Book one of the Fort Reno series. I really enjoyed this book! I liked the setting and the storyline. The characters were charming and loveable.
Louisa loses her job as a singer at a salon. She has nowhere to go but to the fort where her brother is stationed. She is mistaken for the governess and decides to keep the job. Major Daniel desperately needs someone to help his daughters prepare for womanhood. He instantly feels attracted to Louisa but he knows she has some secrets. Louisa must come clean about her past so that she can start a relationship with Daniel. But revealing her past turns out to be harder than she realizes. ( )

Author Regina Jennings begins her “Fort Reno” series with “Holding the Fort”, an inspirational historical romance in which mistaken identity may be a most fortunate blessing in disguise. Louisa Bell lives the life of a dance hall singer, not by choice, but by the hand that Fate has dealt. When even the saloon singing is lost, Louisa turns to her brother, Bradley, for help. No stranger to misfortune himself, Bradley is stationed at Fort Reno under the stern watchful eye of Major Daniel Adams. A mix-up when she arrives finds Louisa accepting the job as governess for the major’s two young daughters. Louisa is far too pretty and unconventional, but the widowed major is in need of immediate assistance. With Daniel and Louisa working together to manage his daughters, the major may lose some of his starch, and the dance hall singer just might gain respectability. Will they lose their hearts to each other along the way? Regina Jennings is a gifted storyteller who infuses her romantic tales with charm, surprises, and abiding faith.

Book Copy Gratis Bethany House Books ( )

What a hoot! This book is well written and a lot of fun to read.

Louisa Bell comes from questionable beginnings. She feels that she can not make much of herself because of others decisions that affected her life. She doubts God and she doubts herself. A fortunate circumstance fell into her lap and she rose to the occasion and learned and grew as a person. She is a woman of integrity, grit, and intelligence - in spite of what others tell her.

I loved watching Louisa grow and see the positive impact she had on the children in her charge. It was because of her upbringing that she was able to see what the girl needed and help them live lives or refinement and fun. Her journey is painful, but inspirational. It is proof that your beginnings do not determine your endings.

Major Daniel Adams is a fair man. He comes across as stern, but deep inside he is a man of compassion, fairness, and strength. I loved having part of the story told through his eyes.

The two girls, Daisy and Caroline are a treat. Particularly Daisy, she was so much fun to read about. She has a free spirit, and I loved that Louisa encouraged it and helped her temper it for the occasion. I also loved that the story was set in the Old West and dealt with the expansion of the United States in "Indian" territory. Major Adams was wonderful with the tribes and encouraged positive relations. Now I know this is a fictional story, but I would like to believe that there were men and women of integrity who saw the value of the Native Americans and their way of life.

This is a fantastic book. There isn't a lot of violence for the setting and time period. There is a little bit of kissing and mention of a lives that were "soiled". I would recommend this book as clean and encourage anyone and everyone to read it. There are Christian themes, but the book is far from preachy.

Source: I received a complimentary copy from the publisher, Bethany House. All thoughts and opinions expressed are my own. ( )

I love Regina Jennings and have read several of her books. I can count on her for a laugh or two. She has written some of my favorite lines of all times. In Holding The Fort after the Major has fallen off his horse riding barefoot, Louisa has his head in her lap. He awakens and thinks he is dreaming or imagining her. He jumps up, gets back on his horse and rides away. "She couldn't shake the image of him riding away, hunched over, barely able to stay in the saddle. What if he'd fallen off somewhere and was even now being carried down a hole by a colony of well-coordinated prairie dogs?" The idea of Lovely Louisa Bell, a former dance hall singer being mistaken for a Mennonite governess is full of crazy adventure. Add to that the Majors uncooperative daughters and things go down hill from there. Major Daniel Adams knows she does not look anything like the type of person he has ordered, but his hands are tied and he has no chose but to give her a chance. I loved this book and would highly recommend it. ( )

I liked seeing how Louisa was trying to make the best of things and took the circumstances at hand and made the best of it. She is doing what she can to make a living, but when the chance to step up occurs, she tries to make a go of it, even though she doesn't know anything about being a governess. I enjoyed seeing the things she came up with and how she makes it work.
I received the book as a gift, the review is my own. ( )