“California Chances” is actually three novellas put together into one volume.
In the first novella, entitled “One Chance in a Million” written by Cathy Marie Hake, we meet the Chance brothers. They live on a ranch an hour outside of the small town of Reliable, back in the 1870’s. Both their parents have passed away and now it’s up to them to improve the land and make a living. They’re all in their adult years, with the two youngest brothers having just left their teens.
Hannah was married to Daniel, the second oldest of the Chance men. She died shortly after giving birth to her second daughter, and the men have been taking care of the two little girls. Hannah sent a letter to her sister Miriam before she died, saying that she didn’t feel well. Miriam immediately left the side of her parents on their mission in the Islands to be with her sister, arriving to find that Hannah had already passed on. Daniel doesn’t want Miriam around – she’s a painful reminder of what he’s lost. But Miriam is determined to be there for her nieces and to see to it that these men get a decent meal three times a day. What she wasn’t expecting was to fall in love with Gideon Chance, the oldest of the clan.
The second novella is called “Second Chance” and was authored by Tracey Bateman. Titus Chance proposed marriage to Prissy White, and she turned him down flat, feeling that his pockets weren’t deep enough for her. Feeling hurt, he decides to go traveling for a little while, only to get robbed by two outlaws. With his horse gone, he’s forced to take the stagecoach back home, and rides alongside a pretty young woman who’s obviously hungry and scared. He takes her home to the ranch with him, thinking she’d be a good help to Miriam. The Chance men take a vote and it’s decided Alisa can stay. Titus declares his feelings for her from the start, but she’s afraid to allow herself to feel the same way – she’s wanted back home in San Francisco for a murder she didn’t commit. Until her past is cleared up, she won’t be able to plan a future with anyone.
Third is “Taking a Chance” by Kelly Eileen Hake. Paul is next to find love, but he sure wasn’t looking for it. Miriam’s cousin Delilah has recently lost her father, and with no where else to turn, she shows up at the Chance ranch in hopes that she can stay with Miriam until she’s on her feet again. She has very few domestic skills but is handy with a pistol and a knife. Seeing her need for a place to stay, the Chance men decide to give her a job, especially with Miriam in a family way. Paul’s smitten from the start, but he wants a God-fearing wife and Delilah is not a believer. Can his gentle example show her the way to Christ? Out of the three books, this one is the least well-written and the author seems unaware of things that happened in the first two books.
If you’re a fan of Christian romance, you’ll enjoy this compilation. I am stretching my reading horizons as well – I generally like books where romance is the side plot, not the main focus of the story, but I did enjoy these stories, even if they did get a little too gooey for me here and there.
(This book was published in 2005 by Barbour Publishing.)
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