Since I heard about Jody Hedlund’s newest book, I have been eagerly waiting to read it. It definitely does not disappoint! Along with being a fun read, it also had great reminders that we can all learn from, even today.
A Reluctant Bride, follows the journey of Mercy Wilkins. A young girl living in the slums of London. Mercy was a great character; I absolutely loved her. She had my heart from the moment I met her. Despite being poor, Mercy does not stop trying to love and help others. You first meet her as she is rushing to the Shoreditch Dispensary to save a baby girl who she helps take care of. Mercy’s tender heart makes it so she must stop to help those in need. But Mercy is also human. Since she has seen so much hurt and death in the world, she struggled to trust God and how to truly understand her own value.
Lord Joseph Coville is the hero in A Reluctant Bride. He was amazing! He was kind and considerate and he didn’t let his wealth and position give him a big head. He was born into money and a name, but he wanted to be different. This desire to make a difference caused him to become a doctor. What drew me to him the most, was his weaknesses. Like Mercy, he was human. He was a man trying to deal with death and loss but not knowing what to do. He was a man who felt lost and was trying to find his way in a broken world.
You follow Mercy, as she journeys on a bride ship sailing to Vancouver Island and British Columbia. There you watch her care for the other young girls on the ship and help the ship’s doctor, Joseph care for those who are sick. As Joseph and Mercy work together and help others they start to care for each other. Beyond their growing feelings, they have to fight against their stations in the world and a man who is trying to break them up. Will their love survive the fight or will it crumble and fall?
I loved this book, it reminded me that we have value in Christ. We should not let others put us down because they think they are better than us. Instead of listening to lies, we should use our God given abilities in the best way we can in order to serve Christ and His people. This book also reminded me, that trying to deal with the weight of the world on our own will crush us. But with God’s help, by His Spirit and through His strength, we can do anything and survive anything. A Reluctant Bride isn’t afraid to remind us of the evil and horror in the world, but it also points us straight back to God and the fact that we are precious in His sight.
One of the characters in A Reluctant Bride, had a wonderful quote. Mrs. Moresby, a woman who offers Mercy counsel and help said, “Don’t get stuck, Mercy. Don’t get stuck thinking you don’t matter or you're not important enough. I know for people like us who come from lowly backgrounds, we all too often accept our place at the bottom and think that’s where we belong. But that’s just not true. God didn’t create some people to be better than others. He created everyone to have equal value.” It reminds me of the truth that we are all fearfully & wonderfully made (Psalm 139) by a kind & merciful Creator.
Another character, Dr. Bates, who is a mentor to Joseph tells Joseph this: “What’s the small part God’s calling you to? Are you seeking His leading or are you running away from it?”
I would definitely recommend this book. It is so hard to find good Christian books, but this is definitely one of the keepers. It was so interesting, keeping me up late into the night. I can't wait to read the next book and find out what happens to the other characters! I would recommend this book to teens 16 and up.

A Reluctant Bride by Jody Hedlund was a very good read for me. The description of the book led me to choose to read and review it for NetGalley.com. I did like this book and would recommend it to those loving history and romance. I like most of Jody Hedlund’s novels and highly recommend all of them.

Mercy Wilkins lives with her large family in the slums of London. Her sister has been asked to leave so the family can provide for the smaller ones. Mercy is next to be asked. She decides to embark on a journey to British Columbia as a bride for those men who have settled there. There are sixty brides-to-be on the ship sailing for British Columbia. The voyage was very difficult because of seasickness and other ailments. Mercy becomes the ship’s doctor’s assistant.

By the time they arrive at their destination, they both have a deep love and respect for each other. According to t rules of the committee that set up this bride ship, Mercy is bound to follow through with the demand that she marry one of the men from British Columbia. I found that the rest of the story was quite a novel experience for all involved.

I haven't read a lot of Jody Hedlund's books, but the ones I have were wonderful. A Reluctant Bride is a case in point.

