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Unexpected Brides #1
A Bride for Keeps
A Tender Tale of Love on the Prairie Perfect for CBA Readers
Although Everett Cline can hardly keep up with the demands of his homestead, he won't humiliate himself by looking for a helpmate ever again--not after being jilted by three mail-order brides. When a well-meaning neighbor goes behind his back to bring yet another mail-order bride to town, he has good reason to doubt it will work, especially after getting a glimpse at the woman in question. She's the prettiest woman he's ever seen, and it's just not possible she's there to marry a simple homesteader like him.
Julia Lockwood has never been anything more than a pretty pawn for her father or a business acquisition for her former fiance. Having finally worked up the courage to leave her life in Massachusetts, she's determined to find a place where people will value her for more than her looks. Having run out of all other options, Julia resorts to a mail-order marriage in far-away Kansas.
Everett is skeptical a cultured woman like Julia could be happy in a life on the plains, while Julia, deeply wounded by a past relationship, is skittish at the idea of marriage at all. When, despite their hesitations, they agree to a marriage in name only, neither one is prepared for the feelings that soon arise to complicate their arrangement. Can two people accustomed to keeping their distance let the barricades around their hearts down long enough to fall in love?
Although Everett Cline can hardly keep up with the demands of his homestead, he won't humiliate himself by looking for a helpmate ever again--not after being jilted by three mail-order brides. When a well-meaning neighbor goes behind his back to bring yet another mail-order bride to town, he has good reason to doubt it will work, especially after getting a glimpse at the woman in question. She's the prettiest woman he's ever seen, and it's just not possible she's there to marry a simple homesteader like him.
Julia Lockwood has never been anything more than a pretty pawn for her father or a business acquisition for her former fiance. Having finally worked up the courage to leave her life in Massachusetts, she's determined to find a place where people will value her for more than her looks. Having run out of all other options, Julia resorts to a mail-order marriage in far-away Kansas.
Everett is skeptical a cultured woman like Julia could be happy in a life on the plains, while Julia, deeply wounded by a past relationship, is skittish at the idea of marriage at all. When, despite their hesitations, they agree to a marriage in name only, neither one is prepared for the feelings that soon arise to complicate their arrangement. Can two people accustomed to keeping their distance let the barricades around their hearts down long enough to fall in love?
337 pages, Kindle Edition
First published October 1, 2013
197 people are currently reading
2741 people want to read
About the author
Melissa Jagears
19 books876 followersI would love to connect with you through newsletter! I only send big updates, releases, and important stuff: http://newsletters.melissajagears.com/
My Review Star System:
A rare solid 5 means I LOVED it or was so impressed that I bring these books up in random conversations.
4.5-4 means great story. Recommended.
I don't post 3 star or below for newer Christian fiction (conflict of interest--I might have to work with the author). But any 3s mean the author wrote a good story, just something about it made it not a favorite.
2 was not that great and never redeemed itself.
1 aggravated me so much or was so poorly done I DNF or if I did finish, I wished I could get my time back.
My Review Star System:
A rare solid 5 means I LOVED it or was so impressed that I bring these books up in random conversations.
4.5-4 means great story. Recommended.
I don't post 3 star or below for newer Christian fiction (conflict of interest--I might have to work with the author). But any 3s mean the author wrote a good story, just something about it made it not a favorite.
2 was not that great and never redeemed itself.
1 aggravated me so much or was so poorly done I DNF or if I did finish, I wished I could get my time back.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 391 reviews
May 25, 2016
A beautiful marriage of convenience story! Completely heart-warming and romantic!
I had been meaning to read this book ever since loving the short story Love by the Letter by the same author, and was sure that it would probably not disappoint. I was so right. I was swept in from the very beginning as we meet the hero, Everett Cline, and learn that he's had FOUR disappointments IN A ROW with women. The first girl he wanted to marry jilted him for another, and of the three subsequent mail-order brides that came on the train for him, two chose to marry another man, and one arrived already dead. Poor Everett. He's so cute you just want to hug him from the first scene and assure him that everything will be alright. He claims to be sort of okay-ish with not having a wife, but it's complete balderdash. He needs one pretty badly, even if just as a helpmate to work his farm...
...which might just be what he'll get after all!
Miss Julia Lockwood, a beautiful runaway from Boston, sees marriage to Everett as both her doom and her salvation. It's her one chance to get away from her life in Boston and all its problems, but she really isn't sure if she can really go through with actually getting married. No, scratch that, she IS sure she DOESN'T want to get married, but under the circumstances she doesn't have much of a choice. And she's sure of something else, too. IF she really does get married, it will certainly be a marriage IN NAME only.
So, reluctantly, Julia gets off the train in Kansas to meet Everett for the first time. She doesn't know much about him save the few good lines her pen friend Rachel has dropped about him. Rachel, Everett's best friend Dex's wife, has decided that he should be allowed at least another chance at happiness with a woman, and is sure Julia will be the right one for him. She has no idea that Julia hides deep scars and is monstrously afraid of marriage, and she doesn't tell Julia that Everett has tried about four times to get married, and failed.
Everett sees her get off the train and cannot believe she can be the woman Rachel has secretly arranged for him to marry.
A gorgeous damsel fit for royal salons and expensive silk gowns?? Here in the middle of nowhere on the Kansas prairie? Noooo waaayyy!!! Everett is torn between being completely elated and completely on his guard. If plain women didn't want him and jilted him for "better men", why would that stunning porcelain doll choose him?? He vows to keep his feelings in check, sure that she will bolt off like all the other ones did.
And poor Julia is in for quite a shock when she sees Everett for the first time!
Of course he's tall, ruggedly handsome and swoon-worthily built, buuuut....he looks just like her ex-fiancé!!!!
So now we have: the guy who is angry about having a fourth mail-order bride thrust at him, but happy because she's beautiful, but scared that she's going to leave him too + the girl who's had a misadventure with another man and cannot possibly trust another one so soon, but who needs to get married ASAP = LOTS of confusion, but a darn good recipe for a really good romance!!!
Everett is both incredibly attracted and scared of Julia, so he keeps his distances, which make Julia thinks that he might not want to get married after all, and since she's indecisive about it herself, he thinks she's going to leave, which makes her think that maybe he thinks she wouldn't be capable of working a farm, but he really thinks that she thinks his farm sucks, when in reality she just doesn't know much about farming so she tries to learn as much as she can and does so much work that he thinks she wants to be alone, so he doesn't talk to her, which makes her think that he doesn't want her, so she goes to the store without telling him, he freaks out because he thinks she's leaving, she has absolutely NO intention of leaving and wants to be his friend, he wants to be MORE than her friend so he decides to talk to her, but she finds all his questions annoying so she keeps her distances, which make him think that she wants to be alone so he lets her be, which makes her think that he's disappointed in her and...THEY KEEP ROLLING IN THE SAME VICIOUS CIRCLE FOR PRETTY MUCH THE ENTIRE BOOOOOOKKKKKK!!!!
I'll admit it, sometimes I was pretty baffled by the way they acted. Some of their actions seemed very contradictory, and Julia was especially hard to follow with her I want-to-be-his-friend-but-I-don't-want-him-near-me attitude. Like, make up your mind, girl!
I really admired her strength of character and how she never complained about how hard life was on the prairie (although it seemed a tad unrealistic, given that she came from an easy city life in Boston, and should have found a little depressing on the prairie!), but her deep fear of being touched by Everett and not letting him in started to grate on my nerves because Everett was such a dreamy hero and was SO kind to her, that she should have at least APPRECIATED is efforts to get to know her instead of rebuking him at every turn. AND she didn't like reading and needlework, which gave me such a shock I nearly fell off my chair.
But for all that it was an absolutely wonderful story to follow, and the romantic bits were really, realllllyyyy good and Everett completely made my heart melt.
HOWEVER. I cannot help gagging whenever I think back on this novel, because the heroine at some point falls off a roof and breaks her leg, AND IT SAYS SPECIFICALLY MANY TIMES THAT THE BONE SHOWS. THE BONE. THE BOOOOONE!!! It made me shudder so much, and my own legs started hurting. I just couldn't get past it. Ughh!!
