A Bride Most Begrudging

I loved this book! I do believe Deanne Gist has become my favorite Christian Fiction writer! I recommend this book to anyone!

Though I didn't like it as much as The Measure of a Lady, I enjoyed A Bride Most Begrudging. 1640s is just a little too early for my taste - men were just a little too uncouth - America just a little too rugged. That being said, the book was enjoyable. Very easy to read. I read it in about 4 days, which for me, is kind of amazing. My dislikes are: I cannot forgive the male protagonist, Drew, for his disgusting chauvinism. It's a historical novel, so I was expecting it on some level. But generally it gets tossed out as the male comes to understand the beauty and wonder of a woman, her intelligence and tenacity. Drew never learns this. He remains, even at the end of the novel, a chauvinistic clueless man. He begrudgingly allows his wife to continue learning and to teach other young women, but only because of a "deal" he made with God. He only ever "comes to love" his wife when her life is in danger. And this is the biggest problem with the novel: none of the issues that lie between the two main characters are ever resolved; they're simply put away because 'more distressing' problems arise. Someone falls ill, Indians attack, someone leaves on a ship, etc. The character of Josh remains completely unresolved. What a bummer! He was such a spectacular, and I mean SPECTACULAR, secondary character (you don't get those that often in books like these), and he had such amazing potential, and *thwump* NOTHING. Such a disappointment. I detest books that deliberately try to make the reader cry for no reason. I call them Nicholas Sparks novels. There is a point in this book that the reader is clearly meant to cry about, but I just got furious. There was NO point to it (the problem is later remedied, having thrown the readers for a 'clever' loop) because it did not advance the plot or characterizations in any way. At the end of the book, I found myself wondering why Constance even liked Drew. He was such a jerk to her, and she just took it like a meek kitten, praying, "Please Lord, let this be the day." Not my style, sorry. He never apologizes, never excuses his behavior. Nothing is resolved. Surprisingly, these things don't really ruin the book. I closed the book thinking, "Well, I guess in 1640 it could've gone something like that." I will still read more of Gist's novels, though I hope she sticks to a time period later than colonial America. I wouldn't call it her strong suit.

I was enjoying this book but didn't find enough tension between the main characters. One minute she wants him the next minute she doesn't. That's not tension. Then when they finally do come together the author just glosses over their moment. One minute they are getting ready for their honeymoon evening and the next they are waking up in the morning. I would have liked to have some passion. Other than that I did enjoy the story.

A fairly well researched novel set in the mid-17th century, this debut novel while rather sedate for a "romance" was captivating and kept me interested all weekend long. The characters were rich and well developed and very likable. I enjoyed the developing romance as well as the descriptions of life in the colonies. I did have a problem with the fact that one character traveled from Virginia to England and back again in less than 6 months and arrived in December no less. It was a 3 month voyage on average and no one arrived in the colonies in December as the passage was too perilous at that time for at least another 100 years. But suspension of disbelief and all that allows you to still enjoy this well done debut novel that while not your typical romance is still worth the read.

I truely enjoyed this book. I found myself crying at times and laughing out loud at others. I really enjoyed the historic realness. This is not an easy book to put down and walk away from.

A Bride Most Begrudging by Deeanne Gist is a story set in the English colony of Virginia, in 1643. Lady Constance Morrow, the daughter of an English Earl, was kidnapped by the captain of a slave ship transporting felons (the men to be sold as indentured servants, and the women to be sold as brides to the colonists) to the new and growing colonies. Through a strange turn of events, Constance finds herself married against her will to a farmer who doesn't want a wife...all he was looking for was a maid and cook, as he is still mourning the death of his betrothed 3 years before. Constance can't cook, doesn't know how to clean or farm, shows little respect for her husband, and in general does not fit in at ALL in this wild colony of Virginia...all she wants to to sail home to England, where she can continue with her one love...mathematics! However, as time goes on, she begins to learn to love the land, the culture, and the people she has been thrust so unwillingly among...and her husband most of all! Then her father comes from England to take her home, and she must make the choice of going back to wealth and luxury, or staying in this hard new land with her husband. I really enjoyed this book because (contrary to the last review I wrote about historical fiction) it was beautifully accurate to it's time period! The authoress used the words, idioms, thoughts, and actions of that day, and the result was a really amazing story so real you felt like you were there! However, one thing does keep me from being able to heartily recommend this book; although not graphic by most peoples standards, I felt that the authoress crossed the boundaries of discretion, suggestion, and modesty in many of her romantic descriptions. I'm very sad to have to say that because I thought the story and setting were superb, but that one glaring flaw will ruin the book for many people with higher standards for romances and their telling. I received a complimentary copy of this book from Bethany House Publishers in exchange for this review.

