I have not read this author's work before but I did enjoy this book and will be looking forward to more. Our library will be purchasing this book.

This is a beautiful and romantic story of redemption. We meet multiple people from difficult and even depraved backgrounds, all striving to make something better and beautiful out of their lives. They are looking for their place in the world, somewhere they aren't being used and oppressed. I like books like this - they give me hope and joy. That is, hope for the future of humankind, and joy for the ones that have made their way from darkness to light.

This is the first time I've read a novel by Rachel Fordham but I see she's got several others already published. Now I'm wondering how I will manage to get hold of them as I'd like to read them all. I think she's got a wonderful writing style that made me feel like I was right in the action. There was just enough description to make it feel very realistic, without interfering in the flow of the story.

Now, a little bit about the plot. It starts in 1880 with a young woman living alone on land left to her when her father died. Her mother was already long gone. She had difficulty managing the farm and needed a man's help before she would lose the property entirely. She'd found a man who wanted the land and agreed to marry him. The wedding was scheduled to take place in two weeks.

That's when her road started bending. One day she discovered a gravely injured man in her field, and in an attempt to keep him alive, she dragged him into her home and made a bed for him on the floor of her parlor. Who knew this would cause so many problems?

I recommend this book to young women who aren't afraid to dream of a life that could be beautiful. I hope they won't settle for any man who isn't the type who will want to help make all their dreams come true. This book is appropriate for teenagers as well as any women who still care about romance.

This is a clean novel, classified as Christian fiction. The characters, many of them, are Christians. There's a Bible mentioned. Other than that, it isn't preachy and there aren't scenes in churches. There are imperfect people making terrible mistakes and suffering consequences, and there are a few villains.

This is mainly a life-transformation novel with themes of love and forgiveness, two fruits of the Spirit young Christian girls and women would want to read about. I believe that many people who are not Christians would also enjoy reading this novel. It tells a lot about the hardships of life in a 1880's Iowa small town.

I am grateful to the publisher for sharing a digital copy of this novel with me via NetGalley. A positive review was not requested, and all the thoughts in this review are my own, sincerely given.

Where the Road Bends is the newest book from the talented Rachel Fordham, and the third book I've read by her in less than a month 😍 What can I say? I got totally hooked by The Hope of Azure Springs! I love all of the tension she creates with these dramatic situations, while still keeping everything clean and non-explicit. As a sensitive reader, I have that on-the-edge-of-my-seat feeling without any nightmares to deal with.

This book is about people with a past. It's about forgiveness and trusting in first impressions. It's about loving your community in a big way - not to the exclusion of others, rather in a way that expands and grows to fit newcomers. As I've come to expect from Rachel, it's a story about the lost and forgotten finding what it means to be a part of a home.

I absolutely loved it! I finished it in less than 24 hours because I just had to know what was going to happen! In the authors note, she explains she first had an idea to cross Les Mis with a western - I totally see it! 👏👏👏

If you haven't read Rachel Fordham before, please go do it now ❤️ this book is out now! I received a copy from netgalley. Thanks to the publisher! Opinions are my own.

“You pierce my soul. I am half agony, half hope . . . I have loved none but you.” —Jane Austen, Persuasion

When a book opens with Jane Austen, you know it’s going to be good.

I declare it now, Captain Wentworth’s letter is the most romantic piece of literature. Truly, amazing. I am a sucker when it comes to letters between couples. People are able to think about their feelings, really consider what they want to say, and express themselves in a way that is lasting. And what I’ve seen as a common theme amongst Rachel Fordham’s books are the letters that pop up. They’re beautiful and I enjoy the vulnerability her characters put into them.

Where the Road Bends has those letters I’m talking about. The little love notes between a couple, oh my heart. This is a sweet second chance romance. Truthfully, I didn’t go into this story knowing the synopsis. I have been skipping those when I trust an author or recommendation from a friend and I love seeing the story fold out on its own.

This book is as though you took the story of Jean Valjean, Persuasion, and the song God Bless the Broken Road and mashed them together . It’s beautiful! I loved the characters, the triumph over their struggles, their lessons of truth and honesty, and even a little glimpse into early hometown baseball leagues. Prepare to be swept off your feet as you go on this literary stroll, with your sweet heroine and an ex-pugilist. Who doesn’t love a pugilist hero?? ♥️♥️

Thank you to the author, Rachel Fordham, and Revell for an early copy! These are 100% my feelings/thoughts. I loved it and it is out now!