I had been meaning to read this book ever since loving the short story Love by the Letter by the same author, and was sure that it would probably not disappoint. I was so right. I was swept in from the very beginning as we meet the hero, Everett Cline, and learn that he's had FOUR disappointments IN A ROW with women. The first girl he wanted to marry jilted him for another, and of the three subsequent mail-order brides that came on the train for him, two chose to marry another man, and one arrived already dead. Poor Everett. He's so cute you just want to hug him from the first scene and assure him that everything will be alright. He claims to be sort of okay-ish with not having a wife, but it's complete balderdash. He needs one pretty badly, even if just as a helpmate to work his farm...
...which might just be what he'll get after all!
Miss Julia Lockwood, a beautiful runaway from Boston, sees marriage to Everett as both her doom and her salvation. It's her one chance to get away from her life in Boston and all its problems, but she really isn't sure if she can really go through with actually getting married. No, scratch that, she IS sure she DOESN'T want to get married, but under the circumstances she doesn't have much of a choice. And she's sure of something else, too. IF she really does get married, it will certainly be a marriage IN NAME only.
So, reluctantly, Julia gets off the train in Kansas to meet Everett for the first time. She doesn't know much about him save the few good lines her pen friend Rachel has dropped about him. Rachel, Everett's best friend Dex's wife, has decided that he should be allowed at least another chance at happiness with a woman, and is sure Julia will be the right one for him. She has no idea that Julia hides deep scars and is monstrously afraid of marriage, and she doesn't tell Julia that Everett has tried about four times to get married, and failed.
Everett sees her get off the train and cannot believe she can be the woman Rachel has secretly arranged for him to marry.
A gorgeous damsel fit for royal salons and expensive silk gowns?? Here in the middle of nowhere on the Kansas prairie? Noooo waaayyy!!! Everett is torn between being completely elated and completely on his guard. If plain women didn't want him and jilted him for "better men", why would that stunning porcelain doll choose him?? He vows to keep his feelings in check, sure that she will bolt off like all the other ones did.
And poor Julia is in for quite a shock when she sees Everett for the first time!
Of course he's tall, ruggedly handsome and swoon-worthily built, buuuut....he looks just like her ex-fiancé!!!!
So now we have: the guy who is angry about having a fourth mail-order bride thrust at him, but happy because she's beautiful, but scared that she's going to leave him too + the girl who's had a misadventure with another man and cannot possibly trust another one so soon, but who needs to get married ASAP = LOTS of confusion, but a darn good recipe for a really good romance!!!
Everett is both incredibly attracted and scared of Julia, so he keeps his distances, which make Julia thinks that he might not want to get married after all, and since she's indecisive about it herself, he thinks she's going to leave, which makes her think that maybe he thinks she wouldn't be capable of working a farm, but he really thinks that she thinks his farm sucks, when in reality she just doesn't know much about farming so she tries to learn as much as she can and does so much work that he thinks she wants to be alone, so he doesn't talk to her, which makes her think that he doesn't want her, so she goes to the store without telling him, he freaks out because he thinks she's leaving, she has absolutely NO intention of leaving and wants to be his friend, he wants to be MORE than her friend so he decides to talk to her, but she finds all his questions annoying so she keeps her distances, which make him think that she wants to be alone so he lets her be, which makes her think that he's disappointed in her and...THEY KEEP ROLLING IN THE SAME VICIOUS CIRCLE FOR PRETTY MUCH THE ENTIRE BOOOOOOKKKKKK!!!!
I'll admit it, sometimes I was pretty baffled by the way they acted. Some of their actions seemed very contradictory, and Julia was especially hard to follow with her I want-to-be-his-friend-but-I-don't-want-him-near-me attitude. Like, make up your mind, girl!
I really admired her strength of character and how she never complained about how hard life was on the prairie (although it seemed a tad unrealistic, given that she came from an easy city life in Boston, and should have found a little depressing on the prairie!), but her deep fear of being touched by Everett and not letting him in started to grate on my nerves because Everett was such a dreamy hero and was SO kind to her, that she should have at least APPRECIATED is efforts to get to know her instead of rebuking him at every turn. AND she didn't like reading and needlework, which gave me such a shock I nearly fell off my chair.
But for all that it was an absolutely wonderful story to follow, and the romantic bits were really, realllllyyyy good and Everett completely made my heart melt.
HOWEVER. I cannot help gagging whenever I think back on this novel, because the heroine at some point falls off a roof and breaks her leg, AND IT SAYS SPECIFICALLY MANY TIMES THAT THE BONE SHOWS. THE BONE. THE BOOOOONE!!! It made me shudder so much, and my own legs started hurting. I just couldn't get past it. Ughh!!
July 4, 2018
This was the slowest book I’ve read in my life, felt like it had a million pages. And so much bible. I’ve never read the bible and never will, but after how many Christian books I’ve read so far, feels like I’ve already read it.
I have disliked both Mc’s. The relationship between them was ridiculous. So much inner monologue and their conversations were going around and around, if they did talk, and they barely talked to each other.
Barely spent time together.
Barely been nice to each other.
They don’t know anything about each other. Remember, barely talking...(duh).
All we actually get is a form of mutual physical attraction, but they apparently managed to fell in love somehow...How is that possible since there was no relationship stages? You know, girl meets boy, they talk, become friends, etc....
I didn’t feel any attraction between them, to be honest.
Julia is a shallow, immature woman, going on and on about her past and how no one loves her. Blah, blah, blah, poor little rich girl.
Everett is not far behind either. At 97% we get a grown up man crying like a baby about how he can’t help himself wanting her and how he is tested to sleep next to her and not touch. It was so emasculating and so awkward for me to read that.
Haven’t cringed so much while reading a book in a long time. I feel very embarrassed at the moment.
I have disliked both Mc’s. The relationship between them was ridiculous. So much inner monologue and their conversations were going around and around, if they did talk, and they barely talked to each other.
Barely spent time together.
Barely been nice to each other.
They don’t know anything about each other. Remember, barely talking...(duh).
All we actually get is a form of mutual physical attraction, but they apparently managed to fell in love somehow...How is that possible since there was no relationship stages? You know, girl meets boy, they talk, become friends, etc....
I didn’t feel any attraction between them, to be honest.
Julia is a shallow, immature woman, going on and on about her past and how no one loves her. Blah, blah, blah, poor little rich girl.
Everett is not far behind either. At 97% we get a grown up man crying like a baby about how he can’t help himself wanting her and how he is tested to sleep next to her and not touch. It was so emasculating and so awkward for me to read that.
Haven’t cringed so much while reading a book in a long time. I feel very embarrassed at the moment.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
October 1, 2013
Readers who enjoy sweet prairie romance will enjoy Melissa Jagears's debut novel. She has a unique twist on the marriage of convenience story and sports characters with emotional woundedness that made me want to reach into the pages and give them a hug.
The pacing was a little slow for my taste, and I sometimes grew impatient when the characters refused to reveal their past to each other and thereby clear the misunderstandings between them, but I understood that they both had trust issues and the lack of communication felt true to their characterization.
There is a free e-novella prequel to the story called Love by the Letter that you can download to get a taste of the author's style of story. It was a fun, quick read that I enjoyed.
The pacing was a little slow for my taste, and I sometimes grew impatient when the characters refused to reveal their past to each other and thereby clear the misunderstandings between them, but I understood that they both had trust issues and the lack of communication felt true to their characterization.
There is a free e-novella prequel to the story called Love by the Letter that you can download to get a taste of the author's style of story. It was a fun, quick read that I enjoyed.
Read
December 29, 2017Ha. What do I think? I've read it a hundred times over. Hope people like it!
September 29, 2013
Ugh I cannot believe I waited so long for this book. It seemed so promising- a pretty cover and a different spin on a mail order plot line. But the characters really lack depth. Just like the story line.
