The Preacher's Bride

The author has a very talented way of adding humor to what otherwise might be boring history. She is extremely good at blending history with fiction. I found myself up late into the night or morning reading to find out what happens next.

By the time I finished this book, I felt emotionally drained...drained and in a haze.''The Preacher's Bride'' ended up breaking me in every way possible. I dived into it not expecting a fairy-tale but definitely not expecting to resurface with way more than I had bargained for. It is an absolutely beautiful book. Its depth is mind-blowing and gut-wrenchingly sublime. Its wisdom washed over me and by the time I turned its last page, my soul was kneeling before the Almighty in awe.Be warned, though, you need at least a whole box of tissue to go through this journey.About three years ago, I discovered Jody's writing when I read '' The Doctor's Lady''. To give you an idea of how much I loved it -- and still do! -- I literally couldn't stop flipping pages for twelve hours straight. It isn't a light story, the characters go through rough patches but it isn't extremely, bawl-your-eyes-out emotional. Neither are the other books by Hedlund that I read afterward : ''Unending Devotion'', ''A Noble Groom''. The more I was endeared to this author's writing, the more I was curious about her debut. Great things were being said about it, after all, so when chance came for me to read it, I quickly grabbed a copy.Let me be honest ; at first, I really wasn't sure I would end up liking it. The pace was a bit slow and I was not as engaged as I had hoped to be in it. Moreover, there were edgy elements that truly took me by surprise -- they were raw and gore. (Please note that this one is for mature readers only. Hedlund is not afraid to expose the sheer cruelty and injustice her characters face. There are frequent mentions of bloodshed and violence and the atmosphere is, in general, ominous.) Though I was, in the beginning, skeptical about the book, the story piqued my curiosity, leaving me with a need to find out the characters' outcomes. As it turns out, despite the trials endured, both John and Elizabeth remain steadfast in their dedication to their calling. Everything about them oozes love, commitment and hope. The depth of these flawed but courageous characters tugged at my heart -- though, at times, I wanted to shake some sense into them. How could they be so stubborn when danger constantly threatened? Why couldn't John just leave his ministry for his family's sake? I was frustrated but the more the story unfolded the clearer the message became.What would you do if everything around you shattered?What you would do if your enemies were so great you didn't know if tomorrow or today would be your last day on earth?Would you truly love and believe God? Would you refused to believe anyone or anything above Him? Would you crawl toward him if you didn't have the strength to stand or run?I was wide-eyed and stunned by the time I read the conclusion to this story and immediately after turning the last page, I was sobbing uncontrollably. (Even as I reminisce this story, tears are threatening.)I cried for Elizabeth... what a beautiful, beautiful woman. What a God she serves. She believes Him. Though He slays her, she clings to Him with whatever strength she has left. Her faith is flawed but oh-so willing. As the snares and shadows of death threaten to swallow her up, she holds on and fights for her man, her children. She is the kind of woman I want to be. A warrior, a tender soul, a believer. Elizabeth discovers an amazing and rare spirit in John Costin who is as stubborn as a mule but dedicated and confident in his calling. His heart for his family and God is anything but untrue. I was a blubbering mess when it came to their relationship. My God. These individuals face so many losses and missed opportunities, so many fears and insecurities. Elizabeth's hopes are utterly destroyed after she marries John and yet the hardship only serves to deepen their love. I like what she says to him at some point : ''It is better to love and be loved, even for just a day, than to have not loved at all.'' Forget happy-ever-afters, the best heroes and heroines are the ones who, after undergoing the refining fire of persecution and tribulation, come out as pure gold.Many of us believers have most likely vowed we'd willingly do anything for this Saviour we serve. With ''The Preacher's Bride'', Hedlund reminds us that the road toward Home is not smooth. There will be moments of sheer helplessness. We will feel confused and abandoned. In despair we will wonder : '' Is He as good as He claims to be?'' Will we chose to believe Him throughout it all?'' The Preacher's Bride'' transcended every of my expectations. In it, the author does a terrific job of bringing alive John and Elizabeth Bunyan's story through the Costins, crowning their journey with a breathtaking scene. It is impossible to come out of it the same.

