The Lightkeeper's Bride

Mercy Falls #2

by Colleen Coble

When Katie answers the call of duty, she awakens the call of her heart.

Katie Russell loves working as a telephone operator in Mercy Falls, California. But since childhood she has been expected to marry well. Her family presses for an engagement to wealthy bachelor Bartholomew Foster and though he doesn't stir her heart, their engagement promises a secure financial future.

Working the phone lines one evening, Katie overhears a chilling exchange between her friend Eliza and a familiar male voice. Katie soon learns that Eliza has disappeared, and the crime may be linked to another investigation by handsome new lighthouse keeper, Will Jesperson. Katie and Will soon form an alliance. An alliance that slowly blossoms into something more.

Despite the danger surrounding her, Katie is powerfully drawn to Will. But she is not at liberty to marry for love. And though society forbids their growing affection, Katie can't help but notice Will's sense of peace. It's a peace that rests on his trust in God—a trust that Katie has never had to depend on, with her future so clearly mapped out before her.

But the more Katie uncovers of the mystery, the more she discovers about herself, her past, and the brilliant future that could be hers if only she has the courage to trust in God and follow where her heart so fearlessly leads.

Genres: Christian Fiction, Historical Fiction, Romance, Christian, Fiction, Mystery, Historical

284 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2010

About the author

USAToday bestselling author Colleen Coble lives with her husband, Dave, in Arizona. She is the author of dozens of novels including the Rock Harbor Series, the Aloha Reef Series, the Mercy Falls Series, the Hope Beach Series, the Lonestar Series and two Women of Faith fiction selections, Alaska Twilight and Midnight Sea. She has more than 6 million books in print.

Reviews

[Ruth · Rating 5 out of 5]

Oh this book was AMAZING!!!! I loved all the suspense and the twists and turns making you wonder who actually did it! This story is very suspenseful and I loved it! This book it the second book of The Mercy Falls series by Colleen Coble. It is about a girl named Katie and the new lightkeeper, Will. When Katie hears one of her friend's conversation, she fears for her friend' s life. On the way she meets the new handsome lightkeeper and together they go through many trials but God is with them. This is an amazing book with a fast paced romance. It will keep you guessing who the culprit is until the at page. I hope whoever reads this enjoys it as much as I have. God bless ya'll ;)

[Kav · Rating 4 out of 5]

Vintage Coble. History and suspense paired with sweet romance is always a lure for me. And there's pirates! And a strapping lightkeeper hero who melted my heart when he engages with an orphan baby. Katie isn't smitten though -- she's suspicious and it takes awhile for her to figure out who she can trust in this tangled web of secrets.

[✨ Gramy ✨ · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great story set in the 1800's, including sharing the character's faith in God. Can't wait to read 'The Lightkeeper's Ball'.

[Natasha Marie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Over all a really enjoyable, clean, Christian historical romance/mystery. The mystery kept me guessing for sure!
The only reason I gave it 4 stars instead of 5, is because there were several times the story felt choppy and I wasn’t sure if I missed something and had to go back a few pages. Also, there’s one sentence where Phillip is called “James”.😅

[Ashley Gernon · Rating 5 out of 5]

Full of mystery and intrigue, this novel has. New turn around every corner. Very easy to read

[Victoria Mentzel · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love the author’s ability to mix romance and mystery into the perfect build of anticipation. Looking forward to reading Book #3

[Kassie Cox · Rating 5 out of 5]

Totally thought I marked this one as read 😂
Well, I finished this about a week ago and it was so good! I loved the main characters and the mystery going on in the book! Kept me guessing the whole time!!

[Tamara Tilley · Rating 3 out of 5]

THE LIGHTKEEPERS’S BRIDE was an enjoyable follow-up to THE LIGHTKEEPER’S DAUGHTER.

Telephone operator, Katie Russell loves her job. That is, until she overhears a heated dialogue between her friend Eliza and a male voice that she can’t quite place. When Eliza disappears and her infant daughter is left alone, Katie steps in and finds herself bickering over the child’s care with Will Jesperson, the new lightkeeper.

Overnight, Katie’s simple, predictable life is turned upside-down. She waivers on her upcoming engagement to Bart Foster. Though he is everything any woman would want, and he would provide a very secure future for her and her parents, she just doesn’t feel a spark of any kind when she is with him. No so the case with Will Jesperson. After deciding to be allies in caring for Eliza’s daughter, and a smallpox’s outbreak that throws them together, Katie soon finds herself spending all her time with Will, and feeling that spark she is sure translates to love. But, her parents wouldn’t stand for her marrying below her social standing, even if her social standing is in question.

That is just the beginning of Katie’s turmoil. Throw in foul play, pirates, a family secret coming to light, and her father’s fortune in question, Katie is not at all sure what her future holds or who will be there with her.

