The Preacher's Bride

The Preacher’s Bride by Jody Hedlund explores a part of history I knew hardly anything about — the latter days of the rule of Oliver Cromwell following the English Civil War. Okay, I should know about Puritans, right? That subject is introduced in every Kindergarten classroom in America. They came to the New World for religious freedom, but what did religious intolerance and persecution in England really look like? Through the eyes of Elizabeth Whitbread and John Costin, the reader gets a good look at what it means to live according to God’s will, not man’s dictates.

The characters of John Costin and Elizabeth Whitbread were inspired by the life of John Bunyan, author of The Pilgrim’s Progress. Quite a bit is known about John, show more but only a glimpse of Elizabeth’s life can be gleaned from the historical record. Hedlund does a great job of creating a Puritan maiden who dedicates her life to serving God and man. Elizabeth views herself as plain and inconsequential. Young and illiterate, she nevertheless has a strong faith and character. John is newly widowed following his wife Mary’s death from childbed fever. Lost in grief and fearing to love again, he immerses himself in God’s calling — to preach the Gospel to the poor and lowly. An unlicensed preacher, he is the target of royalist supporters. As she takes on the role of housekeeper for John, Elizabeth becomes a target as well. Their relationship deepens, but is hindered by the desires of others in the congregation, rumors, threats and betrayal.

The Preacher’s Bride has interesting characters in John, Elizabeth, John’s blind daughter Mary, the wet nurse, Lucy and other assorted members of Elizabeth’s family and the Puritan congregation. It is a large cast, but not overwhelming. All play a integral part in the development of the story. Hedlund does a great job of making mid-1600s England vivid in the reader’s mind — the hardness of life, the intolerance of the political system and the harshness of the justice system. As to themes, a couple of things stood out for me — the tension/balance between God’s call and family life and the idea that love of man and God is somehow earned by doing right. Elizabeth is faithful and believes in God’s provision and plan, yet still thinks that her works should somehow weigh in her favor with God. Both Elizabeth and John have to evaluate their part in God’s work and its role in their marriage.

The Preacher’s Bride is one of Hedlund’s older novels, but it is well-written and researched. More history with a good dose of romance, it is a book I can recommend.

Recommended.

Audience: older teens to adults. show less

This was a really interesting book. When I first glanced at the cover and the title, I wrongly assumed that this was another "Amish" story. But when I got ready to read the book I discovered it was not what I had thought. This is the debut effort of author Jody Hedlund, and after reading this one, I'm sure we will be seeing more from this gifted author.

England at the turn of the 17th century was home to many religious movements. The Puritans had known religious freedom for some time, but at this point in history the Royalist's are becoming more prominent. The Royalist's and the Puritan's became more and more embattled in a political and religious "war" of sorts. The Preacher's Bride is set during this tumultuous time period.

Elizabeth show more Whitbread is a young woman with a deep love for children. When her preacher, John Costin loses his wife and is left with four children, one blind and one newborn, Elizabeth takes it upon herself to help him, somewhat against his wishes. Elizabeth is risking a lot to be a help to John. Her one marriage prospect is angry and John's boldness from the pulpit puts Elizabeth and the children in danger.

This book is loosely based on the life of Elizabeth Bunyon, wife of John Bunyon writer of The Pilgrim's Progress. The author has an excellent gift for dialogue. She
uses the language of the period with authenticity. Her characters seem to jump off the page, especially the children. Jody Hedlund uses her experience as a mother of five to make Elizabeth's interactions with the children very believable. I liked her character a lot, because she was stouthearted and willing to stand up to persecution to do what she felt was right. John's character was somewhat stubborn, but I can't say much about that since that tends to be my own turn of mind.

I would recommend this one to anyone who loves Christian Fiction, The Pilgrim's Progress or anyone who just enjoys a good historical romance. I liked it a lot. show less

I'm usually not a big fan of Christian fiction, as I am not Christian myself and find that many books of the genre like to preach. This book, while following the life of a preacher, is not one of them. Based on the life of John Bunyon and his second wife, Elizabeth, this debut is interesting, realistic in dialogue and general feel, and very well written.

The historical Puritan context fascinated me, as it was a period of time I hadn't studied very much previously. I will now be doing some research on it, as the book covered the religious and political struggles of the time period very well. I remained interested throughout the novel and cared about the characters, as they seemed very realistic and likable.

