A Quiet Strength was hard to put down and I enjoyed the story clear to the end. The End is the hardest part because you do not want it to end. One of the Hardest Parts is waiting for the next book in the Series. I hope Janette has many more books in this Prairie Legacy, and that they are coming out soon.

I just finished reading this book and could not put it down. As in all of Jeanette Oke's books she makes you feel as if you are a part of the story, and cry and laugh right along with the carracters. I could see a lot of myself in Virginia. It is much easier to give advice about how to let God lead your life then to follow it sometimes. Realizing the difference between romantic love and true sustaining love in a marriage is not always easy. The story was very true to life as always. It is great the way that Jeanette even referred all the way back to the loss Marty suffered in Love Comes Softly of her first husband, while consoling Virginia. She always ties the history of her books together, but they are still understanable if you have not read the previos books!

I loved the first two books, but this one is the best yet! Virgina has now grown up. At first I was sad that her teen-years adventures were over, but reading about her as an adult has been thrilling. So many things, including an abused child, her own children, a husband, struggles, and her grandmother, happen to her. Through the whole thing she realizes that her relationship with Christ is not what it should be. I think that this book has a great value to it!

This book was totally awesome! I absolutely loved it. The first time that I read it was when I was on a trip with my parents to visit my grandparents in Arizona during Christmas time. It was one of my Christmas presents. I lost some sleep because I couldn't put the book down at night. I first read it when I was about 13 or 14 years old. I saw the book and thought "oh my gosh, it's so long! I'll never be able to read this." Once I started however, I couldn't put it down. I'm almost 18 years old now, and I've read it about seven or eight times. I recommend this book to anyone regardless of what you normally would read. If you have any other books by this same author that you loved, write me and tell me their titles! I love reading!

This book really brings to life what living in Northern Canada was about in the early 1900's. I found myself thinking what it would be like in Elizabeth's shoes. She endured such hardships just to be with the man she loved. What a great lovestory! It is excellent, just like all of Jeanette Oke's other books that I have read. I can't wait until it is printed again so I can have my own copy.

I am a Huge Janette Oke fan. Her books inspire me to live a faithful, Christian life...and this book just happens to be my favorite, if it's possible to have a favorite Oke book (they are all wonderful!) I encourage you to read this Saga!

I had not read any of her books for a few weeks and i thought that this one looked good so i thought i would read it. And let me tell you that i am very glad i did. i love how ms. oke focuses in on one familys difficulties and shows how God works in their lives for the better and everything is possible with God. I reccomend this book very highly,as also any of Janette Okes books.

This is a wonderful book about life & some of the things that come our way. If you ever enjoyed the Little House on the Prairie Books, you'll love this book! It's great to see how families pulled together to make things work out, if only more people would live by those standards today!!! I have read a lot of Janette Oke's books, but this is truly one of the best!

I have read all her books and have enjoyed all of them. Janette has a way of connecting with her readers and getting her readers involved in the story. Once you start reading, it is hard to put it down until you finish the book

I have read and love all of Janette Oke's books. A Searching Heart was another great story. I am anxiously waiting the next in the series. I see that there is a Book 4, but haven't been able to locate Book 3. What is it's title and where can I find it?

This book is wonderful. I have read The Tender Years, and A Searching Heart. I am anxiously waiting another. I recommend to anyone to read and buy this outstanding book series!

I loved this book! It was so easy to relate to Virginia and feel her emotions. This is one of the best books Janette Oke has ever written. I can't wait for the next book in the series.

Many fans of Janette Oke have asked her to bring back Clark and Marty Davis and she does so in this series. This series is about their granddaughter Virginia, Belinda's daughter.

Virginia lives on a farm with her husband, Jonathan, and their children. Jonathan works with his brother breeding and raising horses. Lots of changes happen for Virginia in a few short years.

Their daughter, Mindy, was left with them by her mother when she was very young. Mindy knows about her "real" mother because she still has some memories of her. But since she has lived with Virginia and Jonathan she's called them mother and father because they are the only real family she's known.

Mindy hopes her mother will soon come to Christ. She prays for her as often as possible.

Mindy's mother comes for a visit and requests something that Jonathan and Virginia won't agree to.

I really liked this book! I like the Love Comes Softly series better so far but maybe I need to finish this series before I compare them. But I do suggest this series, it does a great job of continuing the story of the Davis Family.