I think I favor LIGHTKEEPER’S BRIDE so far in the Mercy Falls series. I felt the suspense was more intriguing even if I could piece together the plot before the actual reveal. A good book I would recommend to Coble fans.

[Loraine · Rating 5 out of 5]

"When we follow in the way God has laid out for us, we have peace."

"All she'd had to do was trust in God and remember that her future wasn't here in this place but in heaven."

This was definitely one of my favorite books from Colleen Coble. Combine historical fiction, with romance, suspense, pirates, blackmail, an orphaned baby, twists and turns, good guys who are really bad guys, and two wonderful main characters and the result is a read you can't put down. The first book in this series was good, but this one was great.

Strongly recommend for readers who like historical fiction combined with action-filled suspense.

[Linda Klager · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved the cover of this book. The only thing about the title was that Katie was not the lightkeeper's bride yet.

Katie tried to please her parents and due her duty. She was promised to marry a man that she did not love. She thought that she needed to follow through with this marriage until Will came along. Also her Aunt Catherine urged her to "follow her heart".

There were a lot of mysterious developments in this book. What was Katie's ancestry? What was the child Jennie's ancestry?

There was piracy and shipwrecks, lots of dangerous times, family ties, family struggles, a smallpox epidemic and romance involved in this book.

[Sadie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very good! I love how this series always has an insane ending. The author includes twists and turns that you would never expect; I tried to predict some of the events, but I was wrong with most of them. I love how this book has adventure, and romance, and is historical fiction. Probably one of the best books I've read

[Allison · Rating 3 out of 5]

A nice little Christian romance. Is it just me or do heroines now need to prove that they are in every way as capable as men? Perhaps modern authors have to project a stereotypical "modern woman" onto their historical heroines or else they think nobody will take them seriously. But it's essentially anachronistic. Women simply didn't act certain ways historically. To break with decorum was to commit societal suicide. But no--these protagonistas forge on, doing everything their male counterparts do and oftentimes unraveling mysteries and solving problems that baffle their heroes.

I'm not interested in reading the woman as the intellectual beauty and the male as the good-hearted buffoon. Not that this book was like that...I'm just saying...

A modern woman knows what a modern woman is like, and fights her daily modern woman battles and says her nightly modern woman prayers. I want to know what real men and women were like when they believed that society worked for the best and they behaved according to the mores of the time. ("Mores" is not a typo; it's Latin, pronounced mor-ays. That's a tidbit for you, Hannah.) Maybe that's why everyone likes Jane Austen so much: her characters were real, assertive, engaging, without having to work around the modern frame of reference. She wrote for her time, so her characters match what you would expect a real regency/victorian woman to be. In my opinion, they're not missing anything just because they're not modern, and don't attend to modern concerns.

The last thing I need is another book echoing the opinion that I need to be just like my husband in order to be valued. I don't. We're different. I can be capable in my own ways without having to worry about being capable in all of his ways...after all, that's what he's there for! So we can complement and help each other! Enough of this tirade. I don't usually use exclamation points in my reviews and I feel a little out of character going on like this. Probably all those Christmas goodies are getting to me...

The prose was pleasant, and while there were some facts important to the mystery in the novel that I feel like were rather randomly inserted instead of properly discovered or introduced, still it was a good day-read.

[Joleen · Rating 2 out of 5]

Mercy Falls, California Coast
1800s

Main characters:
Katie Russell: Telephone operator
Will Jesperson: Lightkeeper
Eliza: A fellow operator. Katie overheard o er the line something that sounded deadly
Bartholomew Foster: Katie's parents want her to marry him

I picked this book because I’ve had a fascination with lighthouses since I lived on the California coast in my youth. Plus…during a three year period, many moons ago, one of my first jobs was as a switchboard operator. Whoa! Dating me!

Ugh! Devon O'Day is the narrator for this book. Seems all of this author's books are read by her. I'm not a fan! I am going to see if Libby has it in Kindle form. So I’ll finish this review then.

******************************************

Well, in the end, I rolled my eyes as many times reading it as I would have listening to the narrator. Kissing, talking about kissing and the "taste of their mouth" at inappropriate times…like when their lives were in danger. Attacks, and just barely getting away, many times. Going on outings even when they had just been attacked or warned the day before. So many times when they should keep information to themselves, private information, it all just spewed out…Ugh!

This book is nearly fourteen years old, so that may account for it. Many of the author's later books have improved.

[Nattie · Rating 1 out of 5]

This was a stinker compared to the first book in the series. Katie was irksome, the entire book was irksome. People, Katie included, nearly lost their minds because she got a sunburn. Ladies always wear their hats.

