Mary Eileen Davis

This Christian western takes on an enemy bigger than a gunslinger. Mary Davis, in The Widow’s Plight, shows the reader the tragedy and human ruin caused by domestic abuse. Ms. Davis doesn’t just tackle the most obvious, the physical abuse, but also shows the emotional abuse.

I, personally, had a difficult time reading this as I worked through the ramifications of the two kinds of abuses. Both were perpetrated on children (although the one also involved the heroine), and I wanted to enter show more the pages of the story to somehow help the victims recover faster.

I loved the characters and their portrayal of loyalty, forgiveness, and support of those who needed their help. I think I really fell in love with the children: Toby, Estella, and Nancy; and their resilience more than even the hero and heroine!

A terrifically sad statement, caused by continual abuse, is made of Lily, after the stampede: “She had succeeded in not feeling what she felt.”

Why is this such a great novel? How does it affect us today? Aunt Henny and Edric never gave up loving Lily and Toby. Those who truly love others CAN bring about healing in broken people, with God’s help, but that love may have to be extended again and again until it is accepted and healing starts.

I gratefully received a copy of this book from the publisher. This in no way affected my opinions, which are solely my own. I was not required to leave a positive review. show less

First let’s acknowledge how beautiful the cover of this book is! It really evokes that country holiday feel. I always tend to read more faith based fiction during the holidays and Mountain Christmas Brides is perfect for that. There are nine short romance stories in this book (and isn’t it easier to find time to read short stories during the busy holidays?). Some of the stories are better than others, however I did have a couple of favorites. A Trusting Heart by Carrie Turansky is a show more sweet story involving a mail order bride. The writing was simple and straight-forward and included elements of Swedish Christmas traditions which I found really interesting. My other favorite was One Evergreen Night by Debby Lee. It includes interesting historical elements of life in a logging camp and a piglet named Bacon! If you enjoy sweet, romantic holiday fiction stories, then I recommend you give this book a try.
*I was provided with a copy of this book via Net Galley in exchange for my review. show less

Mail Order Marriage: Five Historical stories of marriage arranged by strangers (various authors). Cinda’s Surprise by Mary Davis involves Cinda Harrison and Lucas Rawlings. Cinda’s friends decided to help her find a husband. Cinda agrees to the marriage and wonders why Lucas needed a mail order bride. Cinda discovers the answer when she arrives at his home. Will these two be able to make it work?

His Brother’s Bride by Denise Hunter takes place in Cedar Springs, Kansas. Emily Wagner is show more traveling to Cedar Springs to meet her fiancé, Thomas for the first time. Emily is hoping this marriage will help her save her grandmother from her Uncle Stewart’s clutches. Emily arrives to find Cade Manning, Thomas’ brother. Thomas died before Emily arrived. Cade (a widower), though, needs a wife to help with the house and to take care of his son. Will Emily still be able to help her grandmother?

The third book is Changes of the Heart by Judith McCoy Miller. Luther Buchanan opened a mercantile in Placerville, California. He needs a wife to help at home and around the store. He advertises for a mail order bride (but does not mention he wants help with store). Maura Thorenson feels that Luther’s ad is an answer to her prayers. Maura wants to get married, but none of the local men will marry her because of her affliction (as she calls it). Maura answers Luther’s ad but does not mention her affliction (you just know this is not going to go well). On the trip to California (aboard ship around the Cape) Maura meets Georgette Blackburn. Georgette desperately needs help and Maura is going to provide it. Luther is surprised when he picks up his fiancé. Is there a chance for these two?

Mail-Order Husband by DiAnn Mills is set in Nebraska in 1880. Lena Walker is a widow with two children. They have a farm and she needs help to keep it. She advertises (the local men are disgusting) for a husband (a very rare occurrence). Gabriel Hunters answers her ad. He is a bookkeeper and loves to read. Gabriel figures his book knowledge will help him run a farm (he has never lived on a farm or performed manual work). Lena is shocked by Gabriel’s appearance (and manner of speaking), but Lena gave her word. Will Gabriel be able to work a farm? Can a marriage work between these two very different people?

Forever Yours by Tracie Peterson is set in Bandelero, New Mexico. Daughtry Lucas is twenty-three and would love to escape her family. Her father and brothers are over protective. Daughtry runs away to answer Nicholas Dawson’s ad for a wife. They are married by proxy before Daughtry starts her journey. But Daughtry is not quite what Nicholas was expecting. Does their marriage stand a chance when her father and brother’s show up?

Mail-Order Marriage contained some good stories. I enjoyed three out of the five of them (the first three). The story by Judith McCoy Miller was my favorite (and I wish it had been longer). I give Mail-Order Marriage 4 out of 5 stars. The stories are all well-written and interesting to read (just some more than others). They are all Christian stories with nice themes. There is no sex or foul language in any of the stories. They are good Christian, historical romance stories. The last two are good, but I just did not enjoy them as much as the other three (just personal preference).

I received a complimentary copy of Mail-Order Marriage from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. show less

I received this book from a friend. I read the next book in the series prior to this one because I came across that one first. Again, I have to say that this Amish community isn't like any Amish community I've come across in real life. They have electricity in their barn to use for livestock emergencies. They have a phone in their home (even if it is rarely used). Their shunning practices seem haphazard. Amos's cousin is shunned for leaving the Amish community, but an Amish woman could show more leave, become a doctor, and come back home and be accepted? (To be fair, it is never stated whether she had become a member of the church before she left or not. I suspect not. But then again, it is never stated whether Jesse did that either or why he chose to leave again if he did.)

I liked the third book better than this one. I feel like that one discussed more life lessons than this one did--though there were still some.

Perspective was one. Being able to see a bigger picture than just yourself. Deborah feels alone, excluded. She doesn't realize that her family is dealing with bigger issues and that's why she's often overlooked. Amos has had bad luck with women he wanted to marry and also has been told by his family that he needs to choose a trade because the farm can't be divided into 3 parts. So he is feeling a bit excluded also.

A common theme between this book and the third book is that staying Amish has to come from your desire to do what God wants.

I did get to learn a bit more about Grave's disease from what was happening to Deborah's mother. I too thought it was dementia rather than a symptom. show less