A wonderful reallife story that reminded me of the need for trust in relationships. The characters are true to life and a huge reminder to be looking for God's hand in our lives.

Golden Horizons by Darlene Panzera is a fast-paced, easy-to-read novella. Set during the gold rush in California, it is filled with grit, determination, faith in God's provisions and will. Conflicts are many such as pitting man against man, man against nature, and man against himself. Women are rare and when beautiful Maggie and her mother arrive, all bets are off as to who will win their hands in marriage.

Released Jun 24th. I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

This book is definitely a feel-good story that is easy to read and engage with. There were some genuinely good lines, and I think it scratches an itch for those wanting to lose themselves in the historical California-gold rush frontier for a few hours.

I do wish that there would have been a little more work done at the beginning to set up the characters of Maggie and Ben, and their histories. I think they were solidly likable characters, but they could have been even more compelling. I really liked the lessons that both Maggie and Ben had to learn - they felt like realistic issues people struggle with no matter what time period they live in.

Philip was endearing and stole the show for me. I also liked Maggie's mother and the little slice of happiness she received at the end.

Overall, I think the pacing of this book was just a little too fast for me. Things just seemed to happen really quickly, and lengthy periods of time were skimmed over, leaving the story feeling rushed. This book has good potential, and I do think it will be enjoyed by many readers in its audience.