I couldn't have cared less about the baby that Will and Katie were taking care of. There was way too much focus on what the baby was doing. I also couldn't have cared any less about Will watching Katie's swaying skirts. Her skirts were apparently always swaying, and he was always watching.

At one point I wished something bad would happen to Katie. There was a smallpox quarantine going on, and she seemed determined to catch it. She wanted to sneak into places that were under guard, and really didn't appear to be too afraid of the consequences. I guess this was supposed to be her cute stubborn streak shining through. She should have caught smallpox and died, how cute would that have been? Gag me!

[Melissa · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was better to me then the first book. Much better well rounded characters, the action and mystery never stopped. The love story was complicated and they had to struggle a little to find there way. The main character was very likable. The leading man had some holes but it was ok. The preachyness level was ok, nothing over the top. I liked that this was not am extension of the first books characters. The title of the book through me a little. This was a completely new set of characters and problems not related at all to the first book. You could read them separately and be just fine.Very clean with some sweet kisses!

[Mayda · Rating 3 out of 5]

The heroine of this romance is a likeable, headstrong young woman on the verge of marriage to one man but finds herself falling in love with another. Predictable in places, there is still an air of mystery which surrounds the pirating of some ships and the theft of gold. Add in some murders and the unknown fate of a now-abandoned toddler, this tale will keep you interested in the outcome. With engaging characters in an engrossing plot, there is much to enjoy in this romantic Christian story. The title, though, gives much away. Guess which man the protagonist finally chose?!

[Hannah · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another book for last year that I forgot to mark as read...
3.5 stars. It was a quick read and, while I enjoyed some of the historical detail, the characters did and said more modern types of things than they ought, especially in terms of speaking. I felt like Coble hadn't been quite as careful in this regard as she was in the first book. But the setting was great and the characters pleasant.

[Emily · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was my favorite of the threesome. The plot kept me intrigued throughout the book, and I really enjoyed these characters. They seemed a little more developed in this one than the other two, and I identified with Katie better than Addie and Olivia.

[Ari Garzon · Rating 3 out of 5]

I’ll give it a 3. Good stuff, I just feel like it started really fast and a lot of details were sort of rushed. I know I say this often in reviews, but this book would have made good use of a hundred more pages. For what it is though, not bad. There were some things I felt were left kind of randomly with no closure though. The book ended with a handful of characters being unaccounted for, which I thought was kind of silly? Biblical moral of the story felt a little weak, but was still there and relevant. Story keeps a good pace despite the areas I felt it lacked.

[Kathy Filardo · Rating 5 out of 5]

another great installment in this series. I was quite intrigued by both Katie and Will in this story as well as the mystery surrounding the stolen ships, gold, and who had been on the phone speaking with Eliza. I loved Jennie and how she helped draw Katie and Will together and the mystery of her father was not one I figured out until the end. Some of the participants in the ring I had figured out but the last was a surprise. So glad Katie did not cave to pressure and marry Bart--that would have been a disaster! Loved the myna bird and was glad Florence reconciled with her family.

[Joan Arning · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you like lighthouses, you'll enjoy this romantic suspense book by Colleen Coble! Katie is a feisty protagonist despite her mama's attempt to make her a lady!

[Melmo2610 · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a great story. I liked the mystery elements, and they kept me guessing. An easy and quick read/listen.

[April · Rating 5 out of 5]

Never disappointed with a Colleen Coble read. Book #2 in this series was absolutely a page turner! Loved the entire book.

[Sarita · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another great suspense from Colleen Coble. The twists and action in this suspense was nail-biting and I enjoyed the plot a lot more than the first book. I did suspect who was behind it but with the clue the author gave it would be difficult not to.

The romance was sweet and not overbearing to the suspense. It felt realistic and I enjoyed both main characters. The lessons they had to learn was also realistic and strong.

[Reet Champion · Rating 4 out of 5]

It isn't polite to eavesdrop. And not only that it isn't safe. Katie Russell had a comfortable life before she threw etiquette to the wind and listened in on something she shouldn't have. The daughter of an influential family with a good marriage and future already lined out Katie had taken a job as a telephone operator, not because she needed the money, but because she enjoyed it. But wouldn't you know it, some dingbat has to come along and take all the joy out of the job. With her friend likely murdered, her father's mysterious suicide attempt and the town overtaken by smallpox Katie has very few people to turn to when her life is threatened. With the exception of the new lighthouse keeper that is. Soon the pair embark on an adventure involving pirates, long-buried secrets and shame. As everything threatens to come to light Katie is mortified over what she learns. But is too late to turn back the clock?