This was an excellent book by a show more talented new author, and I look forward to seeing more of her work, especially historical fiction! show less

Somehow, I skipped the fact that this book was historical fiction. Had I realised, I would have assumed that as with most books in this genre, the setting was historical rather than the characters. There is no mention anywhere obvious that this book actually tells the true story of John Bunyan, the author of The Pilgrim's Progress and his wife, the preacher's bride. The author's note at the end of the book reveals this not so minor detail and explains which parts are true and which have been creatively adapted. I think the publisher has missed a trick here as I'm sure readers would have been more interested in this book if they had known the historical significance. I did a double take on finding this out as coincidentally, I am show more actually also reading Bunyan's classic book at this time!

Regardless, the book was a good read. John is called to be a preacher in England, but on losing his young wife, finds himself with the sole care of their four young children, the oldest is blind. The local Christian community rallies round to enable him to continue his calling and Elizabeth becomes his housekeeper and nanny to the children. However, John's calling to be an independent, unqualified preacher, with no state licence, results in serious persecution from those in power. He is faced with an impossible choice--give up his calling or be imprisoned and possible killed and what of his young children and the housekeeper that he has come to rely on?

The characters are well developed and the emotional struggles realistic. I thought the priorities for a man with a family and a calling to the ministry were also depicted well--the author argues from different perspectives and shows how difficult the issues can be. Ultimately, she concludes through an Elder in the story,

God would not have us use our gifts to the detriment of our families. I have heard it said 'Father's first reform your families, and then you will be fitter to reform the family of God.'

There is no bad language in this book, there are some violent scenes with some graphic detail which is border-line for me, there are romantic scenes that get a little heavy but no sexual detail is described.

I recommend this book for Christians. I would have preferred a Gospel presentation at some point, this maybe could have been done using Bunyan's writings which are referred to in the story. I'm sure the man himself would not have wanted the Gospel to be missed from any book written about his life, even one that is largely fictional. However, it is an easy and enjoyable read and you can learn some details about the Bunyan family in the process. show less

This was not my first time reading Historical Fiction. However it was my first read of Historical Christian Fiction. Skeptical at first, I didn't quite understand the genre and half expected preaching to be involved. As I delved in, I quickly realized that this was not the case.

Pious Elizabeth Whitbread looked only to serve God and those in need, accepting what she thought was her lot in life. When God called upon her through the cry of a baby, Elizabeth put her life and marriage on hold and answered. Little did she realize that her path had now diverged.

Jon Costin, tinkerer by trade preacher by calling, never suspected God's ulterior motives.

The Preacher's Bride was a true example of God working through mysterious ways. Strong show more willed, quick to wit, and God serving characters perfectly matched from the beginning. Both struggled through the persecution of the Royalists and their own personal struggles with God. Their relationship between each other and with God grew throughout the entire book.

Jody Hedlund captured my heart in her first book with her perfectly executed writing. She took the true story of John Bunyan and wove her own of "the woman behind John Bunyan". It was not preachy, it was not mushy. But it sure was moving! The reader got into the head of Elizabeth from the very first moment and felt the pull of emotions throughout.

I cannot wait to read her next book, The Doctor's Lady. show less

Handsome widower John Costin would make a fine matrimonial catch for any young Puritan woman, but he's not interested in a second wife -- with his beloved first wife barely cold in the ground, he is resistant to even the idea of a housekeeper. However, his four children need someone to care for them while he pursues his calling to preach. Elizabeth Whitbread feels that caring for the motherless Costin children is her own calling, and she is determined to stand up to her family, her only suitor, the women of the community, and even John himself in order to provide care for the children. As she cares for the children and grows closer to the family, she finds her heart softening toward John -- but she also finds herself in very real danger show more from John's enemies, who will go to great lengths to silence and discredit him.

This story, a fictionalized account of the relationship between John and Elizabeth Bunyan, stands out from others in the genre by exploring a relatively untouched period of Protestant history. The plot is slow at times, but the setting is well-researched and the characters are believable. show less

I was blown away by this book. I've read a lot of historical fiction, but usually dating in the 1800s and later. I can't remember the last time I'd read a novel placed in the 1600's. While a few small aspects of the Puritan faith struck me as 'off' (For example- no dancing? In the Bible, David sets an example when he dances as a form of worship), this book was jam packed with scripture used in beautiful and strengthening ways. I loved the history wrapped up in the events, people and setting. The only problem I had was that, after a while, Elizabeth's faith in and love for God seemed to be based on an "If I'm obedient, God will give me good things" mindset. But even that was acknowledged and flushed out, making the characters and their show more struggles more real, more relatable, and more impactful. show less