" I actually started this book last year, and something about it just didn't sustain my interest very much. Well written, good story, just not super engaging to me at first. So, it's been sitting on my nightstand for months and months, and I finally decided to finish it. After I was closer to over halfway through, the story grabbed me. It was well written, and it is a good story. I didn't really consider it a 'Christian' novel at first, because when the characters spoke of their realationship with 'God', it seemed normal for their characters, and not overwhelming - not like the author was trying to preach it. It blended really well with the storyline, and you do really like the characters. It seemed also to be really well researched, which is important to me in historical fiction books. From what the West was like post Civil War (and about the war itself), to the technicalities and difficulties of photography in that age. The only thing that I ended up disliking in this book, really, was the last few chapters. It was exciting, kept things moving, and all had happy endings, BUT - it was then that the author stepped over the line and became preachy more than what had seemed normal character inner dialogue throughout the rest of the book. If I had gone into the book expecting it, or it had kept the same level throughout the book, then that would be one thing. But it seemed kind of forced at the end, like she had to squeeze "the lessons" in at the end. If you are a fan of good historical fiction, and you like interesting characters, and go into it knowing that it's going to be a little more religion in it, and you like that, then you will probably really like this book. "
— ErinReadsTooMuch, 1/29/2014