Hosted By
LiteraryScape reviews A Less Convenient Path by Sara R. Turnquist — a Christian historical western romance about two wounded souls finding hope on the frontier.
Jessica
Tiffanie
Mom
Visit Sara R. Turnquist: saraturnquist.com
Tiffany and her co-host are back for another Friday Book Club discussion.
This week they are reviewing A Less Convenient Path by Sara R. Turnquist.
It is Book 3 in the Convenient Risk series. And it is unlike anything they have covered in the series so far.
This one features a cross-cultural romance set on the American frontier. It is a story of two deeply wounded people who find unexpected hope in each other.
If you love Christian historical fiction with heart, depth, and a nail-biting climax — keep reading.
Marina is a young Native American woman in a desperate situation.
Her tribe has been ordered to a reservation. But during the journey, her people were attacked. She and her young brother are the only survivors.
They are wandering the wilderness. Alone. With no way forward.
That is when Cutie finds them.
Cutie is a ranch hand on the Miller property. He is running from his own painful past. He has made mistakes. He carries guilt he cannot shake.
The two of them could not be more different. But their paths cross for a reason.
“A Less Convenient Path is a story of two people without peace. Will they find in each other the very things they are missing?”
Readers who followed the Convenient Risk series already know Cutie from Book 1.
They may have felt sorry for him early on. Then they found out the truth about his role in a serious incident. It changed things.
But Book 3 gives Cutie the chance to be fully understood.
He got tangled up with the wrong people because of a complicated relationship with his father. He feels completely unworthy of grace.
And yet Brandon — the man he wronged most — extends forgiveness freely and without conditions.
“Brandon is so forgiving and gracious and kind. Cutie is like, I can’t even take it — because you should hate my guts.”
That tension between guilt and grace is one of the most powerful threads in this book.
Marina is a standout character. She comes from a culture with completely different customs and ways of communicating.
That creates real misunderstanding between her and Cutie. Not from bad intentions. Just from two very different worlds colliding.
The hosts found the back-and-forth internal questioning a little frustrating at times. But they fully understood why.
“They come from two very different cultures. Things that he did, she was like, he doesn’t want me, I’m a burden. And things that she did, he was like, I don’t think she wants me around.”
As the story unfolds, Marina’s faith also begins to grow and deepen. It is one of the most touching arcs in the book.
This book does not shy away from the realities of life in the American West.
People treat Marina poorly because of who she is. At a town dance, she is not welcomed.
It is Slim — an Irish ranch hand with his own history of prejudice — who steps in. He pulls Marina aside and shares his own story of being an outsider when he first arrived.
It is a powerful moment. And it sets up a thread that carries all the way through Book 5 of the series.
Sheriff McGowan is one of the more complex characters in this series.
He is rigid. He carries a black-and-white view of the world. And he makes life very difficult for Marina and Cutie.
The hosts were not fans.
“You are the sheriff. You are supposed to protect and serve. You are supposed to be the leader. And you have this high-and-mighty attitude.”
But the book does give readers a glimpse inside his perspective. He made one serious mistake long ago. That mistake shaped everything about how he sees the world.
He does the right thing occasionally — but usually only when pushed to it. And then he snaps right back.
He is a well-written villain you love to dislike.
Just when Cutie and Marina’s relationship is finally building toward something good — everything falls apart.
Marina runs away. She is captured by the Apache.
Her brother escapes and gets help. But Marina endures real danger and real fear before anyone can reach her.
“The abuse she endured — I was getting really, really scared for her, to be honest.”
Cutie charges in without hesitation. He does not care about the risk.
He makes it to her. But they are quickly surrounded.
It is an intense, breathtaking sequence. And it reveals just how far Cutie has come from the man who once doubted he was worth anything.
Both hosts agreed: the book is well-written. It kept them reading.
If the internal back-and-forth of two people trying to understand each other across cultural barriers sounds like your kind of story — you will love this one.
A Less Convenient Path is Book 3 in the Convenient Risk series by Sara R. Turnquist.
Each book follows new lead characters while keeping beloved familiar faces in the story.
You can start here. But readers who begin at Book 1 will get the richest experience.
Book 1, A Convenient Risk, is available on Kindle for free. That is the perfect place to start.
Explore all of Sara R. Turnquist’s books at saraturnquist.com.
Announcements We have Coffee and Books on Saturday March 22nd from 1:00-2:00 pm EST. Join authors Crystal Caudill, Lynn Shannon, and Sarah Sundin for...
Welcome back to another inspirational moment from historical Christian romance novels. Romans 3:22-24: This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to...
In this episode Tiffanie and I discuss Julie Lessman’s prequel to her Daughters of Boston series, A Light in the Window. This is the...