Julia, the supermodel from 1876, struggles with being so drop dead gorgeous; her beauty is so intense that no one can think about anything else, including herself. She pretty much goes cycles through feelings of shame (crimes committed against her because of her beauty), guilt (because apart from her beauty she's useless), resentment ("i'm more than just a pretty face!"), hopelessness ("I'm nothing but a pretty face!"), and suspicion ("are you thinking about my looks?"). Sound a bit repetitive? Oh you have no idea.
Let's add in a second POV from her intended who spends 80% of his time obsessing about her beauty/pretty face (of the "I have nothing to offer her; she's too beautiful" & "I must have her now" variety.) and 20% of his time obsessing about his previous mail order (+ 1) failures.
The two characters go back and forth so much that I have whiplash.
And the conflicts were as extreme as you can get: *spoilers* being jilted no less than 5 times for pretty weak reasons, rape, attempted rape, 12 miscarriages/still births, and a fall off the roof leading to a mangled leg, fever, and brush with both amputation and death. Just to name a few.
If you secretly harbor a wish that your beauty was so all consuming that it was a constant source of conflict with everyone around you, and you'd like to experience it vicariously through a shallow, vain fictional character, then this is the book for you.
Julia, the supermodel from 1876, struggles with being so drop dead gorgeous; her beauty is so intense that no one can think about anything else, including herself. She pretty much goes cycles through feelings of shame (crimes committed against her because of her beauty), guilt (because apart from her beauty she's useless), resentment ("i'm more than just a pretty face!"), hopelessness ("I'm nothing but a pretty face!"), and suspicion ("are you thinking about my looks?"). Sound a bit repetitive? Oh you have no idea.
Let's add in a second POV from her intended who spends 80% of his time obsessing about her beauty/pretty face (of the "I have nothing to offer her; she's too beautiful" & "I must have her now" variety.) and 20% of his time obsessing about his previous mail order (+ 1) failures.
The two characters go back and forth so much that I have whiplash.
And the conflicts were as extreme as you can get: *spoilers* being jilted no less than 5 times for pretty weak reasons, rape, attempted rape, 12 miscarriages/still births, and a fall off the roof leading to a mangled leg, fever, and brush with both amputation and death. Just to name a few.
If you secretly harbor a wish that your beauty was so all consuming that it was a constant source of conflict with everyone around you, and you'd like to experience it vicariously through a shallow, vain fictional character, then this is the book for you.
December 6, 2013
This is a difficult book for me to review because it left me with many mixed emotions.
Everett Cline is a nice-looking, God-fearing homesteader who has been quite unlucky in the love department. Sending for multiple mail order brides, one at a time of course, they all chose someone else to spend their life with. He feels he must be greatly lacking and has given up the idea of marriage and a helpmate. His very good friend and neighbor, Rachel, secretly answers a mail order bride ad as herself but on Everett's behalf and after corresponding with the young lady for many months, invites her to travel to Kansas to meet/marry Everett. Everett finds out about the deception only minutes before the train arrives. He is not at all thrilled by this turn of events but he will do the right thing if the lady wants him for a husband.
Julia has her own set of marriage rules which are: marry only for companionship, never fall in love, and most specifically...never enter the marriage bed...a real hands off policy, and no children. Her past has left her emotionally and physically wounded and she will not share her secrets with anyone.
This book was so repetitive that I quickly became frustrated, annoyed, bored, and considered not finishing it but I trudged on. It dragged in many places and, I feel, was way too long for the outcome of the book. It could have all been said and done in 200 pages instead of dragging it out. The storyline was weak and without depth, lacking a subplot which could have made the story much more interesting. Both the H and h were insipid characters with the heroine being weak, self-centered, emotionally unavailable, narrow minded and shallow. The hero treated Julia badly in the beginning by ignoring her but once it was brought to his attention he changed his ways and sought God's guidance. That still did not seem to help their relationship much though. She was a hard woman with a hardened heart taking responsibility and feeling guilt where it wasn't warranted. It was tiring watching her throw away a chance at love but she had a very sturdy wall built around her heart and many misconstrued ideas about male and female relationships.
What surprised me was that Rachel took the time to get to know this young woman through correspondence and sends for her but yet she is not a Christian...does not share Rachel's or Everett's beliefs. I just don't see Rachel making a call like that. She is too grounded in her faith to have ignored that issue and a big issue it was.
Would I recommend this book...let me say it this way. I certainly would not read it again and I am not sure I would read more in this series. I had high hopes for this book because I loved 'Loved By the Letter' so this was quite a disappointment. But as always, you should judge for yourself because 88.5% gave it either a 4 or 5-star rating.
Everett Cline is a nice-looking, God-fearing homesteader who has been quite unlucky in the love department. Sending for multiple mail order brides, one at a time of course, they all chose someone else to spend their life with. He feels he must be greatly lacking and has given up the idea of marriage and a helpmate. His very good friend and neighbor, Rachel, secretly answers a mail order bride ad as herself but on Everett's behalf and after corresponding with the young lady for many months, invites her to travel to Kansas to meet/marry Everett. Everett finds out about the deception only minutes before the train arrives. He is not at all thrilled by this turn of events but he will do the right thing if the lady wants him for a husband.
Julia has her own set of marriage rules which are: marry only for companionship, never fall in love, and most specifically...never enter the marriage bed...a real hands off policy, and no children. Her past has left her emotionally and physically wounded and she will not share her secrets with anyone.
This book was so repetitive that I quickly became frustrated, annoyed, bored, and considered not finishing it but I trudged on. It dragged in many places and, I feel, was way too long for the outcome of the book. It could have all been said and done in 200 pages instead of dragging it out. The storyline was weak and without depth, lacking a subplot which could have made the story much more interesting. Both the H and h were insipid characters with the heroine being weak, self-centered, emotionally unavailable, narrow minded and shallow. The hero treated Julia badly in the beginning by ignoring her but once it was brought to his attention he changed his ways and sought God's guidance. That still did not seem to help their relationship much though. She was a hard woman with a hardened heart taking responsibility and feeling guilt where it wasn't warranted. It was tiring watching her throw away a chance at love but she had a very sturdy wall built around her heart and many misconstrued ideas about male and female relationships.
What surprised me was that Rachel took the time to get to know this young woman through correspondence and sends for her but yet she is not a Christian...does not share Rachel's or Everett's beliefs. I just don't see Rachel making a call like that. She is too grounded in her faith to have ignored that issue and a big issue it was.
Would I recommend this book...let me say it this way. I certainly would not read it again and I am not sure I would read more in this series. I had high hopes for this book because I loved 'Loved By the Letter' so this was quite a disappointment. But as always, you should judge for yourself because 88.5% gave it either a 4 or 5-star rating.
August 3, 2020
A 2.5* at most.
What could have been a hugely sweet and heartwarming story gets bogged down by repetitiveness and the mcs pussy-footing around each other and their issues. OR rather the H pussy-foots around the lines the h firmly draws. Poor guy!
I enjoy historical Americana/frontier stories like as told by Pamela Morsi so was really looking forward to these two making a new life together while working a rugged, unforgiving land but it did not quite turn out as expected. There's a lack of any real communication, hope, expectation or lightness in the book. And there's no sex but the specter of it (in form of fear, threat and hope thereof) looms on almost every page.
What could have been a hugely sweet and heartwarming story gets bogged down by repetitiveness and the mcs pussy-footing around each other and their issues. OR rather the H pussy-foots around the lines the h firmly draws. Poor guy!
I enjoy historical Americana/frontier stories like as told by Pamela Morsi so was really looking forward to these two making a new life together while working a rugged, unforgiving land but it did not quite turn out as expected. There's a lack of any real communication, hope, expectation or lightness in the book. And there's no sex but the specter of it (in form of fear, threat and hope thereof) looms on almost every page.
