To Win Her Heart

Written by Karen Witemeyer

Narrated by Therese Plummer

RITA Award nominee Karen Witemeyer is acclaimed for her winning blend of history, humor, and romance. In this heart-stirring tale, repentant ex-convict Levi Grant comes to Spencer, Texas, in 1887-hoping to put his past behind him and start out fresh as the town's new blacksmith. To promote civility, Eden Spencer runs her own lending library, where she discovers Levi's love of literature. But just as romance begins to bloom, Eden learns of Levi's prodigal past.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Recorded Books, Inc.
• Release date: Aug 19, 2011
• ISBN: 9781461816133

Karen Witemeyer

Winner of the HOLT Medallion and the Carol Award and a finalist for the RITA and Christy Award, bestselling author Karen Witemeyer writes historical romance to give the world more happily-ever-afters. Karen makes her home in Texas, with her husband and three children. Learn more about Karen and her books at www.karenwitemeyer.com.

Reviews for To Win Her Heart

[M. Malcolm · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I really enjoyed this book, and the audio book narration added a layer of interest.

[Aimee Flores · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Good story! Even my husband's interest was hooked. The reader was great, seamlessly shifting from character to character.

[Cheryl Burns · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I really enjoyed this book, I hope to find more audio book like this

[bookslesstravelled · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Actual Rating: 4.5

This one was recommended to be recently, and I'm so glad I picked it up! Historical Romance tends to be a bit hit-or-miss for me, as romance as a plot doesn't always grab my attention. This is a clean Christian Romance, but I really enjoyed the writing style and getting to meet these characters!

I admit, while I did like Eden, her uppity tendencies and prejudice ideals did gets old quick at times. More so, as the readers already know about Levi's past, and that she's about to find out too... I loved Levi's parts through-out though, and really loved seeing his gentile ways and patient nature slowly change the way the town dealt with their fears and concerns as his past, and the church's Bible funds drive start to make sense.

I also can't write a proper review with at least mentioning Chloe and Duncan! I loves several of the townspeople in this one (and honestly wish it was part of a series...Stand alones are find, but part of me wishes to return to this town a while longer...) I loved both of these supporting-characters and really enjoyed seeing how Chloe's story helps Eden learn to trust and open-up to the idea that her past, and her thoughts on forgiveness and redemption can change over time without her being naïve or loosing a part of herself in the process. She has long thought that if she allowed the events of her past to be anything but a guiding force to prevent repeated heart-break, that she would be less than the woman she strived for years to become or considered 'broken' regardless of what anyone else tries to teach her.

I also loved the library scenes, each one! I also loved how a love of books and literature is one of the things that connected these characters!

Overall, I found this one a charming and entertaining read. While there were a few places there I wished it would *hurry up and move to the next scene already!* I did enjoy this one and loved meeting these characters! I really enjoyed this story of finding one's place, love, redemption, and new beginnings. I also really enjoyed how the events around the side-characters and townsfolk also plays a role in changing up the MCs' perspectives a bit toward each other, and others from less fortunate upbringings or past mistakes that have followed them by way of stigmas. I also loved the detailed descriptions in this one! The writing style flows and is picturesque at times, with beautiful fields of wildflowers, cozy library afternoons, and lively exchanges around town!

[carolee888 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

To Win Her Heart by Karen Witmeyer has a very dramatic and memorable ending. It is set in Spencer, Texas in 1889. Levi Grant has a past that he is ashamed of. He is tall and is very muscular. He comes to Spencer to apply for a blacksmith job, the town has been without one for a long time. He learned his trade from his father but was enticed by prizefighting. Leaving his home to be a fighter, he intentionally commits a crime, and spends two years repaying his debt to society. He vowed to never fight again.Eden Spencer comes from a family of means and good reputation. She was jilted and decides to move to Spencer to open a lending library and give up on men. One day, Levi comes to the library to borrow a book. Eden looks at this very large stranger and wonders if she should trust him with a book.They both have secrets from the past and seem very different in educational background, social status and will have to deal with secrets and sheriff that you will to hate. Love, forgiveness, understanding and redemption and special mutt named Ornery will make you to always remember this story.

