Review - Jaded & Justified by Varina Denman

David C. Cook; 432 pages; $14.99; Amazon

Last month, when I signed up to review Justified by Varina Denman, David C. Cook publishing nicely sent me the first two books in the Mended Heart series (Jaded & Justified) to read first. Instead of writing two separate posts, I decided to feature my reviews for the two titles in a single one.

Set in small Texas town, Jaded centers on a young woman named Ruthie, who had lost all faith in the Lord when she was shunned from her church at a a young age. (No, she's not an Amish.) Though she is now an adult and working two jobs, she still gets funny looks when she runs across the church members on the street.

Everything changes for Ruthie when a single pastor moves to town. What starts out as a friendship between the two, quickly changes to romances. However, Ruthie's past might spoil any chance for a "happily ever" ending.

David C. Cook; 416 pages; $14.99; Amazon

The sequel, Justified, is set in the same small town called Trapp, Texas, where the gossip always spreads quickly. It picks up the events of the previous novel where the side-character Fawn Blaylock informs her rich parents that she is pregnant. Now cut off from her family, Fawn must deal all the gossip that the townsfolk are saying behind her back. Not for sure if she should be in a relationship with the baby's father, Fawn questions her life.

The only friends Fawn can turn to is Ruthie (aka, the main character from the first book) and JohnScott (Ruthie's cousin) as she struggles with her future and her faith.

Final Thoughts: Many Christian series usually have different characters and settings in each novel, but that isn't the case of the Mended Heart series as it features recurring characters in Trapp, Texas. I grew up in  small town in Missouri and unfortunately the churches there reminds me of the one in this series, where people judge you a bit to harshly and spread rumors around town.

Overall, I enjoyed reading Jaded & Justified; both book are well-written with interesting characters.

*Disclaimer - I received a complimentary copy in exchange for my unbiased review. All opinions are my own.