December 26, 2015
Pleasant story of a couple who didn't really want to be married at all, but end up paired together by force of circumstances. Once they tie the knot, there are all sorts of things to contend with, from old secrets to broken bones. I liked both Julia and Everett, but especially loved their friends, who were responsible for bringing them together and who showed such a sweet picture of family life. It reminded me of Amanda Cabot's "Scattered Petals", which was one of my favorite and most memorable books from last year's reading. I'll definitely be reading more of this series.
May 2, 2016
3.5 stars
A Bride for Keeps is a heartwarming mail-order-bride story of how God heals two battle-scarred hearts when strangers are brought together by a meddlesome neighbor who is a friend to them both.
A Bride for Keeps is a heartwarming mail-order-bride story of how God heals two battle-scarred hearts when strangers are brought together by a meddlesome neighbor who is a friend to them both.
August 12, 2016
Beautiful love story! Full review to come.
I am quick to fall in love with any story about 1) a mail-order bride, 2) a fish out of water and 3) healing of past hurts. Melissa Jagear’s debut, A Bride for Keeps, not only provided a wonderful story with those themes, but also exemplified restoration in a seemingly hopeless situation.
The situation certainly seems hopeless when Julia Lockwood, quite the stranger to life on the prairie, steps off the train as Everett Cline’s fifth mail-order bride. Unwittingly pulled into this fifth relationship by the well-meaning wife of his best friend, Everett is stubborn and slow to allow Julia into his life. Julia, using the proposed marriage as an escape from the emotional and physical hurts of her past, is both repelled by & drawn to Everett.
Sometimes mail-order bride stories are too cutesy and cheesy for me. It seems that it’s easy for those types of stories to fall into the “insta-love” category, but in A Bride for Keeps, the development of both characters took priority over the romance. Don’t get me wrong, the romantic element was strong and full of tension, but it didn’t overshadow the individual growth of Julia and Everett. Coming to terms with one another did not immediately fix their problems as individuals, but rather worked hand in hand as with the story of their marital stresses.
Their slow journey to know and love one another is a tender and beautiful story, full of the harsh realities of prairie life as well as inner turmoil and danger from the outside. I thought their misunderstandings were very realistic and didn’t ever cross into feeling contrived. There were times where I just wished they would communicate, but their reasoning behind not doing so were very genuine and in keeping with their character.
The character that I would classify as the “villain,” is also portrayed very well. He is obviously an individual that has many deep-rooted issues to be okay with causing harm to another person. Though thoroughly despicable, he doesn’t stray into the realm of caricature like a lot of villainous characters can do. I was most concerned about his poor wife and would have loved to find out if she was successful in starting her life over without him. There’s a lot of potential of another story there (perhaps a hint, hint on a book two, Melissa? Hehe!).
The plot of this one is definitely slower. While there are definitely some tense, scary moments, there is no non-stop action but rather the plot is driven by the character's motivations and interactions. This is a beautiful historical romance. I'm definitely a new fan of Melissa Jagears and look forward to her future books!
I am quick to fall in love with any story about 1) a mail-order bride, 2) a fish out of water and 3) healing of past hurts. Melissa Jagear’s debut, A Bride for Keeps, not only provided a wonderful story with those themes, but also exemplified restoration in a seemingly hopeless situation.
The situation certainly seems hopeless when Julia Lockwood, quite the stranger to life on the prairie, steps off the train as Everett Cline’s fifth mail-order bride. Unwittingly pulled into this fifth relationship by the well-meaning wife of his best friend, Everett is stubborn and slow to allow Julia into his life. Julia, using the proposed marriage as an escape from the emotional and physical hurts of her past, is both repelled by & drawn to Everett.
Sometimes mail-order bride stories are too cutesy and cheesy for me. It seems that it’s easy for those types of stories to fall into the “insta-love” category, but in A Bride for Keeps, the development of both characters took priority over the romance. Don’t get me wrong, the romantic element was strong and full of tension, but it didn’t overshadow the individual growth of Julia and Everett. Coming to terms with one another did not immediately fix their problems as individuals, but rather worked hand in hand as with the story of their marital stresses.
Their slow journey to know and love one another is a tender and beautiful story, full of the harsh realities of prairie life as well as inner turmoil and danger from the outside. I thought their misunderstandings were very realistic and didn’t ever cross into feeling contrived. There were times where I just wished they would communicate, but their reasoning behind not doing so were very genuine and in keeping with their character.
The character that I would classify as the “villain,” is also portrayed very well. He is obviously an individual that has many deep-rooted issues to be okay with causing harm to another person. Though thoroughly despicable, he doesn’t stray into the realm of caricature like a lot of villainous characters can do. I was most concerned about his poor wife and would have loved to find out if she was successful in starting her life over without him. There’s a lot of potential of another story there (perhaps a hint, hint on a book two, Melissa? Hehe!).
The plot of this one is definitely slower. While there are definitely some tense, scary moments, there is no non-stop action but rather the plot is driven by the character's motivations and interactions. This is a beautiful historical romance. I'm definitely a new fan of Melissa Jagears and look forward to her future books!
September 25, 2013
After reading the novella Love by the Letter I was excited to read A Bride for Keeps. It started out good, but about halfway in I started to lose interest. While I liked Julia and Everett, I just got fed up with how they treated each other. Everett had been burned in the past causing him to doubt Julia’s intentions and was unwilling to open his heart for more pain. Meanwhile, Julia has run away from an unloving home and carries a dark secret that has her walls up and has a hard time trusting men. So, they waffle back and forth. Everett is kind of cold and aloof wanting to keep Julia at a distance. He constantly tells himself to start being nicer and get to know her more, but nothing really comes of it. When he does try, Julia rebuffs him. She would push him away and then wonder why he was so reserved around her. Duh. I wish they would have communicated more and that both their pasts had been brought up much sooner in the story. It’s not until the end that they finally start talking and when they finally declare themselves it all felt rushed.
Overall, I liked the overall story and writing. I’ll probably keep an eye out for more books from Ms. Jagears, but I wasn’t totally captivated with this one.
Content: Clean, PG. Mild violence
Overall, I liked the overall story and writing. I’ll probably keep an eye out for more books from Ms. Jagears, but I wasn’t totally captivated with this one.
Content: Clean, PG. Mild violence
June 27, 2020
What a delicious mail-order bride and marriage of convenience story! Both of those sub-genres were well pulled off, and I especially thought the emotions between Everett and Julia were authentic. There was a definite push-pull between their fears and desires and the struggle to find good balance between them. Very well done!
The twists were surprising and plentiful. This made for an entertaining story that kept me hooked throughout.
The second half of the story was delightfully faith-rich. This made me smile so much!
Julia was so relatable to me. Though I have not personally experienced what she has, I could well understand the grip of fear and how hard it is to overcome.
Trigger: theme of rape (talked of but not shown)
Content: one expletive
The twists were surprising and plentiful. This made for an entertaining story that kept me hooked throughout.
The second half of the story was delightfully faith-rich. This made me smile so much!
Julia was so relatable to me. Though I have not personally experienced what she has, I could well understand the grip of fear and how hard it is to overcome.
Trigger: theme of rape (talked of but not shown)
Content: one expletive
June 14, 2022
Originally posted on the January 2017 Mini Review post
Ah, that was cute! I admit it was somewhat cliché, but not much, and I really enjoyed it (because some clichés are just too awesome). The character were believable and the plot was well-paced. I was a little frustrated at the main characters for their back-and-forth-ness sometimes.
Anyway, this is an enjoyable, sweet romance that was only sometimes frustrating and therefore worth it. Besides, I argue that if a couple characters can make me frustrated, even in a bad way, the author has great potential. ;)
Content: no language. Sicknesses and injuries. Lots of mentions of (and a couple brief descriptions of) childbirth. Mentions of pregnancies, miscarriages, stillbirths, and the like. Julia is terrified of childbirth (mostly of losing a baby). Several mentions of 'becoming one' and that sort of thing. Julia and Everett sleep in separate beds after they're married, etc. Julia was 'taken advantage of' before she left Boston (no details, handled well, barely mentioned). Nothing that made me terribly uncomfortable.