It's beyond a doubt - the fathers of Mercy Falls are all a bunch of corrupt heathens. In The Lightkeeper's Daughter we saw how Addie's father tried to kill her. In The Lightkeeper's Bride we find a very tangled web of deceit and shame in which Katie's father is tied up in. What a tangled web we weave when first we practice to deceive. Mwhahaha! Okay, I'll try to be serious now. Down to the nitty-gritty! Again Colleen Coble managed to write a tale of suspense and mystery. A Christian historical mystery - how cool is that?! And such as the case was with the first book I had the culprits guessed all wrong. I suspected those who were innocent and those who I thought semi-innocent were downright guilty. I mean we're talking hand-caught-in-the-cookie-jar G-U-I-L-T-Y. I should have bought this series long ago. Hang the cost. Ms. Coble's talent with the pen is flabbergasting and I can only hope that I will one day achieve such skill. The story kept me on the edge of my seat. I dare you to try and read this book in one sitting. On the downside there are some characters we might consider unwholesome and therefore this should not be considered a family read although, mercifully, the author didn't go into detail.

DISCLAIMER: In accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising” we would like to note that we have not received compensation for our book review of “The Lightkeeper’s Bride”.

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[Michelle · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Lightkeeper's Bride was about as compulsively readable as the first book in the series. Ms. Coble is certainly gifted when it comes to writing historical romances. While Katie was a bit feisty and headstrong for a woman in that era, I still liked her. And I really liked Will, the lighthouse keeper. The whole intrigue and danger theme from the pirating was pretty engaging and I loved not knowing what was going to happen next. There were a number of twists I didn't see coming, and I liked that it wasn't predictable, at least not for me.

The romantic elements in this novel were especially endearing. Even with the restrictions of society at that time Ms. Coble does a great job with turning up the heat and making the romantic tension palpable. I loved that. Will was a great hero and the fact that he was enamored with a child endeared him to me even more.

The whole subplot about parentage was quite intriguing as was the whole issue of a missing woman. I loved that Katie had to deal with so many different feelings of betrayal in the midst of her other struggles. That was well done. The fact that Will was there to encourage her and that he prayed for her just made him more heroic. The faith thread in this book was light, but clearly present. I loved the fact that not everyone was what they seemed, however, because it made for an engaging novel. I'm looking forward to reading the third book in the series.

[Tammy Doherty · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed THE LIGHTKEEPER'S BRIDE much more than the first book in this series. With this novel, there was a true sense of mystery. I had 3 or 4 characters pegged as villians and the outcome was a pleasant revelation...I was partly right!

What I especially liked about this book was how Katie wasn't a "wilting flower" but rather took matters into her own hands. Often with disasterous results, but at least she didn't wait for someone else to act first. She's adventurous, daring, and just a bit like a tomboy but absolutely, thoroughly feminine.

From the start, Colleen Coble sets the mystery tone. Katie learns one of Mercy Falls most eligible bachelors has asked to call on her. She thinks how a marriage to Bart Foster would ensure her acceptance in the social world. When she accidentally overhears a conversation between an acquaintence and an unkown man, the mystery begins. Then Katie goes to make sure her friend is okay and clues leak out about Katie's past.

"The truth shall set you free" is a theme throughout this novel. And that's so true. I loved reading how Katie comes to accept this and what happens when the truth is revealed. Plus, the ending is great - loads of action and heroic behavior from both Will and Katie.

[Patti · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another winner by Colleen Coble. Again a book full of surprises, mystery, pirates and plot twists. Something is happening around every corner (or page turn in this case!). It is a stand alone book. You do not have to read the first to enjoy the second. And if you read the second, you can go back and read the first and still enjoy it. (although it is a big pet peeve with me to read out of order..lol) My only complaint would be about one of the characters, Lady Carrington. She has a big part in the book, but says very little. What she does say is insightful, but she is always there and not there.. if that makes sense. I think this cold have been done a bit better just by including her in more dialog. But it doesn't ruin the book. It is a good romance, mystery and fun read all together.

[Kati · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really liked this book, as I liked the first in this series. There's just a bit of intrigue/mystery mixed in with the romance, but not too much. The only thing so far that I haven't liked about this series is that the characters from the first book were hardly mentioned in this second book ... the one character who makes a relatively "major" appearance in this book only appeared at the end of book one. I would have liked to have gotten more of a glimpse of what the main characters from book one were up to now that they are married.

[Charity U · Rating 4 out of 5]

An enjoyable read! I’m so glad to finally get back to this series – I read the first one about two years ago, and really liked it, but never managed to finish the others. Until now. I’ll be reading the third one soon! The touch of mystery and suspense in this one made it delightful, along with a sweet romance. I was thankful that the romance wasn’t overkill, and was well balanced by other story elements. The book had a good pace and kept me tied to it. And the characters were great. I liked it!