Review - The Doctor's Lady

   

The Doctor's Lady

by Jody Hedlund

Bethany House

Priscilla White planned on going to India to become a missionary. She'd prayed, planned, and prepared, sure that God was calling her to go. When her plans were sidetracked by the Missionary Board's newest requirement - that all missionaries be married couples - she was stunned. Surely there was a way around it. She'd vow to be devout, celibate, whatever it took to bring the Gospel to the poor heathens in that distant land. This was 1836, after all, and she was a strong, modern Christian woman.

Dr. Eli Ernest's visit to Priscilla's church in Angelica, New York was no different from any of the other church visits. He hoped to drum up support for his journey west to minister to the Nez Perce Indians in Oregon Territory. People were misinformed about the gentle Native American tribe, thinking that they were savages. Most church members sent missionary dollars overseas, perhaps unaware of this worthy cause in their own country. Eli wrestled with the Missionary Board's new decision too; he needed to return west before next winter. A wife? Out of the question. A woman had never traveled across the continent; she wouldn't survive the trip.

Sparks fly when Priscilla and Eli first meet. The pair publicly clash, revealing facets of their strong willed character. When a suggestion is made that they marry to solve the Missionary Board decision dilemma, they initially resist. Fueled by a desire and conviction to fulfill their callings, however, they relent, make a deal to be married in name only, and embark on the dangerous cross country journey.

Their journey is fraught with hardship, peril, and awkwardness (a fellow traveler is Priscilla's former beau). Priscilla is determined to brave the wilderness without being a burden to Eli. It is not long, however, before she questions whether her decision to go west was really God's will. Eli is happy enough to have a wife and the Missionary Board's support, but is not pleased with the burden that a woman adds to the trip. He tries to remain detached in case the rigors of the trip are too much and he must send Priscilla back to New York. Likewise, Priscilla keeps her growing feelings to herself, keeping their "business deal" in mind. Tension and misunderstandings ensue as they inch closer to their destination in the northwest.

If I were to rate this book, I would give it five stars. Jody Hedlund is a excellent storyteller; I was engaged from beginning to end. I view Jody's books as not only a pleasure to read, but as an example of fabulous historical fiction. As a writer, I observe plot, characters, style, description, and the other ingredients necessary to make a story great. Jody does it all well! I highly recommend this book. Can't wait until her next book comes out.

Jody Hedlund will be stopping by for an interview this Thursday, October 13. I invite you to join us! She's generously offered a copy of The Doctor's Lady to one of my followers. Please note the following details.

To be Eligible for the Giveaway:

• You must be a follower and leave a comment, with email address, on this or Thursday's post.
• Gain bonus entries by posting this on Facebook, your blog, &/or Twitter. Please include link with your comment.
• Open to residents of the United States only.
• Deadline to enter is noon EST, Saturday, October 15, 2011. Winner will be notified via email and will have 48 hours to respond or another winner will be chosen. Winner will be announced Monday, October 17.

What's the latest and greatest book you've read?

Happy Monday,

Karen

I received a influencer copy of The Doctor's Lady from Bethany House. No compensation was received.

A B C D E F G...

Alphabet Fun

Susan Reinhardt recently featured a fun post that shared personal info the A to Z way. Thought I would jump in and give it a try too.

Here's everything you wanted or didn't want to know, alphabetically, about me.

A) Age - Old enough to have a 3 year old grandson, and young enough to play baseball with him. Here's a quote from yesterday's game, "Run, Grandma, run!" So I did.

B) Baked goods - Cheesecake (my sister Wendy's recipe is the best ever).

C) Chores you hate - Scrubbing the tub and cleaning the kitchen floor. Oh, and weeding the garden.

D) Dogs - Had two when my kids were growing up, a chocolate lab named Hershey and a mutt named Oreo.  I just realized they were both named after food. This probably means something.

E) Essential start to your day - Reading my Bible, spending a bit of time with my husband before he heads off to work, and a nice cup of tea.

F) Favorite color - Green, not too minty, not too Kelly, somewhere in the sage to dark olive greens are best.

G) Gold or silver - Gold, but if you buy me something in silver, I won't be upset. :)

H) Height - 5' 6". And no, I'm not listing my weight.

I) Instruments you play - I played the flute (not very well) in grade school. Also took piano lessons and hated to practice. My Mom told me that if I gave up piano I might regret it later. She was right.

J) Job - Writer. But you knew that already. I also teach online writing classes for teens and adults, do a bit of tutoring, and keep the books for my husband's carpentry business.

K) Kids - Two sons, a daughter, and a daughter in law, all in their twenties. I am blessed with great kids.

L) Live - North central Kentucky, US. Before we moved here, we lived in southern New Jersey.

M) Mother - Went to be with the Lord in March of 2010. I miss her. Very much.

N) Nickname - My Dad would sometimes call me "Karrie", but other than that, nothing ever stuck.

O) Overnight hospital stay - The only ones worth mentioning are the ones where I got to bring home a little adorable bundle of Lange.

P) Pet peeve - Just one? The misuse of the apostrophe s.

Q) Quote - Just one? :) Psalm 32:8.

R) Right or left - Right.

S) Siblings - Three younger sisters, including the one who passed away last November.

T) Time you wake up - Around 7 am.

U) University you attended - Went to college in New York state for a short time. I'm a graduate of the Institute of Children's Literature (two different programs), and of course, am learning new things all the time.

V) Vegetable you dislike - Brussels sprouts and asparagus. I'm shuddering just thinking about them.

W) What makes you late? Checking my email before heading out.

X) X-rays - Other than dental x-rays, only one.

Y) Yummy food - An Italian hoagie, made the right way. Oh, and authentic Jersey pizza. We recently found a pizza place here that makes it the way we used to get it in NJ. The owner is from Brooklyn. :)

Z) Zoo animal favorite - Koala bear.


Other Stuff

The October lineup of classes at Coffeehouse for Writers includes Writing and Marketing Personal Experiences, Blogging for Profit or Pleasure, Queries, Boot Camp for Writers (taught by yours truly) and more. Classes begin October 10. Click here for details.

Taking a break for the rest of the week, but will return Monday, October 10 with a review of Jody Hedlund's latest book, The Preacher's Bride. We'll round things out with an interview and giveaway; hope you can join us!

Are you game to give this A to Z thing a try? If nothing else, pick a letter and tell us something about yourself, won't you?

Have a great week,

Karen

Photo credit: Stock Exchange