Review written for ClubReading.com by Sally
My personal favorite time to have lived would be during the settling of western America. I know the early settlers faced harsh weather, hostile natives. They were totally cut off from family and friends, from any type of medical assistance. They were virtually on their own. But think of the excitement of seeing new country, starting over, having a fresh start. They chose their own free land from the vast open spaces and build their new life and their family’s future with their own hands.
The Love Comes Softly series by Jeanette Oke takes place sometime in the late 1800’s. The setting is somewhere in the northern plains states where the warm summer provides bountiful harvests and the frigid winters provide wild blizzards.
In the first book, Love Comes Softly, we laugh and cry and face the harsh realities of prairie life with Clark and Marty. Marty’s young husband Clem fell from his horse and died the very day they arrived in the area where they planned to farm and build a home. Earlier that year Clark’s young wife died with a fever.
Clark and Marty marry the same day Clem is buried. Their marriage is one of convenience, not of love. Marry needed somewhere to live before winter, and Clark needed a mama for his baby daughter. The story of their first year together is truly romantic and inspiring.
Jeanette Oke is a master storyteller. I highly recommend this series.