Waiting on Love by Tracie Peterson

Waiting on Love
by Tracie Peterson

ISBN-13: 9780764232404
Paperback: 320 pages
Publisher: Bethany House Publishers
Released: October 5th 2021

Source: ebook review copy from the publisher through NetGalley.

Book Description, Modified from Goodreads:
Elise Wright loves her Great Lakes life onboard her father's ship, the Mary Elise. As cook, Elise can keep an eye on her father and the grief he bears, fulfilling a promise to her late mother. But in doing so, she may forfeit love and a family of her own.

Trying to forget his own guilt over a wrong decision while captaining another ship, Nick Clark hires on as the Mary Elise's first mate, quickly bonding with the attractive cook over their common struggles.

When a rough new sailor makes an inappropriate pass at Elise, her father believes it was a misunderstanding and offers a second chance. But other odd behavior raises Nick's suspicions. Just as clues to the sailor's unsavory past start to stack up, an even more immediate danger swells up around them. Forced to confront their greatest fears, Nick and Elise will have to rely on their faith and each other to see them through.


My Review:
Waiting on Love is set in 1872 on the Great Lakes. This book is the third in a series, but it's basically a stand-alone. Historical details about life on a freight ship and the development of the Great Lakes area were woven into the story and provided a distinct sense of time and place. The main characters were complex and grew throughout the story. Elise and Nick spent time together and got to know each other. They shared interests, especially their love of life on ship. Elise, her father, and Nick looked to God for peace during danger and studied the Bible. The father's belief in God's power to transform people was why he gave a trouble-maker a position on his boat. There was no sex or bad language. Overall, I'd recommend this enjoyable historical romance.

That said, I felt like they didn't react realistically to this trouble-maker. At first, yes, but when it's clear that he's violent and hates everyone on the crew, and Elise suspects that he might have committed murder? I'd at least be very wary and tell my father about it immediately. She boarded a ship that would isolate them from help and forgot to tell her father for days. No real proof, so they keep him on. Huh? They knew he was a poor crewman; that's reason enough. Later, Nick saw a wanted-for-murder poster that looked just like the crewman but with a different name. He didn't tell the police because he couldn't prove he was the wanted man. Huh? The police want to know where possible suspects are. They're not asking people to prove anything. Nick did tell the father/captain, who also didn't report the crewman because he felt there wasn't enough proof. Hm. Just seems odd and like they didn't take the danger seriously.


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.