An Untamed Heart
4/5
()
About this ebook
Twenty-year-old Ingeborg Strand is certain she is destined to be an old maid. She's had several suitors but none she deemed worthy of spending her life with. That is, until she meets a university student from Oslo, and feelings stronger than friendship begin to develop between them. But tragedy strikes, and the future begins to look bleaker than ever.
Grief settles heavily over Ingeborg, and her mother suggests that she leave Norway and start afresh in America, as so many others have done before her. But how will she accomplish that with little money and no one to accompany her?
It isn't long before she meets Roald Bjorklund, a widower who has been planning to go to America for some time, lured by the promise of free land. He's a good man, a hard-working man--and he has a young son who desperately needs a mother. He's clearly interested in Ingeborg, but is he the answer to her prayers? And what about love? This isn't how she's always imagined it.
Ingeborg Strand has a heartrending decision to make...
Lauraine Snelling
Lauraine Snelling has been writing and publishing books across all genres and for all reading levels since 1980. She received a Career Achievement Award for inspirational fiction from RT Books Reviews and has consistently appeared on the Christina Booksellers Association's bestseller lists. She has written over sixty-five books, and a hallmark of her style is writing about real issues within a compelling story. She and her husband, Wayne, reside in California and have two grown sons.
Read more from Lauraine Snelling
A Blessing to Cherish Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Adventures of TC Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5
Related to An Untamed Heart
Related ebooks
Blessing in Disguise (Red River of the North Book #6) Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5A Dream to Follow (Return to Red River Book #1) Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5A Promise for Ellie (Daughters of Blessing Book #1) Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5A Breath of Hope (Under Northern Skies Book #2) Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5A Touch of Grace (Daughters of Blessing Book #3) Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5A Land to Call Home (Red River of the North Book #3) Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Promise of Dawn (Under Northern Skies Book #1) Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Ruby (Dakotah Treasures Book #1) Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5A New Day Rising (Red River of the North Book #2) Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5To Everything a Season (Song of Blessing Book #1) Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Pearl (Dakotah Treasures Book #2) Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Tender Mercies (Red River of the North Book #5) Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5A Measure of Mercy (Home to Blessing Book #1) Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Streams of Mercy (Song of Blessing Book #3) Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5No Distance Too Far (Home to Blessing Book #2) Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Amethyst (Dakotah Treasures Book #4) Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Rebecca's Reward (Daughters of Blessing Book #4) Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5A Season of Grace (Under Northern Skies Book #3) Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5A Heart for Home (Home to Blessing Book #3) Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5A Song of Joy (Under Northern Skies Book #4) Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5More Than a Dream (Return to Red River Book #3) Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Opal (Dakotah Treasures Book #3) Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Sisters of the Confederacy (A Secret Refuge Book #2) Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5From This Day Forward (Song of Blessing Book #4) Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Daughter of Twin Oaks (A Secret Refuge Book #1) Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Believing the Dream (Return to Red River Book #2) Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5An Untamed Land (Red River of the North Book #1) Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Sophie's Dilemma (Daughters of Blessing Book #2) Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Reapers' Song (Red River of the North Book #4) Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Valley of Dreams (Wild West Wind Book #1) Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5
Religious Fiction For You
Till We Have Faces: A Myth Retold Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Red Tent - 20th Anniversary Edition: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Recital of the Dark Verses Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Life of Pi: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Women Talking Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Warrior of the Light: A Manual Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Stranger in the Lifeboat Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Dark Tower: And Other Stories Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Fifth Mountain: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Robe Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Last Temptation of Christ Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Power and the Glory Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Gospel According to the New World Rating: 2 out of 5 stars2/5A Woman Is No Man: A Read with Jenna Pick Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Next Person You Meet in Heaven: The Sequel to The Five People You Meet in Heaven Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Disobedience: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5A Lineage of Grace Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Butcher's Daughter: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Shardik Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Magic Strings of Frankie Presto: A Novel Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5A Distant Shore: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Greatest Gift: A Christmas Tale Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The First Phone Call From Heaven: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Heart of the Matter Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Sinners and the Sea: The Untold Story of Noah's Wife Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Mother of the Believers: A Novel of the Birth of Islam Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Temple Folk Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Gods and Kings (Chronicles of the Kings Book #1): A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5River Spirit Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratings
Related categories
Reviews for An Untamed Heart
20 ratings4 reviews
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5I loved this prequel to the Red River of the North series! So amazing! You find out all the backstory behind the characters of Ingeborg, Roald, and their families. 5 stars! A must read, whether you have read the Red River of the North series yet, or not.
- Rating: 1 out of 5 stars1/5Full disclosure- I skimmed a lot and didn't finish it.
I realize it's kind of petty to take issue with a book because of something like names, and the author was being authentic to the culture, but she didn't have to choose names like Ingeborg and Gunlaug for the main characters... even Ingeborg's sisters had better names. Lots of heavy G and R sounds which make make it hard to chew through.
But I could overlook this if I fell in love with the characters or even found them mildly interesting. But I just didn't understand them. It seemed to me that there were a lot of (immediately) contradicting thoughts and actions from Nils and Ingeborg. One minute she's saying she won't put her brother in the same position she's been put in (matchmaking) and then all of sudden she's forcing them to dance. I had a lot of "what? what just happened?" moments when reading.
Also, both Nils and Ingeborg were constantly frustrating me because they dwelled a lot on their problems but were always avoiding confrontation or being passive aggressive. I don't have respect for people or characters who whine about their circumstances and are unwilling to adress the problems head on. Both should have just spoken to their parents and then heard them out. Maybe it was a cultural thing.
The narrative was a little weird and confusing for a while- we'd switch back and forth between mar/Hilde etc. and characters would refer to themselves as if they were speaking about someone else ("did he think her daughter...")
Overall, there was lots of dialogue, but not much being said, lots of actions being described, but nothing really happening. - Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Lauraine Snelling researches thoroughly the aspects that she presents. I enjoyed the development of the plot, setting and historical time frame.
I had trouble keeping track of the people. I don't know she could do it better, with the big families intermingling, with cousins, siblings and second cousins...but I couldn't keep them apart, except for the one main character.
Part of it was the names---which were authentic, but hard for me to remember.
Sometimes I lost the plot with all the details of the setting and cheese making techniques.
I wondered about the seter. Would no adults be present the entire time? I know children can be responsible, but that seemed quite a stretch for that length of time. Possible, but doubtful. Made me want to pursue that idea (in my spare time).
I enjoyed the book. It wasn't one of those quick reads, because of the history and the information presented. But a nice change. - Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5UFF-DA but I love Ingeborg! And to join her on her beloved mountain during the summer, with her dearest friend, cousin Gunlaug is to come home again. I have read all of Lauraine's novels, and each one is as special as the one before. This one tells the story of Ingebord in her homeland of Norway, of her home life and her loves! As always, I feel like I am walking side by side with her, seeing her lovely mountain, spinning wool and shearing sheep, and interacting with her siblings and cousins. Reading this, helps me understand why she did the things she did in her life in North Dakota, why her family was so very important to her, and why she made the choices she did. Once I had read this, I needed to read the complete rest of the series, Red River of the North. Lauraine has a unique voice, and tells a superb story. I wish I was Norwegian, and of Ingeborg's family!Now, Lauraine, when do I get to read about Ingeborg's Mor's story? Why she reacted to things Ingeborg said and did as she did, and what was her childhood like?"Book has been provided courtesy of Baker Publishing Group and Graf-Martin Communications, Inc. Available at your favourite bookseller from Bethany House, a division of Baker Publishing Group".