Blessed Are the Merciful

Mail Order Bride #4

by Al Lacy

In 1878 Adam Burke leaves Philadelphia for North Platte, Nebraska. The young lawyer wants to start a new life after being spurned by his fiancee. Adam also has another reason to leave -- he accidentally ran over and killed a woman named Nancy Mason in a thunderstorm. In North Platte he finds success in more ways than one when Rachel Mason answers his ad for a mail order bride. Adam considers the last name an odd coincidence -- but only after their marriage and after they both come to the Lord do they discover the awful truth: Adam killed Rachel's mother. Thanks to a pastor's intervention, Rachel overcomes her shock and bitterness to forgive Adam, just as God forgives us all.

Genres: Christian Fiction, Historical Fiction, Christian, Christian Romance, Romance, Mail Order Brides, Fiction

288 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1999

About the author

Al Lacy has written more than ninety novels, including the Angel of Mercy, Battles of Destiny, and Journeys of the Stranger series. He and his wife, JoAnna Lacy, are coauthors of the Mail Order Bride, Hannah of Fort Bridger, and Shadow of Liberty series. The Lacys make their home in the Colorado Rockies.

Reviews

[Jerry (Rebel With a Massive Media Library) · Rating 4 out of 5]

A tender tale of love, tragedy, and forgiveness.

[Barbara · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was an enjoyable book, and I loved the way it dealt with forgiveness in very tough situations. The ending seemed very quick and rushed compared to the pace of the rest of the book, and, to me, seemed a bit unbelievable. The characters involved were very new Christians when they made choices that I feel might have taken a bit more maturity in their faith. If you enjoy Christian historical fiction and/or mailorder bride stories, you will likely be glad you read this one.

[Ellie Hollows · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's been so long since I read this book. It was almost a brand new story 🤭.

Facing tragedies is so hard, as showcased by Adam's and Rachel's stories, but oh how, God can bring us to himself through them. Seth's and Bettianne's interconnected story reminded me that nothing is impossible with God. Adam and Rachel were made for each other ❤️.

It was so hard to see Adam go through his father's betrayal and then snooty, flippant Philipa... such a double blow. I admired his pioneer spirit, and he was quite the brillant dashing lawyer. I definitely hated how he tried to hide his involvement in the accident... but thankful he did become an honest, reputable man 🖤. That he realized that if we want mercy, we have to be willing to give mercy in return.

Poor, poor Rachel. I'm glad she had her Aunt Esther, and God knew giving up pursuing her.

My favorite side characters were Mr. William Daunt and Rachel's Aunt Esther Holden. Dauntt's humor is catching, and Aunt Esther's faith is inspiring. Waiting for answers is hard as I well know, but we have the Lord to wait upon. The Lord, to strengthen our hearts ❤️‍🩹.

The ending with Patch brought definitely, this book to five stars.

CW: hit and run, death, murder (slightly mentioned), alchohol addiction (always portrayed in a negative light, of course)

My Rating/ Age Recommendation:
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (5 out of 5 stars)/ 16+

I just love this mail-order bride series, it reminded me that I really should reread some of the others ☺️.

[Taryn Spearey · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was great! When I picked up this book at a local thrift store, I didn't know that it was book 4 in a series. I hope that n the future I can find the first three books.

That being said, I still did ha ve a good time reading this book. We follow Adam Burke, a man who makes a teribble mistake and goes on the run, hoping that might help relive his guilt. Adam decides to place an ad for a mail order bride. What he doesn't know at first is the woman who comes to him is the daughter of the woman he killed.

I'm glad that Adam was eventually able to confess what he did. I only wish that he had done in a lot sooner, like when he and Rachel met.

I'm satisfied with how this book ended. A five star read for me!!

[Melanie · Rating 3 out of 5]

A sweet story written by a pioneer in Christian fiction. The type of story that I loved in my youth. This one wasn't as good as others in the series. The couple doesn't meet until over 200 pages into the story, the climax happens two chapters form the end and the resolution happens during the last two pages of the story. Spoiler allert: of course the story has a happy ending which is why I read it to begin with.

[Marcia Phillips · Rating 1 out of 5]

The accident doesnt even happen until the middle of the book even though it's a main plot point. The Christian dialogue doesn't reallly fit very well. It's like a story with some evangelization shoved into it at weird times. Like if I found out my husband killed my mom and somebody told me to repent of my sins while I'm grieving, I wouldn't be called to covert. It's a clunky, dragging story.

[Susan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not my favorite Christian fiction, or Al Lacy book, but it had a good ending. The plot listed on the back of the book didn't start until more than half way through the book, and that was a bit weird. But again, sweet ending.

[Highland-dreamer · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book took a long time to get going. Then it took awhile for Adam and Rachel to even meet each other. The best part of the book is the last 20 pages, and even then, it is rushed and disappointing. The ending is abrupt and needed an epilogue.

[Elizabeth · Rating 5 out of 5]

Blessed Are the Merciful by Al Lacy – This one will rip your heart out! This mail order bride story puts God’s mercy to the test. Happy Reading!

[Galion Public Library Teens · Rating 4 out of 5]

Review by C.H.: "Loved, loved, loved, loved, loved it."