If I could rate this book higher I would!! Janette Oke has long been a favorite author of mine. I have read most all of her books with her "Love Comes Softly" series my all-time favorite. I was thrilled to see her begin a new series with the granddaughter of Clark and Marty. But when I read the first book several years ago, I was less than enthused. Recently I saw this had become "The Praire Legacy" series, so I re-read Book 1 and continued with the series. Once again, these books are heartwarming and should be cherished forever. In "Like Gold Refined" we see Virginia as a young wife and mother coping with life changes ... not always easy. Along with the ups and downs of everyday life comes a bitter and hard-fought custody battle over Mindy, the daughter of Virginia's childhood friend Jenny. Mindy has lived with Virginia and Jonathon since she was a toddler when Jenny leaves her with the young couple. I was gripped by the story and was inspired not only by Virginia's faith through these circumstances but moreso with little Mindy's strong faith to bring her wayward Mama Jenny to the Lord. I experienced so many emotions, from laughing,crying, comfort and anguish. I rejoiced at the conclusion. It is my hope that Janette Oke will continue on with Mindy's story (possibly a new series of books). Thank you for blessing our lives with the story of Clark and Marty and their many offspring.

Like many of Oke's readers, I have followed the saga of the Davis family in the Love Comes Softly Series and now The Prairie Legacy. Like Gold Refined, the conclusion to the Prairie Legacy series, continues the story of the Davis's grandaughter Virginia. In the first three books of the series, readers saw Virginia mature from a flighty teenager to a caring young wife and mother. In Like Gold Refined, Virginia's path to maturity continues as she has to accept the physical changes in her aging grandparents, Clark and Marty Davis. She does not want them to grow old, to leave their farm, or to change anything in their lives. Her mother Belinda has accepted these changes and makes plans to deal with them, but Virginia wants to hang on to the past, keeping everything the same. When Virginia and her husband Jonathon have to suddenly deal with a court battle over their "unofficially adopted" daughter Mindy, Clark and Marty's problems take a back seat to their own setbacks. Over the ensuing months, Virginia and Jonathon travel to the city, leaving their young family, battle with judges and lawyers, and risk losing their livelihood as they go in to debt to pay legal fees. All the while, Virginia tries to maintain a normal household and keep things the same. Finally, it is Mindy who realizes that changes must be made and she makes the decision herself about where to live. After it is all over, Virginia explains to Mindy that some things are meant to change, and that it is all in God's plan. Through her own journey with Mindy and their problems, Virginia finally realizes and accepts that her grandparents are aging and must leave the farm. If not for the trials that Virginia suffered with Mindy, she would not have come to grips with the fact that even her grandparents' lives must change. Oke has done an excellent job with the two storylines, using one to bring about the resolution of the other. She has also come up with a fitting conclusion to the story of Clark and Marty, and has indeed shown the complete transformation of Virginia from a contented, yet carefree, housewife to a sensible young mother whose trials have formed her into a wise Christian woman, much Like Gold Refined.

My aunt suprised me one day with the LOVE COMES SOFTLY series she had had for a couple years. I put off reading them for a couple years because I was only eight! I started the first book when I was 11 and just could not put it down! I read the whole series and it had a very big impact on me. I've read the first three books at least ten times each, never getting bored with them and the rest of the series at least three. Please consider these books. They are the bomb!

Imagine you1re living in the midst of the 19th century. You1re 19, far from friends and family, and to top it all off, your husband dies and you are two months pregnant with his child.........

Love Comes Softly is an eight book series written by Christian author Jannette Oke. I thought when my mother-in-law tried to get me to read her books, that I was in for another mushy Harlequin Romance novel, filled with people involved with three, four or five men, and definitely no sign of God in their lives. Boy, was I in for a VERY pleasant surprise. Mrs. Oke leads us through the life of a very young Marty Davis, who has just left her family in the east, to travel west with her new husband , Clem. Clem and Marty had been living out of their wagon, eating pancakes and drinking coffee EVERY day, because that1s all that Marty knew how to make. Unexpectedly, though, Clem dies, and Marty is left alone with child and no home, no money, and just what she has in her wagon.

The Love Comes Softly series then begins to take us through the struggles Marty has to overcome and Mrs. Oke guides us so beautifully, that we feel like we are right there with Marty. The eight books lead us through 40 years in Marty and her family1s lives. I enjoyed every minute of the readings. Never has a book so captured me like Mrs. Oke1s did.

I try to count my blessings every day, but after reading this group of books, I found more to be thankful for. I never stopped to realize what the generations before us went through. With Marty, I learned what is was like to bear a child with no husband and no doctor around--just a local lady that had delivered many babies. I learned what it was like to leave family behind, knowing that you will probably never see them again--or even hear from them again.

The funniest part of the series was in the very first book. Marty decides she will try to make her new husband a chicken and dumpling meal. Well........she goes to the chicken pen to try and catch one. After tearing apart then pen, she finally catches one of only two roosters (she didn1t know she was supposed to only kill the female). Once she gets him, she has no idea as to how to kill him, so she decides to tie him up and kill him--that didn1t work, and she wound up cutting off the beak of the prize rooster. When her husband, Clark comes home, he finds the pen in disarray, and sees his rooster with no beak and he comes to find out that Marty was just trying to cook him his first real meal. This part cracked me up, along with the part where she tries to fix biscuits and they turn out as hard as rocks.