~Kellyn Roth
Ah, that was cute! I admit it was somewhat cliché, but not much, and I really enjoyed it (because some clichés are just too awesome). The character were believable and the plot was well-paced. I was a little frustrated at the main characters for their back-and-forth-ness sometimes.
Anyway, this is an enjoyable, sweet romance that was only sometimes frustrating and therefore worth it. Besides, I argue that if a couple characters can make me frustrated, even in a bad way, the author has great potential. ;)
Content: no language. Sicknesses and injuries. Lots of mentions of (and a couple brief descriptions of) childbirth. Mentions of pregnancies, miscarriages, stillbirths, and the like. Julia is terrified of childbirth (mostly of losing a baby). Several mentions of 'becoming one' and that sort of thing. Julia and Everett sleep in separate beds after they're married, etc. Julia was 'taken advantage of' before she left Boston (no details, handled well, barely mentioned). Nothing that made me terribly uncomfortable.
~Kellyn Roth
August 26, 2013
Salt Flatts, Kansas, Spring 1876, and the train has just arrived in town with another mail-order bride for Everett Cline, only he didn’t order this one. He wants a wife, but he’s given up hope of finding one after one jilted him, one arrived dead, one arrived married and the fourth left him for a farmer with a bigger spread before they got married.
Julia Lockwood is from a well-to-do Boston family, but has run away to be Everett Cline’s mail-order bride on the advice of her pen-pal. But when she arrives, she finds Everett isn’t exactly pleased to see her—it’s as though he knows nothing about her…
I really enjoyed A Bride for Keeps. I’m always a sucker for a good marriage-of-convenience story, and this one was really well done. Both Everett and Julia were hiding secrets, and that’s always a good source of conflict for a novel. What made this interesting is that we know Everett’s secret almost from the outset, and that provides some good comic moments as it seems that every female Julia meets in Salt Flatts was at one time engaged to her husband.
I also enjoyed the Christian aspects of the story. Everett is a strong Christian, but marriage to Julia reminds him of his responsibility to be the spiritual head of the house, even when he’s married someone who doesn’t share his beliefs (and while I don’t normally support this, I think A Bride for Keeps handles it well).
The writing is good, the characters are likeable but not perfect, the plot is an original take on an old staple, and it meets all the expectations of a lightweight Christian historical romance. Perfect entertainment.
Recommended for those who enjoy western historical romance from authors such as Karen Witemeyer, Carol Cox, Jen Turano and Mary Conneally. I’ll look forward to reading the next in the series.
Thanks to Bethany House and NetGalley for providing a free ebook for review.
Julia Lockwood is from a well-to-do Boston family, but has run away to be Everett Cline’s mail-order bride on the advice of her pen-pal. But when she arrives, she finds Everett isn’t exactly pleased to see her—it’s as though he knows nothing about her…
I really enjoyed A Bride for Keeps. I’m always a sucker for a good marriage-of-convenience story, and this one was really well done. Both Everett and Julia were hiding secrets, and that’s always a good source of conflict for a novel. What made this interesting is that we know Everett’s secret almost from the outset, and that provides some good comic moments as it seems that every female Julia meets in Salt Flatts was at one time engaged to her husband.
I also enjoyed the Christian aspects of the story. Everett is a strong Christian, but marriage to Julia reminds him of his responsibility to be the spiritual head of the house, even when he’s married someone who doesn’t share his beliefs (and while I don’t normally support this, I think A Bride for Keeps handles it well).
The writing is good, the characters are likeable but not perfect, the plot is an original take on an old staple, and it meets all the expectations of a lightweight Christian historical romance. Perfect entertainment.
Recommended for those who enjoy western historical romance from authors such as Karen Witemeyer, Carol Cox, Jen Turano and Mary Conneally. I’ll look forward to reading the next in the series.
Thanks to Bethany House and NetGalley for providing a free ebook for review.
April 4, 2018
I really enjoyed this debut novel by Melissa Jagears. This is the story of Julia and Everett. What a moving mail order bride tale!
After being jilted by his sweetheart years ago, Everett set out to find himself a mail order bride for companionship as well as need for help around his farm. Three attempts and three failures later, he has given up. His friends, however, have not given up! Much to Everett's surprise, his new mail order bride has arrived!
Julia is typical of many mail-order brides in that she has something in her past that she is trying to escape from. Where Julia strays from the norm is that her past includes a very traumatic event that is going to make it extremely difficult to trust a man ever again.
When these two marry, will Everett be able to open himself up to his new bride, even after being jilted so many times before? Will Julia ever be able to trust Everett and be the wife he desires?
I found these characters to be very well written. Julia's fear is completely understandable, as is Everett's frustration with her! Watching these two find love is thoroughly enchanting!
I received a complimentary copy of A Bride for Keeps. All opinions are my own.
To read this review on my blog, visit http://brittreadsfiction.wordpress.co....
After being jilted by his sweetheart years ago, Everett set out to find himself a mail order bride for companionship as well as need for help around his farm. Three attempts and three failures later, he has given up. His friends, however, have not given up! Much to Everett's surprise, his new mail order bride has arrived!
Julia is typical of many mail-order brides in that she has something in her past that she is trying to escape from. Where Julia strays from the norm is that her past includes a very traumatic event that is going to make it extremely difficult to trust a man ever again.
When these two marry, will Everett be able to open himself up to his new bride, even after being jilted so many times before? Will Julia ever be able to trust Everett and be the wife he desires?
I found these characters to be very well written. Julia's fear is completely understandable, as is Everett's frustration with her! Watching these two find love is thoroughly enchanting!
I received a complimentary copy of A Bride for Keeps. All opinions are my own.
To read this review on my blog, visit http://brittreadsfiction.wordpress.co....
February 6, 2017
2.5 stars. It could've been really good.
He's had terrible luck and some humiliation in past attempts at procuring a mail-order bride. She's fleeing from a traumatic past and can't stand to even let a man hold her hand.
So much "Let my love open the door, to your heart" potential. Characters were decent, I would've enjoyed some shades of grey between good guys and bad guys. Contrived misunderstandings, too many overheard snippets of conversation used as plot devices.
I enjoy well written Christian romances. This one was a bit heavy handed, like he comes right out and tells her that Jesus is the only one who can heal her. She's all, "Jesus Who? I can pray? Did I say it right?" Way OTT, no subtlety at all.
He's had terrible luck and some humiliation in past attempts at procuring a mail-order bride. She's fleeing from a traumatic past and can't stand to even let a man hold her hand.
So much "Let my love open the door, to your heart" potential. Characters were decent, I would've enjoyed some shades of grey between good guys and bad guys. Contrived misunderstandings, too many overheard snippets of conversation used as plot devices.
I enjoy well written Christian romances. This one was a bit heavy handed, like he comes right out and tells her that Jesus is the only one who can heal her. She's all, "Jesus Who? I can pray? Did I say it right?" Way OTT, no subtlety at all.
September 17, 2013
I was lucky to receive this book to read before it's debut. A bride for keeps was an amazing & inspiring story to read. Everett and Julia both experienced pain in their past causing them to shut each other out. Reading their struggles and pain felt like I was right there in the story. This was the first book I read by Melissa Jagears and I must say she has made my favorite author list with this book. So far A bride for keeps is the best mail-order-bride story I read so far this year, and the ending was touching! This book is a must read!!!
June 5, 2023
One word: EVERETT. 😭 This is such a heart-tugging story that exceeded my expectations and was threaded through with powerful themes of redemption and Christ-like love. I really loved it. (Funny story: Dex and Rachel's story in novella form was the only thing I'd read by the author, and it just so happened that the next book I chose to read was the story of the brother, Everett! I hadn't even realize the stories were related until Rachel showed up. XD)
July 22, 2017
Read Melissa Jagears for the first time with A Bride for Keeps. Honest opinion? The book was a flat line most of the time. The story was fine, but was excruciatingly slow. I thought it lacked excitement, the only place where your interest piques is
I'm not saying that I'm unable to appreciate the book. It was nice, in the sense that it felt real. Both the main characters Julia and Everett have many flaws, which basically is true for real people as well. They have their shortcomings, but it was to the extent that annoyed me. Like in Rachel's words, Julia is bent to be miserable. And the same feelings and thought keep repeating themselves to death. She is extremely pessimistic for my liking. As for Everett, he is skeptical, and lacks confidence because of being jilted and is basically insecure. Though I did find him endearing overall, for what all he has been through!
