After a failed dig in Honduras,
aspiring archaeologist Casper Christiansen heads home to Minnesota to face his
unresolved feelings for Raina Beaumont, the woman of his dreams. But when he
arrives unannounced on her doorstep, he receives the shock of a lifetime: Raina
is pregnant with someone else’s baby.
Heartbroken, especially when he
discovers the identity of the baby’s father, Casper tables his dreams and
determines to be dependable for once, helping his older brother, Darek, prepare
the family resort for its grand reopening. Casper longs to be the hero of at
least one family story, but a never-ending Deep Haven winter and costly repairs
threaten their efforts—and the future of the resort.
Worse, one of Casper’s new jobs
constantly brings him into contact with Raina, whom he can’t seem to forget. A
tentative friendship begins to heal fresh wounds, but can they possibly
overcome past mistakes and current choices to discover a future together?
Casper
Christiansen cannot get Raina Beaumont out of his head, no matter how hard he
tries and even though he left Deep Haven six months ago for an archaeology dig
in Honduras. Deciding to return and face Raina, he receives a huge surprise
when he finds her pregnant with someone else’s baby. In an attempt to ease his
heartbreak, Casper returns to the family resort and attempts to help Darek get
it back up and running. As the middle child who never seemed to accomplish
nearly as much as his older and younger brothers, Casper longs to do something
great, to be someone’s hero. But as Raina continues to push him away and winter
gets colder and colder, will Casper ever find his happy ending, or will he run
away again as soon as the snow thaws?
Always on My Mind is the fourth book in
Susan May Warren’s Christiansen Family series, falling after Take a Chance on Me, It Had to Be You, and When I Fall in Love. I cannot say which one is my
favorite so far, but I do think Casper is my favorite Christiansen, and I know
he’s my favorite of the brothers. He is so sweet, determined, caring, and
compassionate, and I just love how he continues to pursue Raina. As Jenny
Flanigan said in Karen Kingsbury’s Bailey Flanigan novels, “like a dying man
looking for water in a desert”. I do believe Casper fits that description.
Clearly you can understand how that would melt my heart.
I also
loved reading about how God slowly softened Raina’s heart as the book went on,
until she could escape Him—and Casper—no longer. Although it may seem hard to
love anyone who would break someone like Casper’s heart over and over again, I did
find myself feeling as if Raina was a close friend of mine. She struggled all
throughout the book with her past, her mistakes, and her choices, and I found
that reading from her perspective helped me to realize just how much the events
of this book hurt her as well.
Anyway,
my point is to say that both characters were extremely loveable, and this book
most certainly touched my heart. It was, in true Susan May Warren style, a
wonderful story about redemption, love, and second chances that well deserves
all five bookshelves. I enjoyed all four Christiansen Family novels so far, and
am eagerly anticipating reading Amelia’s story—which comes out next month—and Owen’s,
which I haven’t actually read about yet but I am hoping Susan will release a
cover soon.
Happy
reading!
All credit for the above italicized synopsis goes to Susan
May Warren and her publishers.
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