You have to read the books in order. They just keep continuing with this saga. The best book in the series was book four. I can1t tell you why, for it would give the ending for the rest of the series, but it was the book that kept me the most fascinated. The hardest part about the series was the way she wrote it. She wrote it with the accents as they would have said things. It was hard at first, but I got used to it by the second book. I highly recommend her books, and am looking forward to the next series I am about to read. The new series is from the Canadian West. It involves new characters, and therefore new lives.

I would really appreciate hearing from others who have read her books--especially the Love Comes Softly series. It would be enjoyable to talk with others about Jannette Oke1s books. You can find her work at any Christian bookstore or even the library. They are expensive, between $9-13.00, but they are worth their price. I found twelve of her books at the library, though. I hope you enjoy it as much as I have. It is definitely a series I would read again and again, and I look forward to my two daughters growing up and wanting to read them as well. They are written in the same manner as the Little House on the Prairie series by Laura Ingalls Wilder. ENJOY!!!!!!

This is a wonderful story about family life at a time when people did not possess much material things but instead loved and cared for one another unconditionally. The story begins with Clark and Marty and goes on to include the lives of their children. What drew me to read and reread this series of books is the way it is written with so much love and understanding. There are many moral issues dealing with the Christian God and how the righteous man would behave. It is therefore also a book of learning. I would highly recommend this series. This is one of the few series of books that I would consider to be worth spending money on. I know that I will reread it many more times. Janette Oke is an excellent storyteller.

Very unlike typical Janette Oke, Dana's Valley is a wonderful modern-day story of a family struggling with the illness and death of their child. Oke and daughter Laurel have a way of making the reader empathetic with each and every family member, be it the angry, resentful older brother, or the exhausted, heartsick mother. The journey that the Walsh family takes through fear, denial, acceptance, and, finally, resignation will keep you riveted throughout. I could not put the book down.

This story related to what my family is currently going through. My mom is fighting breast cancer. Mrs. Oke's writing came alive to me. I felt everything that Erin felt. All the thoughts and feelings I have had dealing with my mom's illness came out. I recommend this book to any who is dealing with a serious disease. This book will make you think and discover feelings you never thought you had.

After reading a very negative review on the book, I wasn't sure what to expect when I started reading. Since Janette Oke has been a favorite author of mine for many years, I took a chance and bought the book anyway.

As the younger sibling of a Hemophiliac who spent many weeks in the hospital during my growing up years, Dana's Valley hit very close to home. I could relate to Dana's younger sister completely. Erin's mixed feelings were very real - I've been there.

If you haven't walked through the Valley of the Shadow of Death with a family member or close friend, this book may not be for you. But if you have, have a box of tissue handy!

As someone who enjoyed Oke's Love Comes Softly series and read all the books in it twice, despite their tendency to get a bit less well-developed and padded after the first few titles, I was very interested when the Prairie Legacy books came out. I was glad to see that a break from writing about the Davis family and their children seems to have revived Oke's ability to make up new, detailed incidents in the lives of Marty and Clark's daughter, Belinda, the man she was about to marry at the end of _Love Finds a Home_ and their five children, esp. teenage Virginia. Despite quibbles--like that the story seems to take place in a vacuum, as far as the outside world is concerned (no radio, no mention of the Depression or whatever period the book is supposed to be taking place in), or that Belinda would have been summoned to nursing duties by way of the phone at the time the book occurs, instead of by someone running to her house to tell her about an amergency (someone must have mentioned this to Oke, because they definitely have a phone by the next book), or that Clark and Marty *must* be at least six or eight years older than they are supposed to be in the otherwise wonderful where-are-they-now? prologue--I enjoyed the book and devoured it in one evening. Virginia's friend, Jenny, is very manipulative, but Virginia's conflict between pleasing her parents and satisfying her own ideals on the one hand and wanting to fit in on the other was something that anyone who remembers their growing up will identify with, and Virginia's conflicts after her own conversion, as she desires to see Jenny saved and worries about alienating her or being a horrible Christian example but also wants to avoid moral compromises and gives in to all-too-human emotions, as we all surely do, made the story compelling. I was not one hundred percent content with the way the mystery thread of the book was resolved, but I was pleased enough in other ways that my pleasure outweighed my quibbles, and I wanted to read the next book.

"The Tender Years" is a wonderful book. I read it this past fall, and absolutely loved it! I had already read the Love Comes Softly series and was wondering what had happened to everybody! When I heard Janette Oke was coming out with the Prairie Legacy books, I couldn't believe it! I was very surprised at how young Virginia was (13), but also very happy. I'm a teenager too, so I could relate to alot of things in the book. I loved the way she learned to trust God (as we all need to.) All I can really say is... READ IT!! Thank you, Janette Oke! Happy Reading!!

