The Element of Love (The Lumbar Baron's Daughters #1) by Mary Connealy

With their sharp engineering minds, Laura Stiles and her two sisters have been able to deal with their mother's unfortunate choice in husband, until they discover his plans to marry each of them off to his lecherous friends. Now they must run away--far and fast--to find better matches to legally claim their portion of their father's lumber dynasty and seize control from their stepfather.

When Laura befriends a mission group heading to serve the poor in California during their escape, she quickly volunteers herself and her sisters to join their efforts. Despite the settlement being in miserable condition, the sisters are excited by the opportunity to put their skills to good use. Laura also sees potential in Caleb, the local minister, to help with gaining her inheritance. But when secrets buried in Caleb's past and in the land around them come to light, it'll take all the smarts the sisters have to keep trouble at bay.
 

My thoughts:

The Lumber Barron’s Daughter series by Mary Connealy gets off to a great start in The Elements of Love.  Three highly intelligent sisters are forced to leave their beloved mother, home and everything they love when they discover the plans their stepfather has for their future.

The love and strength their mother had by helping her daughters escape showed how selfless this woman is, as she was left to face the wrath of her husband.  The Stiles sisters definitely get their bravery from her.  I love the gumption that Laura, Michelle and Jillian Stiles show as they meet and join a mission group and how they help them minister to a rather motley crew of people they meet. 

This is such a wonderful novel filled with a cast of characters who I want to get better acquainted with. I look forward to the next book in the series to find out what the author has in store for her readers.

I received a copy of this book from the publisher.  All opinions are my own.