Well, I 'just one more chapter'ed this book all through the night. That ending...wow. It was heartbreaking, bittersweet, hopeful. You get the idea.
I will say that the first 60-70% of the book was quite dark. Everything that could go wrong seemed to go wrong and I was losing hope in the book. Rivers got quite heavy-handed with a particular topic, and I didn't like that. Not because I disagree with what she was saying, but just because it was too much foreshadowing. I felt like I was being hit over the head with it.
And then the climax of the book happened. The women were finally locked up together without being able to leave and they addressed their issues. It was emotional and sad and healing. There were generations of women who all had dysfunctional relationships with each other that needed to be mended. I also liked that Marta's secrets came out even though she was gone.
AND THAT ENDING. That is literally all I can say without spoiling anything, but yeah, if you know, you know.

4 Stars

Content: As with all of Francine's books, I recommend for 18 . ( )

A deeply moving story about a family torn apart and the grace and forgiveness that can heal even the deepest wounds.

I don't always enjoy realistic fiction (I sometimes find the genre a little boring), but I wasn't bored for a single minute with this duology. Marta (from Her Mother's Hope) has always been my favorite, and it was so beautiful to see her wisdom and maturity in this second book. I also thought that Rivers handled the switch between Hildemara's POV and her daughter's POV incredibly well, especially considering the significant rift between them.

The themes of grace and love and healing were real and raw and truly profound, and the ending was both beautiful and tragic. Overall, it's just my opinion that you can't read this series without coming to the conclusion that Rivers is a writer with immense talent.

For anyone who is wondering about the content and whether this book is clean, this duology has much less sexual content than [b:Redeeming Love|11422|Redeeming Love|Francine Rivers|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1550053167l/11422._SX50_.jpg|820210] and [b:Bridge to Haven|18228202|Bridge to Haven|Francine Rivers|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1376078910l/18228202._SY75_.jpg|25663814] do. The latter two can also be darker at times than this series. I'm not sure about Rivers's other books since I haven't read them yet, but Marta's Legacy is a great Christian fiction series to read if you've been curious about Rivers's books but still wary of the content of her other books.

Content warnings: A man tells a girl they're going to play "games" and touches her sexually before eventually raping her. This isn't really described, but it's implied. This causes trauma for the girl throughout her life. One character leaves her faith and gets into a lifestyle with drugs and drinking. This same character has an abusive relationship, and it's mentioned in passing that her partner often had sex with her when she didn't want it. She later comes back to her faith. One character has a baby out of wedlock. One character's close friend dies by suicide through an overdose. Two Christian teens succumb to temptation and have sex outside of marriage. The sex is never described, which is as it should be. However, when characters kiss, the writing does mention the attraction they have for each other and the temptations they feel.

Recommended for mature readers 12 (conservative recommendation for readers 15 )

Please note that I read the audio copy of Her Daughter's Dream. 5/5 stars for that, by the way! ( )

Marta's Legacy Duology:

An epic family saga spanning decades, the Marta’s Legacy duology follows four generations of women as they grow up and find their place in the world, exploring the acts of love and sacrifice that are made by mothers for their daughters.

Marta grows up in Switzerland with a demanding father and a mother who coddles her younger sister. Forced to leave school and find work at age 10, Marta does not let anything stand in her way of reaching her ambitions – not even family tragedy.

Eventually, Marta finds her way to Canada and into the arms of her husband, Niclas. When her own daughter is born, Marta is determined to raise a child with enough backbone to stand up for herself, but all Hildemara knows is that her mother doesn’t love her as much as her other children. As each subsequent generation grows up in the shadow of past hurts and misunderstandings, the rifts between family members continue to widen – until someone finally has the courage to bring them all together again before it’s too late to say what needs to be said.

Expanding on the same themes introduced in Leota’s Garden, and inspired by her own family history, Francine Rivers delves deeper into the individual experiences, personality differences, and cultural influences that can shape a person and their relationships over time. It’s a fascinating saga, painful at times, but with much-needed healing and reconciliation at the end! ( )

I had to jump in to this one, immediately after finishing the first one!!! It was also very good, but nerve wracking because many of the issues lived on in the characters - but it's also what makes you want to keep reading!! ( )