Sixteen Brides ~ Blog Tour

This week, the


Christian Fiction Blog Alliance


is introducing


Sixteen Brides


Bethany House (April 2010)


by


Stephanie Grace Whitson



ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

A native of southern Illinois, Stephanie Grace Whitson has lived in Nebraska since 1975. She began what she calls "playing with imaginary friends" (writing fiction) when, as a result of teaching her four home schooled children Nebraska history.


She was personally encouraged and challenged by the lives of pioneer women in the West. Since her first book, Walks the Fire, was published in 1995, Stephanie's fiction titles have appeared on the ECPA bestseller list numerous times and been finalists for the Christy Award, the Inspirational Reader's Choice Award, and ForeWord Magazine's Book of the Year.

Her first nonfiction work, How to Help a Grieving Friend, was released in 2005. In addition to serving in her local church and keeping up with two married children, two college students, and a high school senior, Stephanie enjoys motorcycle trips with her family and church friends.

Her passionate interests in pioneer women's history, antique quilts, and French, Italian, and Hawaiian language and culture provide endless story-telling possibilities.

ABOUT THE BOOK

In 1872, sixteen Civil War widows living in St. Louis respond to a series of meetings conducted by a land speculator who lures them west by promising "prime homesteads" in a "booming community."


Unbeknownst to them, the speculator's true motive is to find an excuse to bring women to the fledgling community of Plum Grove, Nebraska, in hopes they will accept marriage proposals shortly after their arrival! Sparks fly when these unsuspecting widows meet the men who are waiting for them.

These women are going to need all the courage and faith they can muster to survive these unwanted circumstances--especially when they begin to discover that none of them is exactly who she appears to be.

If you would like to read the first chapter of Sixteen Brides, go HERE.



My Thoughts:  First...my apologies...this tour post should have been posted yesterday, and somehow in all the "getting ready for testing" melee, it completely slipped my mind.

Second...I rarely read historical fiction anymore.  I just don't enjoy it as much as I used to, and having less "fiction reading" time than I used to, I'm more choosy about the fiction I read.  However, when I was offered the chance by CFBA to read and review Sixteen Brides, I jumped at the chance.   Stephanie Grace Whitson has long been one of my favorite authors.  Her ability to weave historical facts with a mesmerizing storyline sucks me in every time.  Sixteen Brides has been no exception.  It's one of those books I find myself grabbing as I walk by and reading a few pages in between chores. :)   And having read several "Christian Fiction" books recently that were good or even great fiction, but Christian pretty much in name only, it is so refreshing to get back to a truly Christian fiction book that encourages, challenges, and inspires.   With Sixteen Brides, Stephanie Grace Whitson has once again delivered Christian historical fiction at its best.

Thanks to Bethany House, who provided a copy of Sixteen Brides in return for my participation in this blog tour.