Harmony on the Horizon is the third installment in Kathleen Denly’s Chaparral Hearts series. Thankfully, it works well as a standalone too.

It’s rare for me to binge read a historical book (exceptions would be books by Karen Witemeyer and Jen Turano). But I digress. I read Harmony on the Horizon in three goes.

The story starts to build from chapter one, and the stakes keep going up and up until the very end. Wow. As a writer, I have to say, this is a masterclass in adding tension and stress to character journeys. All while keeping the reader fully engaged with the various storylines.

Margaret Foster is an abolitionist schoolteacher. At 37, she’s given up on finding love, except within the joy of teaching. She takes a position in San Diego, full of southern sympathizers and quickly finds herself on the wrong side of many parents, her job under threat.

One man who’s quick to defend her is single school board member Elliot Thompson. Despite needing to focus on his growing financial empire, his head is turned by the new teacher, but just as he asks to court her, his business takes a series of devastating blows. Can he refocus on what’s right, and save not only his reputation, but his heart as well?

With a tightly drawn plot and characters who can’t fail but to pull you in to their lives, I definitely recommend this book.