This is the first book that I have read by DeeAnne Gist. The book started with a very engaging scene combined with humor. The readers who might consider the writer edgy, would be really surprised how this book turns out. The first few pages have suggestive comments and remarks. Women are sold to men as brides. They are sold like horses. The buyer can touch and check the woman if she would be suitable to him. That means that he can look and even touch some places that every woman would be offended. But the writer did turn it to humor and presented how things were at the different time and place. I really did enjoy the writer's capability of writing the book with humor and lightness. There was one more scene with a little description but the scene was very lightly described. The romance in this book was a bit too sweet for my taste. But the hero was very masculine and likable. The heroine was a bit stubborn and that part was amusing. She slowly changed to the heroine more agreeable when in love and letting the course run on its own. I like when the writer takes time to develop the character of the person. I do not like when the writer changes the character abruptly which is not believable. The writer handled that phase of change really well. For those who are afraid to pick up this book, because it is considered Christian fiction, I want to say that the book is not preachy at all.The lesson taken from the book is to let GOD to be in the center of everything. But it is nicely presented and does not feel like that part was just added to mark it Christian or preached. I liked how the writer nicely developed the plots in this book. The writing was flowing even though some things did happen at the faster pace and a few scenes changed abruptly. But I did not feel that anything was a miss in the authour's writing. Everything was well developed. The most, I loved the sense of humor of the writer and engaging dialogues. The writer did surprise me with a twist toward the end of the story. The scene was a bit emotional, and I was afraid for too much drama at the end, but all turned nicely to a really great ending. I am sure that I will be reading more by the writer. The reason that I have not given it the highest rating is because I could not put myself in heroine's shoes. I like when I can totally put myself in heroine's schoes and feel for every step of the way taken by the heroine. I could not place myself in. I liked her less than the hero. Also, in my historical fiction books, I like more powerful and intriguing scenes. The book was very engaging but not as my favorite reads that I can not think of anything else but the book that I am reading. But I am glad that I have chosen this book for a long holiday weekend to entertain me. It did in most of the parts.

Deanne Gist has become one of my favorite authors. I just wish she had more books already written. I've already read them all....and loved them all! This book was laugh out loud funny for me! But at the same time very romantic and passionate. It's so nice to read a CLEAN romance novel.

Downloaded this for free when I got my Kindle iPhone app, and the beginning paragraphs didn't hook me right away, so I put off reading it for weeks. When I finally got to reading it - during a really long subway ride - I was pleasantly surprised. But that's the key: this story starts slow and dragging, but stay with it and the story picks up and the characters start to come alive. This was my first Christian romance read, and at first I doubted how they'd build up romantic tension when sanitized language was to be used. Ms Gist succeeds very well here - by the time Drew and Connie are falling into each other's arms and gazes, you are there for the ride and you are flicking the screens at a fast pace. Oh there are still dragging parts here and there, but overall it's a great read. It's comparable to Janette Oke's "Love Comes Softly" and I'm definitely going to go back and read it in the future, with a mug of hot cocoa during a rainy afternoon.

A well woven story of early American settlers and the trials that went along with such a life. The characters were interesting and really drew me into the story. I was sorry to see this one end - and would love to see a sequel!