First Love (Ann H Gabhart) Books in Order

Ann H. Gabhart's two First Love books are early young adult novels rather than a tightly connected series, but they sit well together because they show some of the concerns she would keep returning to later. These are stories about young people standing on the edge of change, wanting to be seen clearly, and learning that courage is rarely neat. They also carry a strong rural Kentucky feel, even when the plots head in different directions.

A Chance Hero is especially interesting because it marked Gabhart's first turn toward young adult fiction after her early historical romances. It centers on a boy rather than the girls who often lead category romance lines, and it has an odd, slightly wild setup involving fear, strange sightings, and the chance to prove oneself. Gabhart has said the story includes a dog named Maybe and even a Big Foot thread, which tells you right away that she was willing to try something offbeat.

That book leans into bravery.

The Look of Eagles heads toward horse country and competition. Gabhart has described the title as a phrase horse people use for the special look that suggests a horse has the makings of a champion. That gives the book its flavor before you even start reading. It points to pressure, possibility, and the dream of seeing something rare and real before anyone else does. Like much of her work, it is about more than the outward plot. It is also about recognizing worth.

Taken together, the two books show a writer interested in younger characters who are serious beneath the surface. These are not slick teen comedies. They are cleaner, more earnest stories where first feelings matter, but so do family strain, self-doubt, and the need to act when it would be easier to back away. The settings help with that. Farms, woods, horses, and open country give the books a little room to breathe while also making the emotional stakes feel close and immediate.

They are early books, but you can already see the through line.

Gabhart likes protagonists who are not obvious heroes. She likes people who are underestimated, unsettled, or unsure, and then pushed into making a choice that reveals character. That is true in these First Love novels as much as in the later historical fiction. The romance element is there, as the line name promises, but it is wrapped up with questions of identity and nerve.

So while this is not a series in the modern sense, it still works as a small corner of her larger body of work. If you want to see how she wrote for younger readers, and if you like coming-of-age stories with a Kentucky backdrop, a clean tone, and more emotional weight than the packaging might suggest, these two books make a solid pair.