[judyg54 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This was a story I didn't start out thinking I would enjoy that much, but the more I kept reading, the more this story grew on me. It was a story of second chances. Levi Grant is starting over in the town of Spencer, Texas, after completing his sentence in prison for the unintentional crime that "derailed his youthful plans for fame and fortune". He is now the town's blacksmith, which is a trade he learned from his father, before he struck out on his own as a prize-fighter.Eden Spencer chooses to spend her time running a lending library in Spencer, the town her father founded. When Levi decides to visit her library she is hesitant to trust him. Levi's struggle with words was heartfelt in this story. Eden soon starts to believe he is a man she could give her heart to, until Levi's past is suddenly brought out into the open. Levi will now need to 'win her heart' and show her he needs a second chance.

[maydacat_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Levi is a blacksmith with a somewhat violent past. A prize fighter who accidental killed a man in the ring, he has paid his dues in prison and has vowed to give up fighting and live a peaceful life. Eden, once jilted by a fiancé, has decided to live a single life, and has devoted herself to giving assistance to others and has opened her home as a lending library with her own books. She believes Levi to be slow-witted, due to a speech problem he takes care to hide, until she discovers their shared love of books. Through written letters left the borrowed books, they discuss literature, and fall in love. But all is not peaceful in this little town. The sherif has decided Eden will be his, despite her protests to the contrary, and he will do anything necessary to rid the town of his rival. Though the romance in this tale tends to be a bit too sweet for my tastes, there are some meatier parts to the book. Several topics arise in the course of the story, from forgiveness, to open mindedness, to compromise, to upholding your standards in the face of oppression. The setting and the time frame adds much to the enjoyment of this well written novel.

[mickyfine · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

After serving two years for manslaughter, Levi Grant has reconnected with his faith and made the decision to leave his prior career of prizefighting behind him and devote himself to his family trade as a blacksmith. Moving to a new town, he finds himself besotted with the local librarian, Eden Spencer. But with her utter abhorrence for any violence can Levi convince her to love a man with such a dark past?Yet another enjoyable Christian romance from Karen Witemeyer, this time with bonus small town librarian.

[chandra9of9red · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

SENSUALITY RATING: NO Profanity; NO Euphemistic "code words"; "SWEET" storyline with a kiss or two. GENRE: Inspirational; Romance; WesternSETTING: Spencer, Texas 19th centuryCENTRAL FEMALE CHARACTER: EDEN - Loves God; does not believe in violence of any kind; loves literature; running from a relationship gone bad.CENTRAL MALE CHARACTER: LEVI - Loves God; built like a mountain; has a lisp. His challenge: to let go of the guilt from his past sins.SYNOPSIS: Eden wants respect as a member of the city council. The town Pastor is the only person that knows that Levi is fresh out of prison. Together Eden and Levi struggle with instant attraction and their own little demons. WHAT I LIKED: 1) Discussion of literature via notes. 2) Storyline message: It is more important to care for the needs of others than to worry about your reputation.WHAT I DID NOT LIKE: I take notes when reading a book. No negative notations therefore no complaints.OVERALL RATING: (5) stars. What makes a book stand out? Having an author that drops storyline bread crumbs. A snippet of humor always helps.

[beckymmoe_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This is by far my favorite of all the Christian fiction/ historical fiction books I've read this year. Though it's characters definitely have Christian values, they're not in-your-face preachy about it like in some books, and don't spend pages in internal "WWJD" monologue like in others. This one was definitely more realisticly done; the characters didn't even beat themselves up (literally or figuratively) about having a physical response to one another, which was a nice change. If all Christian fiction were written like this one, I'd definitely read more of it.

Another thing I really liked about this book was the character of Levi. He has a speech impediment--he's unable to make the "s" sound well--and as a result tries not to use it at all. A teacher had suggested this solution to him as a child, and Levi became an avid reader in order to improve his vocabulary so as not to have to say "s" sounds in conversation. As a result, his speech is often slow as he tries to find a substitute word for the obvious ones, which of course often leads people to believe that he is slow. I was really amazed with how Witemeyer truly managed to keep the dreaded "s" sounds out of his conversation--it became almost a game for me, comparing what he does say to what "normally" would have been said in that situation. As an English teacher and wanna-be writer, I was truly impressed.

My fingers are crossed that Head in the Clouds (her third book) comes to my library's Overdrive soon!