The setting of this book is Bedford, England in the year 1659. This was a time in history when Oliver Cromwell was in power in England and his puritanical beliefs were fostered and encouraged. There were many Puritans living in Bedford, including the main female character, Elizabeth Whitbread.Elizabeth is the second oldest of seven daughters. Her family owns and operates a bakery. She works there during the day and on the Sabbath takes bread to the poor. She has promised to marry Samuel Muddle at summer’s end and quit working as housekeeper for Brother Costin and his family. She began working for Brother Costin at the elders request after his wife died two weeks after giving birth to her fourth child. Elizabeth wants to serve the Lord by helping those in need. However, as the summer progresses, Elizabeth falls more and more in love with her four young charges and their father. During this summer she also is attacked on two separate occasions by a Royalist Anglican man. He wants her to spy on John Costin and sneak away some of his rebellious papers that could be grounds for a charge of sedition. He beats Elizabeth, but she keeps John’s children safe. There are other attempts on her life by this man, and John is determined to keep her safe. How can he do this?John Costin has been a Puritan a scant five years, but in that time, he has become one of their leading preachers even though he has had no formal education or training. This lack of training and education is one of the focal points of his enemies. He is a mere commoner preaching the Gospel. Only those sent by the Church and properly ordained should be qualified to do this according to Royalists. Royalists also support the king, not Cromwell. John spends his time writing, preaching and tinkering. His tinkering pays the bills, but his passion is preaching God’s word. When he realizes his enemies are becoming more desperate to silence him, he opts to marry Elizabeth. She will be a mother to his children and free him up to spend more time preaching. Elizabeth has other ideas about how a marriage should be and must face heartbreak and grief when her husband rejects her love.This is a story of two people and their dedication to serve God no matter the cost to themselves. These two main characters are based in historical people, and some of the events in the story actually happened in real life. I find that fascinating to read “what might have happened” in this fictional story. Once readers turn the first page, it will be easy to keep reading until the end of the story. I’m looking forward to more interesting stories from Jody!

One of the most powerful and faithful books I have read in a long time I just couldn’t stop reading until I finished it.

This is the story of a young Puritan woman Elizabeth Whitbread, she lives in the small town of Elstow Bedfordshire it is May 1659. Elizabeth has promised to marry Samuel a cooper, now he has finished his apprenticeship he has his own cottage and he is keen to set the date for their marriage. John Costin's wife has died of childbed fever leaving their four children motherless. It is decided amongst the elders of the village that Elizabeth act as his housekeeper. John is a tinker but, he also preaches the gospel this takes him away from home each day travelling, plying his trade and preaching the word of God. When Samuel gets tired of waiting for his marriage to Elizabeth to take place, he gives her an ultimatum marry him and give up being John's housekeeper. Or he will back out of their arrangement. During her time as John's housekeeper Elizabeth has faced threats and violence from a royalist who wishes to gather evidence against John as he is somewhat of a controversial figure. Elizabeth cannot in good conscience leave John Costin's children with no one to look after them as she has come to care for them very much. Elizabeth has also developed an attachment for John, now with the marriage to Samuel cancelled, she has to face the fact that as the plainest of her sisters she may never get another offer. The elders convince John he needs to marry. But who will he choose?I did not initially realise that this book is loosely based of the second marriage of John Bunyan, the author of  The Pilgrim's Progress (Wordsworth Classics of World Literature) . This story is set in the period nearing the end of the commonwealths rule of England. When parliament negotiated with Charles II to return to England. John Bunyan was arrested and spent many years in Bedford Prison for unlicensed preaching. He was periodically released, but not for long as he refused to stop preaching the word of God. This is not the sort of love story that I usually read, nevertheless I really liked it. The puritan way of life is well detailed, the author has obviously done her research. The characters are very believable, and the story is well told, even though it is not hearts and flowers all the time. To sum up a book well worth reading. The Pilgrim's Progress (Wordsworth Classics of World Literature)

I was totally caught up in this book from the first page. Jody Hedlund is very adept at crafting a great story, hero's and heroine's lives interwoven with romance, historical fact, danger,and so many "nearly but not quite" moments of misunderstanding and thwarted hopes. I struggled to put it down to go to bed at a reasonable hour. I didn't realise until I reached the end that she had based her work of ficton on some of the main historical facts of the lives of John and Elizabeth Bunyan- this was a fascinating post script to the story, and I ended up googling more about John Bunyan. I couldn't find much more about Elizabeth than the facts the author had included in her story, but found some really inspiring articles about John Bunyan that I never knew.-a great book.

I would have liked to have given this five stars since I enjoyed the story very much. I felt as though I was in Puritan England in the seventeenth century and I loved the use of the language. I did feel sad that John didn't get dressed up for his wedding to Elizabeth and almost forgot that it was happening in the first place. However, some of the terminology threw me a bit. I wondered if folk had 'issues' in those times, plus the word 'okay' was used and that pulled me out of the story somewhat. But even so, I would recommend this wonderful story as a 'must read'.

Thoroughly enjoyed this book i was awake at 4a.m to finish it! Then to find out its based on a true story made it even better

It certainly brought to life how difficult life was in those days, and how religion could cause problems. Not until I had read this book did I read the reviews and discover that it was loosely based on Bunyan's life. It made me respect him even more, knowing what he had had to endure.