As for the story line, I was a little disappointed because But then again, this is more of a realistic story than some fantastical romance where people are going to extremes. The problems and actions are real. So from a literary POV, it is a good work, but if you are expecting an exaggerated romance, you'll be unable to locate it here.
All being said, I would not mind reading other of the works by the author, and thinking of picking one soon.
I'm not saying that I'm unable to appreciate the book. It was nice, in the sense that it felt real. Both the main characters Julia and Everett have many flaws, which basically is true for real people as well. They have their shortcomings, but it was to the extent that annoyed me. Like in Rachel's words, Julia is bent to be miserable. And the same feelings and thought keep repeating themselves to death. She is extremely pessimistic for my liking. As for Everett, he is skeptical, and lacks confidence because of being jilted and is basically insecure. Though I did find him endearing overall, for what all he has been through!
As for the story line, I was a little disappointed because But then again, this is more of a realistic story than some fantastical romance where people are going to extremes. The problems and actions are real. So from a literary POV, it is a good work, but if you are expecting an exaggerated romance, you'll be unable to locate it here.
All being said, I would not mind reading other of the works by the author, and thinking of picking one soon.
June 29, 2016
This novel definitely had me turning the pages fast. However, I was truly conflicted on how to rate it. I am about to go into my reasons why... so if you want absolutely no more info stop reading now. (I am giving an overview not precise details).
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Jagears builds a well developed story and characters. There is a lot of faith based truths peppered through out. All of this is well done. They reason why I did not rate this novel higher is that I did not like how long it took for the couple to actually start to communicate and be friendly. As I read, I tried to hurry through and even skimmed in areas that did not feel important, hoping to reach the point where there was not only more interaction between the two, but also, some sort of friendly companionship. I finally, after reading over 3/4 of the book had to put it down last night and go to sleep. Realizing it was just not going to happen until the end of the novel.
There was a HEA ending but I really missed out on the developing of the friendship/romance that could have been there. Even with the personal conflict that needed to be resolved, I felt there could have been more of a enjoyable relationship sooner. Overall, a good read!
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Jagears builds a well developed story and characters. There is a lot of faith based truths peppered through out. All of this is well done. They reason why I did not rate this novel higher is that I did not like how long it took for the couple to actually start to communicate and be friendly. As I read, I tried to hurry through and even skimmed in areas that did not feel important, hoping to reach the point where there was not only more interaction between the two, but also, some sort of friendly companionship. I finally, after reading over 3/4 of the book had to put it down last night and go to sleep. Realizing it was just not going to happen until the end of the novel.
There was a HEA ending but I really missed out on the developing of the friendship/romance that could have been there. Even with the personal conflict that needed to be resolved, I felt there could have been more of a enjoyable relationship sooner. Overall, a good read!
August 31, 2014
It was fantastic! This book hooked my interest from the beginning. Melissa Jagears is a talented writer and I can't wait to read more of her books.
July 31, 2018
A nice sweet refreshing change!
I have found myself lately getting a little bored of the typical storyline of a man meets a woman or a woman meets a man, they have a challenge to become a couple then they finally get together and HEA.
With that being said I found this book a nice refreshing change because Melissa Jaguars has focused on the challenges of marriage. I enjoyed reading about life after marriage and how marriage is not easy.
My favourite aspect of this story was how Mellissa Jaguars has used biblical principles and scripture regarding marriage, healing, salvation, fear, restoration, faith and overcoming the effects of bad experiences. (There is probably a lot more lol)
My favourite quote was “Faith is completely leaning on the promise of someone to do what he pledges. If God said He’ll forgive us and we believe He is a God who can do anything, then we have to believe He’ll do what he said.”
I really like the main characters Everett and Julia. I also enjoyed reading about Dex & Rachel again it was nice to see how there marriage had progressed from “Love by the Letter”.
I also listened to the accompanied audiobook performed by Pilar Witherspoon. I give her 4.5 stars for her performance very easy and enjoyable to listen to.
I am enjoying this series so far and I look forward to reading the next book in the near future.
Recommended for all those who like Christian fiction set in the Westward expansion era :)
I have found myself lately getting a little bored of the typical storyline of a man meets a woman or a woman meets a man, they have a challenge to become a couple then they finally get together and HEA.
With that being said I found this book a nice refreshing change because Melissa Jaguars has focused on the challenges of marriage. I enjoyed reading about life after marriage and how marriage is not easy.
My favourite aspect of this story was how Mellissa Jaguars has used biblical principles and scripture regarding marriage, healing, salvation, fear, restoration, faith and overcoming the effects of bad experiences. (There is probably a lot more lol)
My favourite quote was “Faith is completely leaning on the promise of someone to do what he pledges. If God said He’ll forgive us and we believe He is a God who can do anything, then we have to believe He’ll do what he said.”
I really like the main characters Everett and Julia. I also enjoyed reading about Dex & Rachel again it was nice to see how there marriage had progressed from “Love by the Letter”.
I also listened to the accompanied audiobook performed by Pilar Witherspoon. I give her 4.5 stars for her performance very easy and enjoyable to listen to.
I am enjoying this series so far and I look forward to reading the next book in the near future.
Recommended for all those who like Christian fiction set in the Westward expansion era :)
February 14, 2022
Wow...I didn't realize how much I truly love marriage of convenience stories until I finally reached the last page of this story! And I couldn't believe my eyes at the end when I saw this was this author's debut novel. Seriously?! It was that good.
These two characters both have a past that they're ashamed of, yet neither of them wants to let their guard down and share that past with the other. Everett is the first to really come around, thanks to some well-timed advice from his friend. Julia believes that all Everett wants is someone to help him work the farm, and it almost leads to her demise. Once these two are able to tear down the walls that are shielding their hearts, the sparks start to fly and I couldn't turn the pages fast enough!
Also tucked within this story is a beautiful conversion experience that points readers to Christ. Truly one of the best scenes I've ever read. :)
All in all, a winner of a story, and now I'm itching to read the next two books in this series!
These two characters both have a past that they're ashamed of, yet neither of them wants to let their guard down and share that past with the other. Everett is the first to really come around, thanks to some well-timed advice from his friend. Julia believes that all Everett wants is someone to help him work the farm, and it almost leads to her demise. Once these two are able to tear down the walls that are shielding their hearts, the sparks start to fly and I couldn't turn the pages fast enough!
Also tucked within this story is a beautiful conversion experience that points readers to Christ. Truly one of the best scenes I've ever read. :)
All in all, a winner of a story, and now I'm itching to read the next two books in this series!
April 24, 2022
I don't think I've ever met two characters as pig-headed as these two. Regardless, I really enjoyed this one and will be looking into more books by Melissa.
Tropes: mail-order bride, marriage of convenience
Content: mentions of the main girl being raped in the past (not detailed, mostly remembering emotions), kissing, MC's friend is in an abusive marriage, a man tries to force himself on MC (it is stopped)
4 Stars
Tropes: mail-order bride, marriage of convenience
Content: mentions of the main girl being raped in the past (not detailed, mostly remembering emotions), kissing, MC's friend is in an abusive marriage, a man tries to force himself on MC (it is stopped)
4 Stars
September 6, 2014
Rating: 4.5 out of 5
Debut authors have been on fire in the Christian fiction market these past few years – each time I close a new book (such names as Dani Pettrey to Katherine Reay to Becky Wade come to mind, and many more I’ve yet to “meet”), I am in awe of the talent these publishers are acquiring. Melissa Jagears saw her publishing ambitions come true among the crop of the best 2013 had to offer for new talent. The story is a familiar one, this time it’s about the educated and proper Julia Lockwood, a beauty who is running from secrets of her own past. She’s come west under the assumption she has a husband waiting for her at the end of the line only to realize the man she thought was going to marry her never sent for a mail-order bride. Everett Cline is done with women. He’s tried the mail-order bride game and each time it backfired on him. Now, he’s through. Trouble is, Julia has nowhere to go and Everett feels a duty to protect her – even if that means keeping her at arm’s length to avoid what his heart is telling him.
