Forever by Your Side (Willamette Brides Book #3)

Forever by Your Side by Tracie Peterson is the 3rd novel in Willamette Brides series. While this book can be read on its own, I recommend reading the series in order. There is a mystery that runs throughout the trilogy that gets resolved in Forever by Your Side. I thought Forever by Your Side was well-written with developed characters. The author provided word imagery that brings the scenery and people alive. I can tell that Tracie Peterson did her research for this series and I appreciated the Author’s Note at the end. Connie Browning is a smart, independent woman who has been living with her aunt and uncle in Washington, D.C. for the last seven years. Her parents have been missionaries to the Native Americans for many years and now they are being accused of inciting war and providing the natives with weapons and whiskey. Connie is using her new job with the Smithsonian Institute’s Bureau of Ethnology as a cover. Her work partner and friend, Tom Lowell is going to help her prove her parent’s innocence. The characters from the first two novels (Nancy, Faith, Seth, Andrew, the boarding house ladies) are present along with the evil Mr. Smith. We get to finally learn who is the mastermind behind the violence and plan. How the Indians were treated was terrible and the atrocities are highlighted in this book. Christian themes are present throughout. I like how the author incorporated them into the story. Romance is not at the forefront of Forever by Your Side which I appreciated. It plays out softly in the background with a lovely ending. I like how the title was incorporated at the end. I enjoyed the mystery and adventure in the story. Forever by Your Side was a great conclusion to the Willamette Brides trilogy.