Rachel Fordham became an immediately "want-to-read" author after I finished her first book, and this second book I finished did not disappoint.

This was such a powerful story about second chances - how even when you were in the most desperate circumstances, when you reach out to God, he can give you a new start and hopeful future.

"I believe in a God who can use the worst of circumstances for our good if we're willing. You can have a better life. Both of us, we have good things ahead."

This story was like a rollercoaster - some slower parts where the author focused on character growth, but then you get the downhills with the added danger and possible threats which caused some breath-holding moments.

I also loved how through the street urchin we could see the effect love and care from adults have on children.

I would recommend this author's books to fans of Historical Fiction.

When the road bends, life can change direction in unexpected ways. Norah King saves the life of a man, and this act of human kindness changes her life.
Quincy Barnes hasn't had an easy life. It probably would have been easy for him to die and fade away with no one to remember him. When Norah King bravely rescues him, his path in life turns in a whole new direction, giving him purpose.
This is a wonderful story of redemption, friendship, loss, fear, change and forgiveness. With a reasonable passage of time that makes sense, the reader sees the results of Norah's heroism and it isn't what one might expect.
At times this is a gripping read. I caught myself worrying over a character's future which was amusing to me when I realized it. Norah is a sweet character and Quincy is a rough around the edges man of strength and honor. Secondary characters, including Nels, Mrs. Dover, Sam, Alice and Percy, keep this story moving along with their own magnetism.
I want to thank the publisher and NetGalley for my advanced reader's copy of the book. This is my own unsolicited opinion. It is an excellent read.

The story opens in Blackwell, Iowa in 1880. Norah King makes a shocking discovery on her land. Vultures are circling a badly injured man. It's not her way to ignore someone in need, so she gets Quincy Barnes back to her house and tends to his wounds. They develop a rapport and a relationship of sorts, but once he is able Quincey leaves. Norah is engaged to a man who will save her land and it's not appropriate for Norah to be alone with Quincy. An unexpected discovery amongst the items Norah had packed for him and a promise he had made to her, changes his future for the better. Sadly, this is not the case for Norah. When he learns of this, he vows to make it up to her. Can he?

This is a beautifully told story about second chances in the aftermath of hardships. The secondary characters are a mixed group. Some are special and endearing, others not so much. Norah and Quincy are the type of people readers want the best for. Themes of community and friendship play an important part in the narrative. This book is well worth reading. Highly recommended.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from Revell through NetGalley. The opinions expressed in this review are my own.

This most interesting read takes place in the 1880’s in Iowa. Norah, is a single woman who is on the brink of loosing her farm that her father has left to her. This land and homestead means so much to her that she has made up her mind to marry a man she doesn’t love in order to save her family farm. She didn’t know what she was getting into when she rescues a man she finds on her property near the brink of death. She’s literally drags him to her home. But as she nurses Quincy, a battered and bruised ex-fighter, their fast friendship and the ease in which they communicate makes her long for something more. But that is denied her as she is to wed in a few weeks. As Quincy is healing he finds a deep attraction to his nurse. Her sweet personality and her sharing her heart with him. Though Quincy’s not quite healed, he leaves in order to prevent problems with Norah’s much older fiancé. He cannot forget her and she cannot but help remembering him and comparing him to her husband to be….Will they ever meet again? This is such an interesting book as to when and how they meet and one that I highly recommend. Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an early e-copy and I am happy to leave a review.

Where the Road Bends
Rachel Fordham
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Norah King's family farm in Iowa is all she has left, and she will do everything in her power to save it including marrying a man she hardly knows. In the days leading up to her wedding, Norah discovers a man injured and left for dead on her property. Determined to help a hurting stranger, she doesn't realize just how much an act of kindness can complicate her life and threaten the future she's planned.

Quincy Barnes has more than just physical injuries to heal from, and Nora becomes not only a nurse, but a source of hope. Without the means to provide for himself, Quincy knows the most honorable thing he can do is move on and leave Norah to marry the man who has promised to save her farm. But walking away proves much harder than he imagined.