Mercy Wilkins lives with her family in one of the poorest slums of London. With no job and no prospect of one, she is on the verge of also having no home when her sister hears that the Mission Society is looking for women to emigrate to British Columbia. Mercy doesn't learn until she's halfway across the Atlantic that the ship is a "bride ship" and every woman aboard will be expected to marry. Having seen what marriage did for her own mother, she has no desire to marry and even less desire to be a mother. In her experience, children born into the poverty she has lived with all her life either don't survive or end up running the streets, thieving or doing whatever they can to survive.

Joseph Colville's title and wealth have not protected him from grief. Losing his entire family to cholera set his feet on a path he didn't choose or want. Not ready to be a "peer of the realm", Joseph takes his education and profession on the high seas, serving as ship surgeon on several voyages. He enjoys seeing the world and its wonders. While his aunt pressures him to marry and stop running from his responsibilities, Joseph agrees to another voyage. He discovers after they sail that there are 60 single women on the ship who will be brides upon arrival at Vancouver Island.

As seasickness hits the passengers, Mercy is seemingly unaffected and begins serving as nurse to the afflicted. Seeing her unflinching care for the sick, Joseph requests her assistance and the two work together to bring both healing and comfort to the sick. As they work, Mercy is continually reminded by everyone around her that her place is at the bottom of the rung, and Joseph's is at the top. That doesn't seem to matter when she is with him, though.

Can these two break through the class barrier standing between them? Can Joseph convince Mercy that if she has to marry someone, it might as well be him?

I felt so bad for Mercy and, honestly, growing up where she did, I'm amazed she came through relatively unscathed. Hedlund's description of the slum turned my stomach and Mercy more than lived up to her name for the children she encountered. I loved the history included in this book, and look forward to reading the next two in the series. I definitely recommend and if you can listen to the audio version, so much the better. The lady who reads it has an English accent, which adds to the reality of the story.

I loved Mercy and Joseph. They were great characters--likable and well-developed.
The plot is very interesting. I love how Hedlund took a lesser known aspect of history and shared both the historical event as well as a fictional story. At times, the plot was a bit slow, going back and forth between "would they, wouldn't they" a little too much. That's why I rated it 4 stars and not 5.

I'm eager to read book two in the series!

I receive this book in exchange for my review. My thoughts are my own.

(Review also shared on Amazon.)

Jody Hedlund takes you right into the pit of the suffering of the slums in A Reluctant Bride. It was brutally honest at times and I was grateful and eager for Mercy to get a ticket out. It was interesting reading about the experience of women who signed up for Bride ships - what they came from, why they were chosen, what it was like on the ship, and what they could hope and expect waiting for them when they arrived. I loved the ways faith and integrity were woven into the story. Loss and healing too. And I thought the portrayal of characters like Mr. Scott and Mrs. Robb was just; they may not have been soft and likeable, but their motives and actions were understandable, especially given the time period.

These are the kinds of stories that make me love historical novels - the way they transport you to another time with different realities and challenges, so that strength, creativity and perseverance look different too. Thoroughly enjoyed this story.

There are so many reasons that I love this book. The history fan in me loved learning, for the first time, about the bride ships that transported young women to become the brides of strangers. These journeys from England to Vancouver Island and British Columbia in the 1860s were often filled with dangerous storms, overwhelming hunger, devastating illness, and they always held the uncertainty of what was waiting at the end of the trip.

The romantic part of me swooned at the overwhelming attraction between Mercy Wilkins and Joseph Colville. I was touched by Mercy's sweet nature and her nurturing abilities and no one deserved to be named Mercy more than her. Joseph Colville answered to both Dr. Colville and Lord Colville and I admired his dedication to helping everyone regardless of their social status. I also appreciated that he wasn't a lady's man and actually valued and respected women. And as he came to know Mercy, he realized "From the first time he'd met her until now, he'd known she was special, the kind of woman a man meets but once in a lifetime."

