Review: When Breaks the Dawn

When Breaks the Dawn by Janette Oke
Series: Canadian West #3
Genre: Christian Fiction, Historical Fiction
Pages: 244 (paperback)

From Goodreads.com:

Having survived the harshness of their first year in the far Northwest, Elizabeth and Wynn, her Royal Canadian Mountie, now face new challenges. Just when they've made new friends and started a new school, they are presented with a new posting. It seems Elizabeth's dreams for a family and home of her own are not to be. Will their love for each other, hope for the future, and their faith in God carry them through the crushing disappointments? Book 3 of the bestselling Canadian West series

My Rating :

My Review:

I used to read Janette Oke a lot when I was younger so I decided to pick up this book in a moment of nostalgia.  In a nutshell, this book is about the trial and tribulations of Elizabeth and Wynn while they endure the hardships of the rugged west.  

You don't have to have read the first two books in the series but it might be helpful.  Some characters are mentioned in passing that will be unfamiliar if you haven't read the previous two books but it doesn't affect the present storyline much.  Some books are a historical fiction with religious overtones; this particular book is a Christian novel that is historical fiction (if the difference makes sense).  It's a simple/quick read and you find yourself really caring about the characters--all of them.  There is heartache and sorrow along with joy and triumph.  

There is one small thing that really bugged me though.  Elizabeth really struggled and she made mistakes but it frustrated me a bit that Wynn was so good.  Wynn made all the right decisions and was the pillar for Elizabeth to lean on.  He didn't argue, yell, or do anything crazy.  He had the appropriate emotions at the appropriate times.  He always remembered to trust in God and pray.  It wasn't just a matter of a perfect/imperfect characters but it almost came across as "the man knows best," which rubbed me the wrong way.  This didn't ruin the book for me in anyway and it was still a good book, but I'm not sure if I will finish the series because my irritation would only grow.

Any detail  will give something away so I will keep from spoiling this for someone else.

What do you think?  Have you read Janette Oke before?  What did you think?  Do you ever have that contradicting feeling where you enjoyed a book but you just have to let it go anyway?