Thursday, February 22, 2018

The Mayflower Bride, Daughters of the Mayflower #1 by Kimberly Woodhouse

Book description:

A New Series Begins for Lovers of History, Adventure, Romance, and Ancestry 
A brand new series for fans of all things related to history, romance, adventure, faith, and family trees.

Mary Chapman boards the Speedwell in 1620 as a Separatist seeking a better life in the New World. William Lytton embarks on the Mayflower as a carpenter looking for opportunities to succeed—and he may have found one when a man from the Virginia Company offers William a hefty sum to keep a stealth eye on company interests in the new colony. The season is far too late for good sailing and storms rage, but reaching land is no better as food is scarce and the people are weak. Will Mary survive to face the spring planting and unknown natives? Will William be branded a traitor and expelled?


Book review:

  Admittedly, this book may not fall into my normal reading material.....but when a favorite author and a very nice all around lady asked me if I wanted a copy, what was I supposed to say? Of course I said yes, with no reservations of whether I would like it or not.

 I have read the story many times of the Mayflower and those who settled here from that ship, and have even read a few fictionalized accounts of it. Kimberly does the story great justice, and adds several fictionalized characters to the story.

   There are a lot of great characters in the book, but I found myself liking the hero of the story most of all, William. Orphaned very young, turned out into the street at the age of nine, and then raised from the age of 13 by a godly man, William has had a rough life. His passage on the Mayflower paid by his benefactor before he died, this hardened young man is hoping for a better future.

 As with any book of this type, there is of a course a romance at the center of it all, and I found myself rooting for it to work out as people became sick and died all around the couple falling in love.

 It has been years since I have read of the Mayflower and those who settled here in those early days, and Kimberly did a great job of retelling that story while spinning fictional characters and events around the historical facts and people.

 I thoroughly enjoyed reading The Mayflower Bride. I enjoyed reading again the historical events and enjoyed the romance and stories of the fictional characters. It also helped renew my appreciation for our freedoms and for those who helped found our country. Although this wasn't my favorite genre' of suspense, I found it difficult to put the book down when I needed to go back to work from my break. It is definitely worth reading.

 And might I add, I met the author a couple of years ago, and she is indeed a lovely lady inside and out, and a great author.

About the author:


Kim is a devoted wife and mother, and a third generation Liszt student. She has passed down her love of the arts to hundreds of students over the years, recorded three albums, and appeared at over 700 venues.

Her quick wit, enthusiasm, and positive outlook through difficult circumstances have gained her audiences at conferences, retreats, churches, military functions, and seminars all over the country.

The Woodhouse family’s story has been on the front page of newspapers, in magazines, articles, medical journals, and most recently featured on ABC’s Extreme Makeover: Home Edition. They were also asked to share their story on The Montel Williams Show and Discovery Health Channel’s Mystery ER.

Kim has been writing seriously for fifteen years. Songs, plays, short stories, novels, picture books, articles, newsletters – you name it – she’s written it. It wasn’t until a dear friend challenged her to “do something with it”, that she pursued publication. She now has multiple books to her credit, with more on the way.

Kim lives, writes, and homeschools in Colorado with her husband and their two children in a truly “Extreme” home.

Check out her website.

The Mayflower Bride is available from Shiloh Run Press, an imprint of Barbour Books.

Thanks to the author for the review copy.

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