But most of all, I loved this story of a young, poverty-stricken young woman who felt that she would never escape the slums of London. As I read of the living conditions during this time, I was appalled but I also couldn't help thinking that these same situations still exist and there are young women today who never have hopes of a better way of life. As a very young girl Mercy received kindness and support from a doctor who chose to treat the people in her London slum and it was through him that she first learned about a Higher Power. "Whenever Dr. Bates talked about God, she didn't know how to respond. He spoke as if God truly cared about her. Yet, if God cared, she hadn't felt it, hadn't felt His nearness, hadn't felt His directing her. If anything, she'd always felt as though her life hadn't mattered."

As Mercy endures this long journey from England she begins to experience romantic feelings for Dr. Joseph Colville. She starts to understand that she is worthy of respect and love and she realizes that she herself has also been judgemental about people. She finally understands that she "was as guilty of making assumptions about the wealthy as they were of forming their views about the poor. She'd do well to stop rushing to judge and instead see beyond the surface to the real person."

A Reluctant Bride allows us to witness Mercy and Joseph's ability to work through their painful pasts and to make plans for their futures. It also shows their Christian growth and reaffirms the ultimate fact that we are all equal in God's eyes. Yes, I am a fan of both this book and of author Jody Hedlund and I highly recommend A Reluctant Bride. I look forward the next book of The Bride Ships series!

I received a copy of this book from the author/publisher and I was not required to write a positive review.

found A Reluctant Bride by Jody Hedlund to be a story that kept me reading. It had twists and turns and wasn’t your typical story. The premise of the women traveling west and the reason to travel was to become brides to the men of Canada. The main lady, Mercy, travels at the last minute not knowing the criteria to marry, and having had a past of not being so much in favor of marriage, finds herself in quite a predicament. There’s a doctor, Joseph, who is of high class station aboard and love soars. I just loved it. Another great one by Jody Hedlund!
I received a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

This has been my first Jody Hedlund book and I must say I’m very, very satisfied.

To be honest I didn’t know what to expect from this book…a cheesy mail bride kind of story or a cliche enemy to lovers one 😂 . Thankfully I was wrong! This book mixes history and fiction in such a cool way, I was pleasantly surprised.

I like Jody’s tone of voice, it is not quirky but very ”serious” and raw, and it suits the story beautifully. I have read many Christian historical fiction books that kind of sweeten the harsh reality of, for example, the slums or workhouses, yet in this book, the author presents the facts and truth about what it was like living in those harsh situations. Jody tells the horrible conditions and lifestyles of those unfortunate people very well, in my opinion. There is mention of prostitution, rape, harsh living conditions, etc. and we could say it is somewhat descriptive? I wouldn’t have it any other way though because it sets the tone of voice for the book quite well.

Yet this book is not an angsty book filled with pain. No, this book is about hope and love, and truth. It is about rising above what the world expects from you and choosing to fight. It’s a story of sacrifice and mercy.

Speaking of mercy, I absolutely loved the MC of the book, Mercy. She was such a beautiful soul, kind, and selfless. It was sad to see how people treated her because she was ”inferior” to them, but then, all those situations made her stronger in strength and character.

My favorite thing about this book was when they were sailing on the boat to America. Ahh, I loved reading about how life was for all the brides to be confined to a boat for four months and what they did to pass time, etc. It was such a complicated situation but one the author explains in the author notes behind the book, it was a very much real one.

I really enjoyed this book and will be reading the next books in the series :))


Cleanness: ⭐️⭐️⭐️ 3/5 (semi descriptive kisses, mention of rape, prostitution, and harsh living conditions)

Plot: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️4/5

Characters ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 4/5


*I received an ARC from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. All the above-mentioned thoughts are my own and were not influenced by the author or publisher.*

A Reluctant Bride
The Bride Ships #1
By Jody Hedlund

Mercy Wilkins is leaving the life she has always known because of a promise she made to her sister Patience. With no jobs available short of selling her body Mercy has no choice but to sail to British Columbia with the group of women being sent by the Columbia Mission Society. With the prospect of a respectable paying job at the end of her journey, Mercy is torn leaving behind Patience and the new life awaiting her. Unlike the other young women, Mercy isn't anticipating marriage to one of the men awaiting the civilizing influences of the women. Rather Mercy has no plans to ever marry as it brings nothing but heartbreak and more hungry mouths that can't be feed.

