A Chance at Forever by Melissa Jagears

A Chance at Forever by Melissa Jagears ISBN-13: 9780764217531 Paperback: 352 pages Publisher: Bethany House Released: March 6, 2018

Source: ebook review copy from the publisher through NetGalley.

Book Description, Modified from Goodreads:
Mercy McClain joined the school board to protect the children of Teaville, Kansas, from the bullying she experienced as a child. When the worst offender from her school days applies for a teaching position, she is dead set against it. Yet Aaron Firebrook claims to be a changed man. Can he earn Mercy's trust--and her support for the challenges to come?


My Review:
A Chance at Forever is a Christian romance set in 1909 in Kansas. It's the third book in a series. This book wrapped up two side romances that have been building throughout the series, but it still worked fine as a stand-alone novel. Each romance was prevented from moving forward due to events in the past that need to be forgiven.

The main romance was between Mercy and the man who bullied her when they were children. He was abused by someone and in turn bullied others. Now he has returned to make things right after accepting Christ. He's trying to earn forgiveness from those he wronged and change his behavior through willpower. With Mercy's help, he realizes he needs to allow God to transform him from the inside and to accept the gift of forgiveness. We only see him as an honest, hardworking man, just one struggling with guilt and discouragement because he can see the damage his bullying did to Mercy and others. He encouraged Mercy to see her value and not believe the hurtful things he said in the past.

The author dealt with complex issues in a natural way that drove the events of the story. The changed people showed that change in their lives even though they still made mistakes. Other characters struggled to trust that those people had really changed or to decide how to deal with those who weren't interested in changing. The characters acted realistically and were complex and likable.

There were no sex scenes or bad language. Overall, I'd recommend this well-developed, engaging book.


If you've read this book, what do you think about it? I'd be honored if you wrote your own opinion of the book in the comments.


Excerpt: Read an excerpt using Google Preview.