Review: A Reluctant Bride

Book Review: A Reluctant Bride, by Jody Hedlund, 5 stars

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Living in London's poorest slum, Mercy Wilkins has little hope of a better life. When she's offered an opportunity to join a bride ship sailing to British Columbia, she agrees. After witnessing so much painful heartache and loss in the slums, the bride ship is her only prospect to escape a bleak future, not only for herself but, she hopes, someday for her sister.
Wealthy and titled Joseph Colville leaves home and takes to the sea in order to escape the pain of losing his family. As ship's surgeon, he's in charge of the passengers' welfare aboard the Tynemouth, including sixty brides-to-be. He has no immediate intention of settling down, but when Mercy becomes his assistant, the two must fight against a forbidden love.
With hundreds of single men congregating on the shore eager to claim a bride from the Tynemouth, will Mercy and Joseph lose their chance at true love, or will they be able to overcome the obstacles that threaten to keep them apart?

Genre: historical romance

Publication date: June 2019

Mature content: no

Review: A Reluctant Bride is a beautiful book - it's historically accurate (even if that part is mostly sad, given the terrible living conditions of the poor in London at the time) and tells a beautiful love story, one that hooks you from the very first words and stays with you long after you've turned the last page.



Joseph is a dream come true and a pleasure to read about, and Mercy is the nicest person you could ever find. Together they make an extraordinary pair and I'm sincerely hoping to hear more about them in the upcoming books (A Reluctant Bride is book one in the Bride Ships series). 

Totally recommended!


 Happy readings, 


The Book Worm, book blog



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