"A Bride for Keeps" by Melissa Jagears
It's 1876 and Julia Lockwood is stepping off the train in Kansas...far from her Boston roots. She is eager and willing to learn how to be a hard-working western wife. Meeting her husband-to-be for the first time was the first of many new experiences as she steps on to the platform. Except her fiance has no idea that the beautiful woman walking towards him is his wife-to-be...and when he finds out, he's not too happy about it.
Everett Cline is not opposed to marriage. In fact, he's tried three times to marry a mail-order bride...and each one has not worked out. Each time his heart was broken a little more and his disappointment grew. When a well-meaning friend goes behind his back to write Julia, Everett doesn't want his heart broken once again. He's sure that the beautiful Julia will find some reason to reject him. His only choice is to protect himself by putting a wall so high that not even a willing wife could climb it.
Julia is also putting up walls. Except hers is not made of indifference like Everett's, but hard work. If she can just work hard enough, learn to be a good wife, then that will be enough. Besides, that's what Everett needs, isn't it? Someone to help him out so he can survive on the farm. And maybe if she works hard, Everett will not ask her about her past and hurts that have scarred her heart.
I read Melissa Jagears' novella, "Love by the Letter" (free for Kindle), before reading this book. I really liked the story and when I had the opportunity to read her debut novel I jumped at the chance. "A Bride for Keeps" was a book that I didn't want to put down. The story is obviously focused primarily on the relationship between Julia and Everett. I enjoy mail-order bride stories, but Everett and Julia were characters that really grabbed my attention. They had real issues, deep scars that couldn't be taken care of with a few hastily spoken vows. Through different incidents, they had to let go of their insecurities, hurts, and past experiences and trust in God to bring them together. Julia doesn't have faith in God through most of the story, so this is very difficult for her. Even with faith in God, it is hard for Everett as well. I really liked their story and was rooting for them all through the book. In a way I wished that some of the past issues were resolved a little more or even a "bad guy" in the novel dealt with a little more, but overall I would say I would recommend this as a great debut novel. I will be looking for more of Jagears' books in the future!
**I received this book for free from Bethany House publishers to give an unbiased book review**
Happy reading!
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