This was a wonderful book about Marty and Clarks grandaughter Virginia and how she struggles to feel accepted by her peers. Its especially hard for Virginia because of her fiery-tempered friend Jenny Woods who always seems to be getting her into trouble. If you liked the Love Comes Softly series you'll love the story of Marty and Clarks grandaughter Virginia. I can't wait to read the rest of the books in the series!

This series has started me reading again. I never thought I would read three books in one week, but I did. I felt as if I was the major character in the story. In my mind I would visualize the farm or ranch. I could see the characters. The author does a terrific job in making the characters come alive. These books takes a person back to the pioneer days and how America became the America today. I couldn't put them down. (Although, I haven't read number 2 book because it is not in my church library.) I plan on reading it and all the other books by Janette Oke.

These books are great! I have read 6 out of this series and hope to start book 7 this weekend. Book 5 had me crying my eyes out when Ellie helped Nandry come to terms with Clarks leg. The way the Davis family looks to God for help in everyday living not just in crisis is very cool. I myself am somewhat like how Marty was when she first met Clark. Just seeing how they grow spiritually through the years and can always see something good no matter what. I wish I was that forgiving and understanding. These books have made me look at my own life and relize I have alot of spiritual growing to do and it also let me go into a world that the values and love of a family can get you through almost anything. I wish our fast paced society would stop and look at simple things as the Davis's did. I tell everyone I know that reads to pick up this series, it will always be a lifetime favorite of mine. Must have in your collection.

The "Love Comes Softly" series is a magnificent series that allows you to embark on both a amazing and uplifting story.

Basically this book begins when Marty (the main character of the first five books) looses her husband of just one year on a wagon train west. Left alone and by herself, Marty is approached by Clark who, just one day after her husband died, asks her to marry him. Marty is amazed that someone could be so insensitive but also realizes that she needs a place to stay until she can return to her family in the spring. Yet, Marty also needs to stay somewhere because she is going to have her first child in about seven monthes. Clark also needs a woman to watch his daughter who lost her mother just two months beforehand. An agreement is made between the two that Marty will be feed while she watches Clark's daughter, Missie (more formally Melissa).

The rest of the first book tells the story of Marty, coming from a non-christian family, learning about Christ and His message. This is a magnificent book with flawed characters and an interesting setting.

Books 2-8 are a continuation of Love Comes Softly and are quite unlike the usual sequel. Wheither you decide to embark on the adventure of these books or not, probably one thing you can learn is that love, forgiveness, and acceptance take time but they are certainly worth it.

It's hard to believe this was Janette Oke's *first* story plot, but it remained unwritten (alive only in her head) for so many years! At first, this one is different from many other "Women of the West" books. Usually the first scene from a book in this series depicts a little girl, and we chronicle her life from childhood to womanhood. Not so with this one--after two chapters of character and setting introduction, this story starts right in on plot, and both main characters are adults from the beginning. I loved the little twists and turns as Ariana and Laramie got to know each other (under extremely unusual circumstances!), and I loved the surprise ending. Laramie is an especially vivid character who is easily understood and sympathized with. And of course, Ariana is next to perfect! Oke's light, easy writing style does the storyline perfect justice. This has got to be the finest installment of the series!

A Gown of Spanish Lace is the story of Ariana, a sixteen year old schoolteacher. She is abducted from her school right before a storm. She is taken by her captors far from her home. There she loses track of time but never loses her faith in God to take care of her. She is befriended by Sam, one of the outlaws who abducts her. Sam is in charge of guarding the prisoner but then things change. Laramie, son of The Boss, is put in charge of Ariana. This is all part of The Boss's plot and reason for taking her. After Laramie is put in charge of Ariana things take on very interesting turns. People begin to realize they aren't who they thought. I can't say anymore without giving the story away.

This book was a wonderful read. It kept me on the edge of my seat. I had to find out what would happen between Ariana and Laramie. I found myself feeling sympathy for not only Ariana for being in the situation she was in but also for Laramie. He was also in a situation he wasn't comfortable or sure about.

Janette Oke writes such wonderful books. Her characters are so real one almost believes they really did live in the past. Though her books are set in the prairie times the messages in them will be current for all of time. This book is so well written. Events happen at such a pace the reader doesn't have time to catch their breath or stop for a break. You simply must read ahead to find out what happens. I loved this book and was so sorry it ended. I must say I was beginning to get a little worried toward the end when things weren't looking good for Ariana and Laramie. This is a must read book.

This book is the best book I have read of Janette Okes so far!!!! I was very into it!!! The ending was so fabulous.I was kind of upset to find that Laramie and Ariana were brother and sister,but as I continued reading,as always Janette Oke suprised us!!!! What a GREAT ending!!!!! Thanx Janette Oke for writing such wonderful Christian books!! My friends and I read them all the time.