Honestly, I’ve probably not read a piece of mail-order bride fiction in nearly ten years. Maybe it’s because I binge read a cute series that dealt with the subject as a teen or more likely, it’s because I “grew out” of the genre. When I had the chance to read this novel, I settled in for what I expected to be an adequate read. Imagine my delight when this became one of the reads that was simply put, hard to put down. It didn’t take long for the story to expand and ingrain itself in my mind and goodness, did Melissa ever do a brilliant job with this story. Smartly woven into the familiar, Jagears takes out a new playbook on the traditions, placing her own moniker on an oft-retold, albeit beloved sense of timeless story. Julia and Everett are beautifully flawed, which makes them relatable and charming all at once. Both have a kind of sad, tragic backstory that never falls into the trap of being over sympathized and is instead just quietly told in its own time and way. Julia’s fragility is celebrated with class and grace while Everett’s own struggles are rendered to be the most poignant of the story – and while I realize that saying this from the perspective of a male character may sound a bit “strange,” it really is not. I think I liked Everett the best of the lot (tough since I did enjoy everyone) and felt like he was a deserving, well-rounded hero, who was so much more than merely a guy I felt “so-so” about because of how he cared, thought and treated the heroine – and certainly, there was no sense of obligation to like him just because he was the hero.
If you like this genre or are in the market for something a little “different,” consider Melissa’s charming debut. She puts new life into this story and the results are anything but old-fashioned – in fact, I’m glad the release of book two is knocking on our doorstep!
Debut authors have been on fire in the Christian fiction market these past few years – each time I close a new book (such names as Dani Pettrey to Katherine Reay to Becky Wade come to mind, and many more I’ve yet to “meet”), I am in awe of the talent these publishers are acquiring. Melissa Jagears saw her publishing ambitions come true among the crop of the best 2013 had to offer for new talent. The story is a familiar one, this time it’s about the educated and proper Julia Lockwood, a beauty who is running from secrets of her own past. She’s come west under the assumption she has a husband waiting for her at the end of the line only to realize the man she thought was going to marry her never sent for a mail-order bride. Everett Cline is done with women. He’s tried the mail-order bride game and each time it backfired on him. Now, he’s through. Trouble is, Julia has nowhere to go and Everett feels a duty to protect her – even if that means keeping her at arm’s length to avoid what his heart is telling him.
Honestly, I’ve probably not read a piece of mail-order bride fiction in nearly ten years. Maybe it’s because I binge read a cute series that dealt with the subject as a teen or more likely, it’s because I “grew out” of the genre. When I had the chance to read this novel, I settled in for what I expected to be an adequate read. Imagine my delight when this became one of the reads that was simply put, hard to put down. It didn’t take long for the story to expand and ingrain itself in my mind and goodness, did Melissa ever do a brilliant job with this story. Smartly woven into the familiar, Jagears takes out a new playbook on the traditions, placing her own moniker on an oft-retold, albeit beloved sense of timeless story. Julia and Everett are beautifully flawed, which makes them relatable and charming all at once. Both have a kind of sad, tragic backstory that never falls into the trap of being over sympathized and is instead just quietly told in its own time and way. Julia’s fragility is celebrated with class and grace while Everett’s own struggles are rendered to be the most poignant of the story – and while I realize that saying this from the perspective of a male character may sound a bit “strange,” it really is not. I think I liked Everett the best of the lot (tough since I did enjoy everyone) and felt like he was a deserving, well-rounded hero, who was so much more than merely a guy I felt “so-so” about because of how he cared, thought and treated the heroine – and certainly, there was no sense of obligation to like him just because he was the hero.
If you like this genre or are in the market for something a little “different,” consider Melissa’s charming debut. She puts new life into this story and the results are anything but old-fashioned – in fact, I’m glad the release of book two is knocking on our doorstep!
October 19, 2013
What a fantastic read. From page one to the very last page this author draws you into the story. If this is Melissa Jagears debut book I can’t wait to see what follows! She has made a fan out of me. I finished this book early this morning and I thought about it off and on all day. It made that big of an impact on me.
If you want to know how hard it was to live in the west in 1876 this book is for you. The characters are lovable, well most of them are, and the hardships are plenty. Brides are hard to find and men are lonely.
Everett Cline needs a wife and Julia Lockwood needs to escape from her life in the East. Is she making a mistake agreeing to become a wife to a man she doesn’t even know?
This is the most touching book I have read in a long time. Many Christian fiction books refer to God and even quote scripture, however, the message that Melissa Jagears includes toward the end of this book between Everett and Julia made my heart overflow. Such a tender and intimate invitation for a man to extend to a woman. What a great God moment.
If you are reading my review I urge you to purchase a copy of this book. You are going to love it!
I won this book from Bethany House, thank you. I wasn’t required to write a review. It was my pleasure to do so. The opinions expressed are mine alone.
If you want to know how hard it was to live in the west in 1876 this book is for you. The characters are lovable, well most of them are, and the hardships are plenty. Brides are hard to find and men are lonely.
Everett Cline needs a wife and Julia Lockwood needs to escape from her life in the East. Is she making a mistake agreeing to become a wife to a man she doesn’t even know?
This is the most touching book I have read in a long time. Many Christian fiction books refer to God and even quote scripture, however, the message that Melissa Jagears includes toward the end of this book between Everett and Julia made my heart overflow. Such a tender and intimate invitation for a man to extend to a woman. What a great God moment.
If you are reading my review I urge you to purchase a copy of this book. You are going to love it!
I won this book from Bethany House, thank you. I wasn’t required to write a review. It was my pleasure to do so. The opinions expressed are mine alone.
September 22, 2014
The author added a very different twist to mail order bride fiction that I'm used to reading. Very different approach, I like that!
July 12, 2014
I didn't realize this was a Christian book. It dragged on and on. Julia was annoying. I found myself skipping pages just to hurry to the end.
July 20, 2024
While this was a much slower paced romance than most, I appreciated that it allowed for deeper character development. I really liked all of the characters in this book, (except Ned of course). I haven't peeked at who the following books in the series focus on, but I would love to see one of the books follow Helga!
This book takes place after the characters from the first book have settled in Kansas and been there for a long while. I would love to have seen memories or flashbacks or tid bits from their journey from the last book to this one, but this one jumps into them already being settled. And focuses on Everett, one of the characters from the first book. Julia, a new character, appears early on in the story, and the rest follows both of their journeys filled with emotional pain, into and through a very tumultuous and distant relationship that seems like it's just never going to progress. I did feel towards the middle and end the story started to drag, and like I was almost getting frustrated with what seemed like never ending tension between Everett and Julie. There was a good bit of faith based content weaved throughout the story that it kept me engaged, and I appreciated that although it was a romance, it was clean. I'll go on to read the next book in the series at some point.
This book takes place after the characters from the first book have settled in Kansas and been there for a long while. I would love to have seen memories or flashbacks or tid bits from their journey from the last book to this one, but this one jumps into them already being settled. And focuses on Everett, one of the characters from the first book. Julia, a new character, appears early on in the story, and the rest follows both of their journeys filled with emotional pain, into and through a very tumultuous and distant relationship that seems like it's just never going to progress. I did feel towards the middle and end the story started to drag, and like I was almost getting frustrated with what seemed like never ending tension between Everett and Julie. There was a good bit of faith based content weaved throughout the story that it kept me engaged, and I appreciated that although it was a romance, it was clean. I'll go on to read the next book in the series at some point.
