Amethyst by Lauraine Snelling

Amethyst's decision to travel to Medora is born of her desire to find her nephew, Joel, and her desperation to temporarily get away from her alcoholic father. After finding Joel, discovering a shocking secret, and making new friendships, Amethyst's plans are altered. No longer does she desire to return home. In Medora she has found a new life for herself and is enjoying the changes within herself. Meanwhile, Joel's father, Jacob Chandler has plans of his own. He has loved Opal Torvald for months and is simply waiting for her to reach the appropriate age.

Amethyst picks up literally right where the third book left off. I definitely would not read this book without first reading Opal. And if possible, I would recommend reading all three books in the series prior to reading Amethyst. I was happy to finally get a small note about Belle's reaction to the burning of the Dove House. Not much was said, but at least, it was not so open-ended as it was after the second and third books in the series. In Amethyst, both Amethyst and Opal both undergo a lot of character development. The romantic relationships in the book added an element that was not really explored in the previous book due to Opal's age. However, in this book, that element really came forward and the story gave a fitting end to the Dakota Treasures series.

Opal by Lauraine Snelling

After the burning of the Dove House, Ruby Torvald married Rand Harrison and moved to his ranch. Ruby's younger sister, Opal, loves ranch life. At 14, she can shoot, rope, train horses and participate in roundup. Unfortunately, a little thing called school keeps getting in her way. One day after leaving school early due to a headache, she decides to take a detour on the way home. It's a decision that changes her life forever. Her friend, Atticus, ends up injured and is taken away from Medora. As she struggles with guilt and uncertainly, she comes to find that she is being shaped by a God who can make her more than a simple ranch hand.

In Opal, the author takes us deeper into the character of Opal Torvald than either of the first two books in the series do. I thought she did a remarkable job of demonstrating the difficulties of Opal's situation and her personal growth without losing all of Opal's childhood innocence. The one thing I did not like about the book was that the author never addressed what Belle's reaction to the burning of the Dove House was. Belle was mentioned several times in the book, but never was her reaction noted. Somehow, I kept expecting it to come, but I got to the end and it never did. Other than that, it was a easy, comforting read. The storyline is actually much more complex than the synopsis above, but for sake of brevity, I gave the broad overview. Several new characters were introduced, including one who is extremely interested in Opal. I think the complexity really drew me in and made it all the more enjoyable.

Pearl by Lauraine Snelling

The legacy of the Dove House continues in Pearl, the second book in Lauraine Snelling's Dakota Treasures series. Ruby, Opal and the ladies of the Dove House are joined by Pearl, a school teacher who harbors physical and emotional scars as well as a secret that she is running from. The ladies bind together to face more unexpected circumstances – some good, some bad. As romance blossoms, trouble brews. Pearl is running from an arranged marriage, money is still tight for Ruby and Opal has picked up some disturbing habits. In the end, only by trusting in God will each woman come to find rest, joy and love.

I liked this book, although I did not think it was as good as the first book in the series, Ruby. The beginning was a little slow. However, about a fourth of the way through, the book captured my interest and I enjoyed reading the rest of it. The one thing that bothered me about the book was that although we know Pearl's mother died and Pearl has a scar, we never quite find out the complete circumstances about the incident. It is possible that this may be explained in one of the later books in the series. The first book in the series also had a lot of openness to the ending. I definitely would not recommend reading this book without first reading Ruby as it was heavily built upon the first book.

Ruby by Lauraine Snelling

At the request of her dying father, Ruby Torvald resigns her position of governess and takes her younger sister, Opal, to meet him and to claim their inheritance. What her father fails to mention is that their inheritance is the Dove House – a saloon filled with gambling, liquor and “hospitality services.” When Ruby and Opal arrive, they are understandably shocked. After the death of their father, they face the daunting reality that they must claim their inheritance to keep Ruby's promise to their father. Ruby's determination to restore the Dove House to a respectable family establishment is met with resistance on all sides. Ultimately she finds that her strength alone is not adequate for the task, but there is One whose strength never fails.

Somehow this book was not what I expected, but in a good way. I found myself cheering Ruby on as she struggled against the many challenges. The characters seemed authentic and Opal's character was especially amusing. This is only the first book in the Dakota Treasures series and the ending was somewhat resolved and somewhat open. I am eager to continue reading the rest of the books in this series.