Joseph Colville is the younger son - he was never expected to inherit the family title or the estate. He turned his attention rather to medicine and to the aiding of those in need. But following the loss of his family and his unexpected inheritance Joseph finds himself running away to sea to escape the pain. But escaping is nigh on impossible when the pain lives within him. But Joseph is determined to be the best ship's surgeon he can be. But when the need arises he is pleased to accept Mercy's assistance in caring for the passengers onboard. As Joseph and Mercy continue working together they both begin to admire each other but the differences in their stations in life make any future together impossible. And Mercy for one knows her place she's had it pointed out to her more than once.

More than anything Mercy dreams of freedom - freedom to pursue the life she's dreamed of one that allows her to make her own way and not be under the control of another. But will she be given the chance to find employment or will this ship that promises a new life only end in marriage to one of the hundred's of single men waiting on Vancouver Island?

This is the first book in Jody Hedlund's new series The Bride Ships and those who love her artistic renderings of history to text will love with this book and the promise of what is to come. The premise behind the Bride Ships was to ship out London's excess of marriageable young women who were of upright morals to British colonies and help bring civilization to the poor single men who found themselves at the mercies of the low morals of the "local" people (yeah, right). But travel by ship was not the easiest of passages, especially when sailing from England to British Columbia, nor was it particularly fast.

I like how Mercy comes to truly know herself through this journey. The most important lesson she needs to learn is to see herself through eyes other than her own. She needs to see herself through the eyes of the Father who created her and found her worthy of His love just because. I also like how Joseph grew as a person - he thought himself beyond the prejudices of class and station but as he worked on the Tynemouth he learned that some of his notions about people weren't what he thought.

This is yet another work by Jody Hedlund that I highly recommend to fans of historical fiction. I truly believe that readers who devour the orphan train/orphan ship books will find this book to be of a similar vein and well worth their time to read. This would also be a good choice for a book club selection.

I was provided a complimentary copy of this book by the publisher with no expectations - all thoughts expressed are my own honest opinion.

This book was a shocker for me! I loved it from beginning to the end! Not I have to read more by this author, because this book swept me off my feet so fast it was unbelievable.
A new favorite here!

As the second book of The Bride Ship series I will say that this can be read as a stand alone. I haven't read the first book in the series (I think), but I wasn't lost at all. I would like to know more about Mercy's story, so I will go back and read the first one, but it wasn't necessary to enjoy this story.

This book is full of flashbacks as we find out why Arabella ran away from a wealthy home to sail to a new land and become a bride of someone she barely knows. Flashbacks can be really tricky. Sometimes they take away from the flow of the story, and sometimes they give you the information you want without interrupting the current story you are reading. Luckily, the flashbacks in this story fall into the second category. Little by little we find out about Arabella. It isn't distracting, but it flows with the overall story, and I enjoyed how it was put together.

This was an entertaining read that I read quickly and invoked all sorts of emotions in me. The only thing I can think of is that I would like to know more about Arabella's family at the end of the story.

" A new life awaits her across the horizon." I could not wait to read this book as the description was so intriguing. What were bride ships? Did women really willingly leave everything they knew behind to marry a complete stranger?
Miss Hedlund tells a story filed with history, action and romance.
Mercy Wilkins has a hard life living in the poor slums of London. Unwanted by her family, Mercy is convinced to start a whole new life in British Columbia. Leaving all that she knows, she sets sail on a bride ship not realizing that she is expected to marry a stranger upon arrival.
On the journey Mercy becomes an assistant to the ships surgeon, Joseph Colville, a wealthy gentleman who is fighting his own personal demons , and fights a growing attraction to him. Will they find happiness in the end or will they let their social boundaries keep them apart? This wonderful story is a page turner that will keep you up at night! I loved seeing Mercy go from a timid, afraid person to such a strong lady in the end!
Thank you Bethany House for an advanced copy! I was not required to leave a positive review.

