Brooke Pierce thought she’d perfected the art of hiding her feelings from Chess, her best friend and surrogate brother. Then, in a moment of weakness, she reveals the truth. His immediate rejection shatters her heart. After years of waiting for something that clearly wasn’t meant to be, it’s time to break away. Knowing she needs to move on, she must rely on the faith that’s always sustained her.
Chess Summers can’t be the person Brooke needs, even though his heart demands otherwise. Determined to protect Brooke from his past, he’s refused to tell her about the family he came from or the painful way it fell apart. He’ll do anything to give her the future she deserves, even if it means keeping his distance to prevent history from repeating itself.
As they grapple with the changes in their friendship, they realize moving apart won’t end their struggles. Only by taking the journey together can it lead to the redemption and love they both so desperately seek.
My Thoughts:
After being introduced to Brooke and Chess as supporting characters in Safe In His Arms, Ms. Snitker’s first book in the Life Unexpected series, I couldn’t wait for their story to be told. Ms. Snitker did a wonderful job of enticing me with little teasers about their relationship in that first book and I’ve been waiting for this second book, Someone to Trust, to find out more about them and to see what happens for them. (For clarification, both books in the series can be read as standalones, but it is fun to have read them both and know each couple’s story.)
At the beginning of this second book, Joel and Anna, the couple who stars in book one, are gone on their honeymoon, putting Chess and Brooke in situations where they have to rely more on each other and spend more time together alone. Without the others around to act as a buffer, Brooke’s and Chess’ feelings for each other are more difficult for them to ignore and push away. It is bittersweet to watch those feelings come to the forefront as there are some inner struggles that need to be overcome before their relationship can come together.
Brooke is a sweet character who is easy to root for. Sometimes God allows things in our lives in order to serve as a catalyst for Him being able to bring about His best for us after he gets our attention and gets us to let go of less than His best. We can see a little bit of this happen in Brooke’s life as she faces some tough situations in the book and God uses those situations to work in her heart about what He has in store for her.
Chess, even in his struggles, is a lovable character that you want to see find what he’s looking for. He’s one of those heroes who is a little bit stoic at times and who feels like it is on his shoulders to take care of the people in his life, often taking on more than what his shoulders were really intended to bear. He wants to fix things for those he loves and part of his journey in this book is letting go of things in his past he couldn’t fix and learning to move forward.
Spoiler Alert: The following paragraph definitely contains some spoilers, but is something I feel like I need to mention.
As readers, we get to observe as Chess begins to embrace the idea of a God who is interested in him and even the small details of his life; a God who loves him, who has plans for him, and who wants the best for him. By the end of the book, it is pretty obvious that Chess has finally taken steps to surrender his heart and life to the Lord—Which is a great thing! But on the journey to get there, it is never mentioned that Brooke, as a Christian, should be cautious about entering a relationship with someone who is known to not to be a Christian. As difficult as it would be to tell someone, I could not stand by and watch as a friend who is a Christian pursued someone who is clearly not a Christian and not caution them as to the potential heartache ahead for them. With what I believe, for me, there would be an inner struggle if I had fallen for someone who was not a Christian, knowing that to pursue a relationship potentially leading to marriage with someone who does not know the Lord goes against what God’s Word advises. I found myself wanting someone to be there to offer that caution, that advice to Brooke. I do understand, though, that not everyone who is a Christian has been taught that caution and that just because we have heard such a caution, that does not mean we will follow it. In that respect, the fact that there is no mention of a need for Brooke to be careful about a relationship that is more than friends with Chess before he becomes a Christian can be seen as a sometimes true to life situation.
While I love the family that Chess, Brooke, Joel, and Anna have created for themselves or rather that God has put together for them, I would love to see them encounter an older Christian who could come alongside them and mentor them, to offer them some extra wisdom gained from a little more life experience and his/her own personal journey in learning to trust the Lord.
Aside from that one caution or caveat about the book mentioned above, Someone to Trust is an enjoyable read and would be a great book for anyone searching for a sweet, clean romance to read. I’m looking forward to book 3 in the Life Unexpected series, which I hope will take us on the journey of surprise character introduced in Someone to Trust!
For those of you who participate in Amazon’s Kindle Unlimited program: Good news for you! All of Ms. Snitker’s books are currently available for you to read for free through Kindle Unlimited. Check them all out here.
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**I received a copy of this book from the author and have chosen to review it. My opinions are my own.
Redeemed Hope Dweller 