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Karen Dean Benson gained an interest in history from travels to many different cultures around the world. A voracious reader from an early age, she enjoys research, history, and tales of complicated lives. Her stories are woven against the backdrop of a by gone era, with adventurous plot twists, mysterious complications, and knotty situations.
Her series, Ladies of Mischief, blunder through attempting to live within the social constraints of the 18th and 19th Centuries, not always with success.
She and husband, Charlie, divide their time between golf courses in Michigan and Florida.
Reviewed by Michelle Stanley for Readers' Favorite
Mission Song: Chenoa's Story, Book 2 from the Ladies of Mischief series is a lovely historical fiction by Karen Dean Benson. Impetuous twelve-year-old Chenoa Sandoval’s adopted father, Padre Tomas, dies and she reluctantly goes to live with Don Sebastian at his ranch in Monterey. Her unruly behavior forces Don Sebastian to send her to a convent to be educated. Chenoa returns unexpectedly at age eighteen, retaining some of the stubbornness she left with. Don Sebastian isn’t thrilled, but headstrong Chenoa returns home. When the new, unscrupulous governor gives him a threatening ultimatum, Don Sebastian’s painful, hidden past resurfaces. He suffers more anguish after Chenoa is abducted and he remembers the deathbed promise he made to Padre Tomas.
The protagonist fondly reminisces on her life in Mission Song. It is beautifully written by Karen Dean Benson and is so poignant with a rich historical setting. Mexico once owned California and it was nice to learn more about this significant time in history in such a nice way. Chenoa briefly narrates in the beginning of the story with strong emotions. The rest of her tale is an exciting account of the events that occurred in her life and how she learned to cope with some of them. I was fond of a few of the characters and loved Mrs. MacFie’s Scottish vernacular. Mission Song: Chenoa's Story is Book 2 from the Ladies of Mischief series that makes for a delightful read.