Rachel Fordham was a new author for us and delivered a pleasant surprise. The beginning of her story pulled us right in and we couldn’t seem to read fast enough. The story was engaging and held our attention throughout. While there were a few too many roadblocks to the developing relationship between Norah and Quincy, we enjoyed the book. It harkened back to a time when courting couples discussed books, took strolls through town, and perhaps shared stolen kisses in a private garden. Women's options were limited if they were left unprotected by a father, brother, husband, or other male figure. A major theme woven throughout the story was one of redeeming mistakes and realizing no one is perfect no matter how much we wish they were.

I have read a few Rachel Fordham books in the past, but I really liked the teaser description of her new book, Where the Road Bends.

In this book, Norah has kept her farm going as best she can after her father died. But a farm needs a strong man to keep it profitable. She is engaged to marry a man of the town solely to save her land. Just days before she says "I do," a very wounded man ends up on her property. When she takes him home to nurse him, their mutual attraction is very clear. Quincy cannot deny he is falling for quick-witted Norah, but her path is already set. To make everything easier, he leaves as soon as possible. Two years later, Quincy hopes Norah is happily married and possibly a mother. He sends her money that is sent back undelivered. A little alarmed, he travels back to her farm to find her intended married to another and Norah gone. Terrified, he realizes he loves her and since she is free, he must find her.

Where the Road Bends is an appropriate title for this book. Norah and Quincy's lives take twists and turns that they never thought possible. Quincy rises above his lowly circumstances and constantly finds ways to help others down on their luck. While Norah fares far worse and finds herself being pressured into prostitution. I thought the characters were great and the plot line enjoyable.

What an absolutely incredibly eye opening book.
I am loving that it takes place in Iowa as well. (My daughter lives there.)
This book is about hope,dreams,forgiveness,strength,compassion,understanding and faith.
We seem to all start out with dreams and so many times things don't go as we plan and we give up.
Dreams here go astray as well and our main characters, whom I just love by the way are flexible and change with their dreams. Their relationship is strong, nurtured by faith,love,compassion,strength and really listening to what each other as to say and adjusting the relationship with this.
Dreams change and need to be nurtured. What was important at one time may no longer as important but we give love and respect to new dreams coming in.
I absolutely loved seeing the child in this book going from a street urchin to a well behaved,secure in his surroundings, part of a family person.
The growth we see in the characters is fantastic. Heartwarming book. I do believe this is my favorite the author has written. It's a very strong story.

Pub Date 07 Jun 2022
I was given a complimentary copy of this book.
All opinions expressed are my own.

Where the Road Bends by Rachel Fordham tells the story of Norah King who is trying to hold on to the family farm after her father’s death. She has promised to marry an older man who will take over the farm and the back payments.

As she is out walking on the farm one day she comes across a wounded man, Quincy Barnes, and drags him home to care for him. Once he is better he leaves to go his own way. At her urging, he manages to turn his life around and become a business owner. Unaware that because Norah had him in her home, she was ostracized by the townspeople and her marriage did not happen. Instead, she was forced off the farm to manage on her own. Quincy is determined to make things right for her.

Reading this story was very enjoyable. I think that Ms. Fordham developed each character very well. Both Norah and Quincy grew in their outlook on life and learned that to depend on someone else is freeing. I have read novels by Ms. Fordham before and can say that I also enjoyed them.

“He let his head sink into the pillow, and with tears welling in his eyes, he realized that this was what a home should feel like.”
“I believe in a God who can use the worst of circumstances for our good if we’re willing.”
When Norah stumbles upon a man in trouble on her land, she works hard to rescue him. While he recovers, they get to know each other better and discover the beginnings of deeper feelings, but Norah doesn’t feel like she is able to risk her future on the possibilities before her. I loved so much about this book. It was so well written, I kept underlining favorite lines. The characters were so well written, I cared about Norah and Quincy from the beginning of the book. The cast of secondary characters added so much to this story as well. I loved how Norah and Quincy’s journeys unfolded, so much was a surprise to me and I couldn’t stop reading, wanting to know what would happen next. I highly recommend this story of love, forgiveness, and second chances.
I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book. All opinions are my own.

