Land of a Thousand Dreams - BJ Hoff

Published by Bethany House Publishers: Minneapolis, Minnesota, 1992.
Book 3 of 'An Emerald Ballad.' Preceded by 'Heart of the Lonely Exile.' Followed by 'Sons of an Ancient Glory.'

Careful readers of this blog will notice that it has been a long time since Elise and I finished any combined book other than a Famous Five entry. That is for a number of reasons, the most prominent of which is that we have been busy with our drawn out move and hunt for a new house. A secondary reason, though, is that we had two physical books on the go at once, both of which were quite long: this one, and a fantasy novel called Dragon Wing (technically, we also have the final few chapters of Rachel's Tears, but that is a book we haven't picked up in a long time, and might still be some time away from revisiting).

Anyway, both reasons are finally shifting. As of this post, we have finished this book and we have moved into our new home (hooray!). In fact, the night we finished reading this book was our last night in my parents' home before we took possession of our new place.

Book 3 of this series continues its mix of romantic and dramatic beats, with some moments being incredibly traumatic for the characters involved. In Ireland, Morgan Fitzgerald, now a paraplegic, is falling for the mute Finola, a woman whose past is so dark she cannot recall it, and who will also face some horrific moments in this book! Annie Delaney also continues to be her upbeat self, even while dealing with rejection from her birth-mother. Meanwhile, in New York, Sara and Michael are planning to get married despite the antagonism from Michael's son Tierney, who is getting more drawn into the world of a local gangster, while previously minor characters such as Pastor Dalton, and the black boy Arthur Jackson that he is looking after, become more important to future events.

Book 1 was very focussed on it's main characters - Nora, Evan, Morgan and Daniel - but as the series has progressed the focus has shifted. In this particular entry, Daniel and Nora are sidelined almost entirely. This has allowed for other characters to shine and for the world of series to expand, but it will be interesting to see if some of those characters return to prominence in future entries.

Overall, still an interesting and emotional series.

Completed, with Elise, 7 July 2026.

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(Elise Books)

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(An Emerald Ballad Series)

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