By Deeanne Gist
Published by: Bethany House
ISBN# 978-0-7042-0409-8
365 Pages
Back Cover:
Rural switchboard operator Georgie Gail is proud of her independence in a man's world ... which makes it twice as vexing when the telephone company sends a man to look over her shoulder.
Dashing Luke Palmer is more than he appears though. He's a Texas Ranger working undercover to infiltrate a notorious gang of train robbers. Repairing telephones and tangling with this tempestuous woman is the last thing he wants to do. But when his stakeout puts Georgie in peril, he realizes more than his job is on the line.
REVIEW:
Why do I love Deeanne Gist books? Let me count the ways. First off I like the face she writers about smart, but sensitive women – these are women with a heart to do the right thing – and are often pioneers of their times. Second – Deeanne loves history and finds the most unusual and interesting things women did that wasn’t well publicized.
Third – The historical depth to her books help me get a peek into how folks lived back then and realize how far we’ve come socially and technologically in such a short time span. It’s astounding.
I’m thankful for the review copy of such a fun and educational book! I enjoyed Georgie Gail, the rural switchboard operator very much. I liked her spunk and the passion she had for birds that came calling at her window sill and in her garden. It was also fascinating to read about what was asked of a phone operator. People called Georgie to inquire about the shows playing at the Opera house and what times the show were. They called her to find out the price of turkeys and could they be delivered, called for the time because their time piece stopped working and my favorite call was to ask Georgie to watch for their cow that run off.
Georgie has a 12 year old helper named Bettina, who I enjoyed. Bettina got paid to deliver messages to people who didn’t have a phone. Georgia paid her out of her own money to help give the girl some treats her family couldn’t afford. All is well until Bettina says she wants to sell bird eggs to a man willing to pay her $5.00 for them and says, “I just wanted a sarsaparilla stick or one of them rock-and-rye drops. And sometimes, I get me a powerful thirst for a Dr. Pepper. I could get all that fer a nickel and still have money left over.” My have things changed. Imagine what she could get for five dollars back then.
Georgie’s mission is to save the birds. She felt it’s criminal to kill birds and their babies to decorate hats! Birds were our friends not something to be chased down and kill only to become an ornament on someone’s hat.
Then Luke Palmer storms into Georgie’s world. Luke’s the new lineman for the SW & T phone company. His job is to repair, install new phone lines and silicate new customers. He’s also an undercover Sheriff on a mission to catch train robbers, Frank Comer and his gang. He hopes to infiltrate a gang and get their ring leader. Frank Comer is a Robin Hood type of train robber. He only steals from the rich being the banks and lets the poor keep their money. People love him and don’t say much about the robberies, which makes Luke’s job harder.
Luke is prideful and has been on the road chasing bad guys so long he forgot how to treat a lady. Luke and Georgie butt heads! Both are strong willed and focused on their separate goals. Luke soon realizes Georgie had to be on his team in order for him to get the information he needed to complete his mission. That’s when the fun begins. Luke starts singing a different tune! Georgie wonders about him! Is he for real? Grin!
Deanne doesn’t disappoint. I learned so much about this time period and what it took to be a switchboard operator, all the while Deeann gives the reader fun information without bogging them down. This novel has all the winning combinations for me! This story was just plain fun! I highly recommend it!
Reviewed by:Nora St.Laurent
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