Rachel Fordham writes such beautiful stories of hope, family, love, and forgiveness. Where the Road Bends follows Norah, a woman with no family trying to keep her family land from being repossessed by the bank and Quincy, a back alleyway boxer who winds up beaten and bloodied near a creek on Norah's land. Their connection is instant; they chat like they've known each other for years, sharing hopes, dreams, and secrets. But in order to save her family land, Norah is engaged to a local man in a marriage of convenience. After Quincy is on his way to healing, he leaves Norah in Blackwell, sure and certain he'll never see her again.

Most of this book is told from Quincy's perspective, which I really loved. His emotions, his urgency, really jump off the page and make him so likeable as a man just trying to be the best he can. Norah starts this book off feeling a bit like a Disney princess: naive, extremely hopeful, and effervescently positive, and super chatty when nervous which made her feel unreal for a little bit but as her story continues and we find out where she's been for two years, her hardships make her relatable and make it better for her to understand Quincy and his past as well as others that she may have judged before trail befell her.

Overall, a sweet story of forgiveness and hope.

Thank you to NetGalley and the author for my complimentary copy of this book. All opinions here are my own.

I love the title of this book, Where the Road Bends. In any relationship there are many bending roads. These road bends can be a sharp (right or left) or a long, smooth, winding curve. Depending on how one approaches these bends determine the outcome on the other side. Rachel Fordham provides plenty of road bends with the people in her story. The book is filled with regrets of the past, disappointment, lost hope, poor choices, and forgiveness, to a new beginnings with success for the future. I will not reiterate the story as you can read the description of it on the back of book. I will say, I was given an advanced copy of this story through NetGalley, but my review is of my own choice.

Where the Road Bends is the first book I've read by Rachel Fordham. I found her to be an excellent storyteller, creating a novel that not only entertained, but also spoke to my heart.

Readers will follow the story of Quincy and Norah as they each search to earn forgiveness and find truth in a world where those qualities can be hard to come by. Complete with a sweet love story, I found the message of redemption irresistible. At times tender, at times awash in danger, this book was a beautiful read.

I received this book from Netgalley. All opinions are my own.

#BookReview: WHERE THE ROAD BENDS by Rachel Fordham

What would you do if you found a bleeding stranger on your property?

I would probably be very scared and run to call for help. I don’t know. But even from this scene, Norah showed her strength and compassion for others. I liked the friendship and connection that developed between them in such a short time.

It was a tough story of life in the late 1800s that brought Quincy, Norah and some minor characters together in a safe place. Many of Quincy and Norah’s inner thoughts and past were revealed through their own POVs. I' prefer more conversations and showing what happened. They were imperfect but aimed to be better people. The details, the story line and how things tied together were good. It had enough mystery, suspense, romance and home town feels to keep the reader going. Quincy was sweet to Norah and even gave her flowers, the black eyed Susan.

This is a story of forgiveness and healing. They have learned to continue to seek God despite all the hardships they had to endure. Historical fiction and christian romance lovers will enjoy this redemption story.

Rating: 4.5 stars

Thank you to Revell for the complimentary copy. All opinions expressed are my own.

I loved many things about this book, the setting, the characters and the story line. It was beautifully woven together to make an very enjoyable read.

This is a story of second chances, of redemption, and of the broken road leading Norah, Quincy, and some of the lesser characters right to where they should be. It's a gritty story of life on the frontier in the 1800s, and there are some tawdry parts, but nothing graphic. The characters fall, then get back up and reinvent themselves many times over. What we should all take from this story is the far-reaching lengths that one of act of kindness will travel....sometimes all the way back to you.

3.5⭐This story is about forgiveness, restoration, healing, and dreams, but some dreams take time. as the gospel shines through.

Nora King is engaged to be married, living on her family's farm finds herself rescuing and nursing a badly beaten stranger, Quincy Barnes is given a second chance in life, becoming a very successful businessman, Nora King is strong, caring, and very hopeful, but things do not go her way. Tables turn, and Quincy Barnes becomes her rescuer one day.

I really have trouble rating this book, internal dialog is repetitive. I am not fun of a lot of inner thoughts to move a story along, I would like to see a bit more concrete details about Nora’s life after Quincy left the farm, better character development, and that special something that I just didn’t see.