Maggie Brendan

I can't remember the last time I stayed up into the wee hours of the night to finish a book. I could NOT go to bed last night until I had read the last page and I started in the afternoon. You know it's a fantastic book to hold my attention for over 300 pages, make me skip dinner, and then make me unable to rest until I finished to whole thing. I think it was about 2AM by the time I went to bed. This story was awesome! It started out sweet like any other Christian book but kept intensifying show more with each chapters. Important elements to the story slowly trickled out over time and made it impossible to put down.

I had not read any books by Maggie Brendan before and figured this would be like any other typical Christian prairie romance, but I decided to give it a try anyway. Boy, was I wrong about that! It was anything but typical. I am so glad I joined the blog tour for this book because this is one of the few Christian fiction titles available that deals with mail order bride issues that doesn't make you wait for the entire book while they "get acquainted," if you know what I mean. I was thrilled about that. I always figured in real life it didn't work that way, only in Christian books, LOL! And unlike many novels that deal with secrets, this one had situations that were believable and worked for me. I absolutely loved the characters. All of them. Even the meddling mother/mother-in-law.

This novel is not only incredibly romantic with a hero that is swoon-worthy, but it makes you think about communication in marriage and makes you want to be a better spouse. Seriously. I loved Peter. Absolutely adored him. And when he got upset I understood it. Rather than getting ticked off at him I just hurt for him. Same for Catherine. She wasn't a petty wife with dumb issues that are supposed to carry an entire story. She was like a real person to me. I loved her and her sisters. I especially loved the scenes with her and Peter and their coming together as husband and wife. Tastefully done, yet enthralling at the same time.

I wish all Christian historicals were this yummy and inspirational. I think more people would switch over from secular fiction if they found more books like these on the inspy shelves. The scriptures all fit perfectly, too, and there was nothing sappy about the faith element. It wasn't heavy-handed, but was clearly present. I can't say enough good things about the book. The writing was stellar, too. I highly recommend it. It's making my best fiction list for this year! show less

I'm trying to think about how to describe my dislike of this book and there's no pretty way to say it. It was just way to simplistic and dull. Everyone and everything is described as "sweet," the characters are not at all realistic or relatable. It annoyed me to no end the way that Peter treated Catharine's two (slightly) younger sisters as if they were children; in 1887, many women married very young- 16 was not unheard of. Greta's headstrong teenager attitude did not fit very well with the show more times. Actually none of the dialogue really did- it was all way too modern.

The romance did not make any sense to me- Peter did not behave like a man, but rather some woman's fantasy of a man, and therefore he came off way too feminine. I mean, what was that whole bit at the end with the china and each piece representing something? Please. Cheesy and unrealistic.

The entire time I was reading this book, I kept thinking of a line from Pride and Prejudice where Elizabeth accuses Jane of thinking too kindly of everyone, in a way that makes everyone behave unnaturally. I think that concept (on steroids) sums up this book. show less

I had a delightful time meeting Patience Cavanaugh who is one very strong woman, and has taken to owning a boarding house with a lot of grace and hard work. When we meet her she is just moving in and trying to come to terms with her finances and the amount of work that needs to be done.
Her first encounter with the Marshall Jedediah is almost hysterical, and I could picture her face as she swallowed the cup of coffee he offers. There is also some funny heckling going on from the current show more prisoner. You will also get a chuckle out of the men competing from Patience attention, going to the extremes of painting and helping fix up the boarding house.
There are some real shocks and surprises here, along with a bit of sorrow and murder. I was guessing and wrong as to why and who, but the story unfolds we come to realize that a lot of things are not as they appear.
I did really enjoy how the town seems to rally around Patience, and things go really well until her Mother arrives. A person I really took a dislike to, but again some big surprises are in store. Will Patience grow a backbone as far as her Mother is concerned, or will things go down hill while she is there?
There is also a strong reliance on God’s love and forgiveness in this book, and some really find and follow their faith.
I did love at the very end there is an epilogue, where I didn’t have to fill in the blanks in my mind, and the story continued to unfold. Enjoy!

I received this book through the Publisher Revell and their blogger’s tour, and was not required to give a positive review. show less

This is the first of Maggie's books that I've read and I thoroughly enjoyed it. Sometimes I just want a book to relax with and that makes me smile, and Perfectly Matched did exactly that. Although it concludes a series, this story easily stands alone.

The setting of Denver, Colorado in the fall of 1888 felt very real as many actual places were incorporated, some still standing today. And characterization is strong in both major and secondary characters.

Edward is certainly a unique hero! He show more suffers from a mild form of what we know today as obsessive compulsive disorder, first evidenced in the humorous scene where, shortly after saying "I do," he presents Anna with a detailed schedule of her daily chores. As frustrating and unbending as he seems at first, knowing his background and understanding that his actions were merely coping mechanisms, I grew to really like him. Edward's father had been an alcoholic, and his sister explains to Anna: "Edward and I both had our ways of coping as children. He liked to tinker with things that took total concentration and perfectionism. I think that was his way of controlling what he could around him, and he became compulsive about certain things."

Anna is completely his opposite, and their marriage a total recipe for disaster without God in the equation. Scatterbrained, impulsive, untidy and disheveled - but with such a giving nature, genuine sweetness, and compassion for others, especially animals in need. "When the Lord places an opportunity to do good right in front of me, then I have to take a stand," Anna explains.

I particularly enjoy romances where love grows between a married couple, and Maggie did an excellent job at portraying this. That intimate moments are a part of Edward and Anna's marriage is obvious, and it's just refreshing to see this included and so tastefully done "off camera."

This story also shows how Edward and Anna, both committed to their marriage, work through personality differences and discover that they actually have much in common and bring out the best in each other. I loved how, as early as their wedding night, Edward "suddenly had a premonition of things to come, and he felt like he was losing control."

Perfectly Matched is a tender, heartwarming romance which includes some interesting history, such as the beginning of the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. I believe this is a book that romance fans will enjoy.

This book was provided by Lanette Haskins and Revell in exchange for my honest review. show less