true reasons to leaving California were due to his health. Several days later, she also learns that her beloved aunt has died, and the estate was sold over a year ago. Now she must truly look at herself and behavior and decide if what she has really wanted all those years mean anything or if there is something more on the horizon.

I didn’t think that Peterson could write a character that would be more self-centered and annoying than she had in the first book in this series, but oh did she prove me wrong. Isabella is the most entitled, selfish character I have ever encountered in a book. She rubbed me the wrong way from the beginning and just kept on rubbing. Maybe it’s because I’m a parent of a preteen, but I was ready to lay down the law to her. But everyone is truly entitled to redemption, and I must say that her character’s turnaround was astonishing. How is it possible that a character you just love to hate can become one that you want to love? Truly a showing of how God’s love can impact people.

There is plenty of suspense, intrigue, and deception throughout these pages, so don’t think this is going to be some sappy historical romance. It’s exciting and will keep you on the edge of your seat while you enjoy learning part of the history of New Mexico.

I received a complimentary copy of this title from the publisher. The views and opinions expressed within are my own.

This historical fiction book is a lesson in forgiveness and faith.

I loved the Mexican history and setting. Tracy has a knack if making books come to life. The characters of Isabelle and Aaron are very believable Isabelle is so very spoiled, but we see her grow and become a better person as she grows in her faith

Not one of Tracy's best, but worth the read.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for granting me a copy of this book in return for my honest opinion.