"Aloha Rose" by Lisa Carter

When Laney Carrigan's adoptive parents encourage her as an adult to seek out her birth family, her only clue is the Lokelani quilt in which she was found wrapped as an infant. Centering her search on the Big Island, she battles fears of rejection from a family that abandoned her once before while her faith struggles to embrace God's love.

Along the path to her true heritage, she meets Hawaiian cowboy/helicopter pilot, Kai Barnes. Kai is determined to protect the people he's come to regard as family against a woman he suspects of being nothing more than a gold-digger, but he finds himself drawn to Laney in spite of his reservations. He's spent his entire life seeking forgiveness from past mistakes and longs for a second chance at happiness. 

Laney's painstaking journey to find restoration and a place to belong among the breathtaking allure of the Big Island will lead her closer to her past and maybe even something more.

Laney's journey from wallflower to strong, independent woman willing to risk it all for love is a stand-out story.  I love the way that her story comes to light, little by little, exposing more about her emotional journey as well as her scarred past.  This helps the reader to understand why she reacts the way that she does in the present and makes it even more exciting for her to put everything on the line in terms of the relationships she forges in Hawaii.

Kai is no less exciting.  With his rugged good looks but fear of putting himself out there, he makes for an interesting male lead.  At times I wanted him to lead already, but his weaknesses were determined by his past, too, and helped the faith journey along.  

I really liked the way that the quilt was used in this story. With a unique pattern connecting the mother to the daughter, it's theme fit well with the story and was carried throughout.

I was able to guess a few elements of the story, but others threw me completely off track, and that makes for the best kind of story to me: one in which I'm never quite sure which direction the characters will go.

Carter's smooth writing style and exciting locale kept the pages turning and Hawaiian dreams scrolling through my mind.  I hope that Carter has more stories in the works, because I'm definitely ready to dig into another one.

Read other reviews in this bloggy hop here or purchase your own copy now here.

Lisa Carter has been published in MomSense and Christian Parenting Today. Lisa is currently teaching music at a preschool and enjoying the enthusiasm and joy for life for which preschoolers are famous. She and David have two beautiful daughters.

Find out more at: http://www.quiltsoflovebooks.com

I received a free copy of this book from LitFuse Publicity in exchange for an honest review.