The Bride Ships series is inspired by true events during the 1800s. A Reluctant Bride takes place on the Tynemouth, a bride ship sailing from England to bring women to the colonies for marriage to the settlers, many of them miners. The story is well researched and we learn about conditions in the slums of London, the conditions on the ships during the voyage and then the spectacle of the women arriving in Victoria B.C. I can't imagine what life must have been like for these women to leave their life behind and travel to a new continent to marry a man they have never met.

Our main female character in this story is Mercy Wilkins. Mercy is a sympathetic, caring, gentle woman who leaves London on the urging of her older sister, Patience, who is sick and living in a Workhouse. The physician on the Tynemouth, Lord Joseph Colville, is unconventional, looking past social differences and expectations. He is also very caring and treats all his patience the same. He is running away from sadness after the loss of his parents and sibling. He is looking for something, he is just not sure what it is yet. As Mercy and Joseph work together on the ship treating patients they begin to feel a strong attraction to one another. Can they get beyond social boundaries? Will Mercy be able to give in to her love for Joseph and decide that maybe marriage is something she should consider? This story shares a lot of history, deals with class structure, and has some slow simmering romance. I love the themes of listening to God and following the path he has set out for you. Prayer and dealing with hardships are all part of life and this story as well. There is some angst, heartbreak, happiness and love that all come together to a promising ending. I am ready to read about the trials and happiness of the next Bride in this series.

A Reluctant Bride is a clean read, hard to put down and sad when it ended because I wanted more! Read this book today! You'll be glad you did.

I had such a hard time putting this book down. I wanted to take my time and savor the beautiful prose and vivid details. The constant push and pull between Mercy and Joseph created a masterful conflict. Their ability to look beyond social class was inspiring and well-developed.
It was that same ability they continually pushed them apart even as their hearts pulled them together. Their relationship was full of firewords and longing moments of tenderness.
I could see God woven throughout the novel in such a way that it melded with the characters and gave them a lovely spirit and grace.
Joseph is running, pretty much from everything, from his family, his responsibilities, and the places where he's needed most. Although he is doing marvelous work, he's not where he needs to be.
Mercy is that breath of fresh air and the true friend everyone should have at least once in their life. Growing up in the slums, she could have been hard and unforgiving, but as her name suggests, she is goodness and mercy and a balm to the suffering soul.
Masterfully crafted and engaging, A Reluctant Bride is a story I"ll be talking about for years to come.

Based off true events, author Jody Hedlund brings to life the tale of a woman one a bride ship. This story beings to life the hardships, heartaches, and losses of life and losing one’s family. It’s also about finding the strength to help those around, even when it’s not the most popular thing to do, especially when getting in trouble for it. This story is about courage, discovering friendship and even a forbidden love in the least likely place. Hedlund brings to life the story aboard the ship in vivid well-researched details that readers of historical fiction will thrive on. A story of an incredible journey, readers will be absolutely delighted with this first book in a new series from Hedlund.

Series: Bride Ships
Genre: historical, romance
Publisher: Bethany House
Publication date: June 4, 2019
Number of pages: 352

Other books in the series:
2-The Runaway Bride (coming 2020)

I love how Jody Hedlund chooses to highlight lesser-known historical events in her novels. A Reluctant Bride is about the bride ship Tynemouth that took women to British Columbia to find work and, hopefully, become brides. I'd never heard of the bride ships before, but apparently several went from England to British Columbia in the 1860s.

Eager to escape a desperate situation in London and at the urging of her sister, Mercy signs up to take the Tynemouth to a new life in British Columbia. What she doesn't realize until she's on board is that the women aren't just going to find jobs—they're going to find husbands. After witnessing her mother's many relationships, Mercy has no desire to ever marry ... but Joseph, the ship's doctor whose station is far above Mercy's own, may just change her mind.