[love2readnovels_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Eden Spencer has decided she was meant to live as a spinster since the man she loved and thought to marry left her. She vows never to lose her heart again and instead has poured herself in running the library and reading to the town's children. It seems to be working for her too, until a hulk of man shows up in the town of Spencer to apply for the much needed blacksmith position. Levi Grant comes to Spencer for a new start after being released from prison for killing a man accidentally. There is an immediate spark between them and she thinks she may have finally found a honorable man. But what will happen when she learns about Levi's less than honorable past? Another great story from Karen Witemeyer. This is the second book I've read by this author and I really like her style of writing. To Win her Heart is filled with lots of great characters. Eden was someone you really liked. She was very sweet and sincere but had a judgmental side to her. I think Eden represents most of us pretty well. Probably more than we want to admit. Levi was a really great hero. Even though he had a very tainted past, you could really see how the Lord had changed his heart. But you also saw how he still struggled with temptation. I think that was so realistically represented. Most of us can relate to that aspect as well. I loved the interaction between our two main characters. You really felt their attraction. I also enjoyed Eden's father. He brought a smile to my face. And I can't forget to mention Ornery the dog. He will steal your heart right from the start. If you like historicals you won't want to miss this one. I would definitely recommend it. A thank you goes to Bethany House for providing this complimentary copy for my review.

[gincam · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

A brainy blacksmith whose halting speech makes him seem slow-minded. A prim and proper librarian with a warm heart hemmed in by societal conventions. Two seemingly mismatched characters with a shared love of reading find themselves head-over-heels in love and not sure of how it all happened. Levi Grant's imposing size and prison record are intimidating, and his awkward speech is a cover for his hidden stuttering problem. Instead of speaking at a natural pace and exposing his stutter, he searches for words that he won't stumble on, making him seem somewhat limited in mentality. Eden Spencer is appalled to find herself attracted to such a man, but when they share their mutual love of books, she cannot deny Levi's appeal. When they began to write notes to each other, and Levi can "speak" with his natural intelligence and flow of words, Eden is hopelessly smitten. Their physical awareness of each other, at a respectful distance, is sweetly enticing. Their growing happiness is threatened by the sheriff in the town, a man who has always wanted Eden for her beauty and her family's wealth. Levi and Eden learn that being true to your faith and who you really are as a person is the key to real happiness. Luckily, their real happiness is found in each other's heart. Review copy provided by Bethany House

[mrsjason · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

If you know me, then you know how cynical I am when it comes to romance stories. I usually come away feeling rather blah or meh about the storyline. In fact, this year I've only come across one other romance story that I really loved (A Heart Most Worthy by Siri Mitchell) and that truly made me swoon. I'm glad to say that this book is of the same caliber.Oh this book was wonderful! I have really enjoyed Karen Witemeyer's previous books and each one keeps getting better and better. In this book there is a librarian (mad props for book love!) who's reluctant to fall in love after being dreadfully hurt and a blacksmith who has a past that he would rather keep under wraps. The two begin to fall in love over the love books (more book love!) and their relationship is totally sweet and caring. I loved how letters are used as a way to communicate instead of just verbally saying things.The characters are not perfect. Eden goes through several spells where she keeps trying to uphold her character instead of doing the right thing. She judges people unfairly and there are times when she thinks she's better than other people. Levi does the same thing though in reverse as he continually thinks he's worse than everyone else and unworthy of forgiveness. Both have things in their past they are hiding and if everything had been explained earlier, it could have saved some heartache. However, the pair are willing to work through their flaws and it is because of this it makes the story really work.Meanwhile the sheriff is a character that you will love to hate. He's not a stock villian but he's vile, crude and just plan ignorant. If the story took place in modern age, he would be slapped with sexual harassment charges among other offenses. He cannot take the hint that Eden wants nothing to do with him and his stupid mind seems to think that disgracing Levi will make her want him instead. I was SO glad to see what his final outcome turned out to be and good riddance!The circumstances that Eden and Levi have to go through in their relationship bring out their true characters and make each other of them totally transparent to the other. I loved the end scene where they both have to prove their love to each other. It's not cheesy at all. It's incredibly romantic and moving and simply put shows what I think love should be. I am so pleased with Witemeyer's writing as she doesn't fall into the predictable Christian historical romance plot. She takes the story further with things not ending with just a marriage proposal.This is what I wish all romance books would be like and especially how I wish more Christian authors would style their historical romances. If you focus more on writing a GOOD story as Witemeyer did, the romance will be more natural and more focused. The male hero doesn't need to be confident and witty all the time, sometimes the shy quiet vulnerable guy wins in the end. VERY HIGHLY recommended.