October 1, 2013
Life on the prairie is difficult, especially for a single man. Everett Cline has made several attempts to marry, but all of them have fallen through—including two mail-order brides who fell for other men. His failed marriage attempts have made him the town joke, and Everett has resigned himself to a life of bachelorhood. It’s natural that he’s less than pleased when his best friend’s wife arranges one more mail-order bride for him. It’s clear the moment that that she steps off the train that Julia Lockwood does not belong on the prairie, and Everett can’t imagine why she’d choose him over any of the other men in their town.
Julia came to Salt Flatts as a last resort, and she wouldn’t be considering marriage if it wasn’t the only way she could ensure protection from the kind of men who forced her to run away. She has no idea what sort of work homesteading will require of her, but she’s determined to prove herself if it means Everett will accept a marriage of convenience with her. But would a man like Everett be happy with a woman who is more farmhand than wife, who will never fill his house with children? Julia knows men have been unable to resist her beauty in the past—will Everett be any different?
Some of you may know that I wrote a historical romance last summer that featured a mail-order bride. My novel needs a lot of work before it’s ready for publication, so I’m always eager to read the newest mail-order romances to see what’s catching the eyes of publishers and readers. I wasn’t entirely sure what to expect from A Bride for Keeps, but the fact that Everett had been jilted by other mail-order brides before Julia definitely intrigued me.
One of the things I loved most about A Bride for Keeps is that it didn’t skimp on the gritty details of how difficult prairie life was. Men like Everett didn’t send for mail-order brides because they couldn’t be bothered courting a woman closer to home—they did so because women were scarce in places like Salt Flatts, and not every woman was up to the hard life of homesteading and farming. A lot of novels about mail-order brides focus on the struggles the women are fleeing from, but not the difficulties they were signing up for living in the middle of nowhere, working from sun-up to sun-down on a farm that may not even give them enough produce to see them through the winter. A Bride for Keeps definitely captures both sides of the story, and I applaud it for that.
That’s not to say that this novel skimps on the difficulties its female characters face. Julia, like many heroines before her, is fleeing a life she doesn’t want and a man she needs protection from. This could be predictable, except that her situation is entirely believable for a time when women had very little rights and needed a man (father, husband, brother, etc) to keep them from harm. Julia was hurt by a man she believed loved her, and she takes this hurt into her marriage to Everett. As a result of her experience, she believes her beauty can only bring her harm, and that her appearance is to blame for what happened to her. She doesn’t think she’s worthy of Everett’s love because another man took her virtue, so a marriage of convenience is her only hope. Sadly, this isn’t a situation that is entirely bereft from our society—there are many victims of rape and abuse that think they are for blame for what they suffered. Julia’s situation is dealt with very sensitively and realistically, and her journey to freedom is incredibly heart-warming.
Julia isn’t the only female character needing to escape. One of Everett’s previous brides married his neighbour, Ned, because she believed he could offer her a better life than Everett. Ned might have had a better farm, but his treatment of Helga is not something any woman should suffer through. Although Helga doesn’t play a huge part in the novel, her relationship with Ned presents interesting parallels to Everett and Julia’s situation, and provides a much needed reminder that not every mail-order marriage ends in happiness.
I don’t want to make it sound like this book is bleak, but it did contain a lot of historical details I’ve not come across in romance novels before. For example, Julia’s fear of dying in childbirth or losing children was very apt for a time when doctors were scarce and women had to struggle without pain relief. There are other, less-bleak details that made this story come alive for me, like Julia learning to milk a cow, living in a soddy house and waiting for a real bath tub to be delivered rather than bathing in the creek.
The spiritual side of this story didn’t seem terribly unusual to begin with—Everett is a believer but Julia has never regularly attended church—but as the story developed, the spiritual aspect wove into Julia’s guilt and fears about being unworthy. The message might be simple, but the scene in which Julia comes to realise that she isn’t to blame for what happened to her and that her past doesn’t make her any less worthy in God’s eyes is beautiful and uplifting.
A Bride for Keeps might have its moments of humour and quirky secondary characters, but it’s much more than simply a cute, western romance. The depth of character development and the realism in these characters’ struggles with life on the prairie make it stand out from the many mail-order bride romances in the Christian market. Not to mention, its message of hope and redemption is one that we all need to be reminded of.
Review title provided by Bethany House.
Julia came to Salt Flatts as a last resort, and she wouldn’t be considering marriage if it wasn’t the only way she could ensure protection from the kind of men who forced her to run away. She has no idea what sort of work homesteading will require of her, but she’s determined to prove herself if it means Everett will accept a marriage of convenience with her. But would a man like Everett be happy with a woman who is more farmhand than wife, who will never fill his house with children? Julia knows men have been unable to resist her beauty in the past—will Everett be any different?
Some of you may know that I wrote a historical romance last summer that featured a mail-order bride. My novel needs a lot of work before it’s ready for publication, so I’m always eager to read the newest mail-order romances to see what’s catching the eyes of publishers and readers. I wasn’t entirely sure what to expect from A Bride for Keeps, but the fact that Everett had been jilted by other mail-order brides before Julia definitely intrigued me.
One of the things I loved most about A Bride for Keeps is that it didn’t skimp on the gritty details of how difficult prairie life was. Men like Everett didn’t send for mail-order brides because they couldn’t be bothered courting a woman closer to home—they did so because women were scarce in places like Salt Flatts, and not every woman was up to the hard life of homesteading and farming. A lot of novels about mail-order brides focus on the struggles the women are fleeing from, but not the difficulties they were signing up for living in the middle of nowhere, working from sun-up to sun-down on a farm that may not even give them enough produce to see them through the winter. A Bride for Keeps definitely captures both sides of the story, and I applaud it for that.
That’s not to say that this novel skimps on the difficulties its female characters face. Julia, like many heroines before her, is fleeing a life she doesn’t want and a man she needs protection from. This could be predictable, except that her situation is entirely believable for a time when women had very little rights and needed a man (father, husband, brother, etc) to keep them from harm. Julia was hurt by a man she believed loved her, and she takes this hurt into her marriage to Everett. As a result of her experience, she believes her beauty can only bring her harm, and that her appearance is to blame for what happened to her. She doesn’t think she’s worthy of Everett’s love because another man took her virtue, so a marriage of convenience is her only hope. Sadly, this isn’t a situation that is entirely bereft from our society—there are many victims of rape and abuse that think they are for blame for what they suffered. Julia’s situation is dealt with very sensitively and realistically, and her journey to freedom is incredibly heart-warming.
Julia isn’t the only female character needing to escape. One of Everett’s previous brides married his neighbour, Ned, because she believed he could offer her a better life than Everett. Ned might have had a better farm, but his treatment of Helga is not something any woman should suffer through. Although Helga doesn’t play a huge part in the novel, her relationship with Ned presents interesting parallels to Everett and Julia’s situation, and provides a much needed reminder that not every mail-order marriage ends in happiness.
I don’t want to make it sound like this book is bleak, but it did contain a lot of historical details I’ve not come across in romance novels before. For example, Julia’s fear of dying in childbirth or losing children was very apt for a time when doctors were scarce and women had to struggle without pain relief. There are other, less-bleak details that made this story come alive for me, like Julia learning to milk a cow, living in a soddy house and waiting for a real bath tub to be delivered rather than bathing in the creek.
The spiritual side of this story didn’t seem terribly unusual to begin with—Everett is a believer but Julia has never regularly attended church—but as the story developed, the spiritual aspect wove into Julia’s guilt and fears about being unworthy. The message might be simple, but the scene in which Julia comes to realise that she isn’t to blame for what happened to her and that her past doesn’t make her any less worthy in God’s eyes is beautiful and uplifting.
A Bride for Keeps might have its moments of humour and quirky secondary characters, but it’s much more than simply a cute, western romance. The depth of character development and the realism in these characters’ struggles with life on the prairie make it stand out from the many mail-order bride romances in the Christian market. Not to mention, its message of hope and redemption is one that we all need to be reminded of.
Review title provided by Bethany House.
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