Mary Connealy's "Woman of Sunlight" - Brides of Hope Mountain, book 2

After years of isolation on top of Hope Mountain, Ilsa Nordegren may finally be ready to leave. Raised to fear the world, Ilsa and her sisters had never planned on coming down, but when the Warden family arrived in need, a new world was opened to them. Having made his fortune, Mitch Warden returned home to discover a ruthless cattle baron had forced his family to escape up the mountain, and when he follows, the last thing he expects is to fall smitten to an elf-like mountain woman. When dangerous men from his past track him down, he's determined to put a stop to them. But that means a journey to the city--and when Ilsa insists on joining him, the mismatched pair suddenly find themselves on a venture they'll never forget.

There's something rather poetic about reading a story about an isolated trio of sisters (who are just emerging from a quarantine themselves) while in isolation myself during the Corona Virus outbreak . . .

Ilsa might be ignorant after a life of extreme isolation, but she's not an idiot. The author strikes the right balance between innocence and maturity so that Ilsa is comedic in things she doesn't know, yet not awkwardly child-like in things a grown woman should understand. She also proves far more adaptable than her oldest sister, who is still living in true isolation in a high mountain valley, when Ilsa and Mitch end up heading to Chicago. Of all the Connealy books I've read, I think this one spends the most time in the city.

I realize this isn't precisely a mystery novel, but I was surprised to be surprised by the villain. I readily take things at face value (when not reading in the mystery genre, that is), and my assumption and back-up assumption for the villain turned out to be wrong. It's . . . actually enjoyable to to have that happen, especially when the villain makes sense, as this one does.

As the third book comes out this fall and Ursula ends her self-imposed isolation, may we also feel the delights of such freedom! I've found her the most intriguing of the three sisters, and based on the hints throughout these first two novels, Wax Mosby is proving the most fascinating of the heroes. I'm looking forward to the next book.

Thank you Bethany House and NetGalley for the complimentary e-book. I was not required to write a positive review, and all opinions are my own.

Brides of Hope Mountain
1. Aiming for Love
2. Woman of Sunlight
3. Her Secret Song