I loved every single thing about this novel! The history (fascinating), the romance (swoony), the life lessons (applicable today)—everything was wonderful! I especially loved Mercy's determination to do the right thing, even when it came at a high cost. And I thought Joseph made a great hero—not perfect by any means, but seeking to follow God. And the two of them together? Wonderful.

If you're a fan of historical romance, you can't do any better than a Jody Hedlund novel, and this one easily ranks up there with her best.

I really, really loved this book. Mercy did not know she was boarding a bride ship, but that is exactly what it was. This is a time period and circumstances that I have not read about before and I loved seeing this all from Mercy's eyes. She really has a goal and that goal is to make a life for herself where she can live with her sister away from the poverty of London they grew up in. The story takes place in London, on a ship, and then on Victoria Island. I really, really liked this book. I have come to realize that I will likely enjoy whatever Jody Hedlund writes.

This was a fun historical fiction read.
A storyline that was relatively new to me, the bride ships.
I enjoyed reading about Mercy Wilkins and seeing her life. Prior to sailing on the ship, she came from the slums of London. She's never seen or known any other life, and really had no idea of how other people live in other parts of the country, or even the world.
Mercy was a hard, and willing worker, in spite of her limited education.
I loved seeing how she made the best of her situation, and rose to the challenges that faced her.
The romance in this story was also very sweet, if maybe a bit predictable.
If you enjoy historical fiction, I think you'll enjoy this book!
Disclaimer: I receive complimentary books from various sources, including, publishers, publicists, authors, and/or NetGalley. I am not required to write a positive review, and have not received any compensation. The opinions shared here are my own entirely. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255

I recently finished reading A Reluctant Bride by Jody Hedlund. This was a fabulous book!! It’s probably my favorite book that I’ve read this year!

Mercy Wilkins grew up and still lives in one of London’s poorest slums. Her mother continues to have child after child, and the family is so destitute and hungry that Mercy realizes she will soon be kicked out of her home by her mother. Mercy’s older sister Patience is already in the workhouse, a place almost worse than death itself. Patience urges Mercy to join a ship bound for British Columbia in the New World, so that she can start a new life away from the slums and most importantly avoid the notorious workhouse, where so many inmates end up dying. Patience promises Mercy that she will be on another ship which is scheduled to sail a few months later. She’s sick and thus cannot travel yet, until she gets her health back.

So Mercy decides to join the ship (the Tynemouth), as she realizes this is her best chance at a new life. She had heard some rumors that it is a bride ship, but she quickly dismisses them. It’s not until she’s boarded the ship and bound for the Americas that she realizes that it is indeed a bride ship. Mercy has no intention of marrying and instead wants to seek employment in British Columbia.

The Tynemouth’s ship doctor is handsome young Joseph Coville, who just happens to be a British earl. He is very wealthy and has no need of the money he makes as the ship’s doctor. But he had lost his entire family to smallpox some years before, and felt called into medicine in order to help other people. It’s also a way for him to stay far away from England and the memories of his family.

Sparks immediately start to fly between Mercy and Dr. Coville. Mercy, true to her name, loves to help people, and there is no small number of seasick and ill people aboard the Tynemouth. Mercy becomes Dr. Coville’s right-hand assistant, much to the dismay of the prospective brides’ chaperones who believe Mercy is trying to rise above her station as a poor woman and snag the handsome earl.

The book is full of tales of the ship’s journey to British Columbia, and the subsequent mayhem as dozens of eligible brides arrive on shore in B.C. and the local men immediately start proposing and pursuing them.

I won’t say more, but this was a wonderful book! I didn’t want to put it down! One of the things I enjoyed the most is at the end, in the epilogue, the author explains that basically all the major events of the book ACTUALLY occurred in real life! Obviously, some dialogue / characters were fictional, but the key parts of the story were all true! That was so fascinating to me.

A Reluctant Bride is book #1 in The Bride Ships series. I can’t wait for the second book to come out!!

I highly, highly recommend this book! You won’t be disappointed!

I received a complimentary copy of this book from Bethany House (via Netgalley) for this review. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions expressed are my own.