Bethany House recently sent me a free copy of Kristi Ann Hunter's new novel, An Uncommon Courtship. Set in England in 1814, this novel continues the saga of the Hawthorne House. Lord Trent Hawthorne is the second son, and glad to be free of the responsibility of being the duke that his older brother must fulfill now that their father has passed away. Both of his sisters married for love, and he wants a love story all his own, when the time is right. However, Lady Crampton from a neighboring estate has her own plan, to somehow marry off her "in the shadows" second daughter, Adelaide to someone with money and power. Although her plan to conveniently leave Adelaide trapped all night in an abandoned building with the duke doesn't quite work, Lord Trent is the next best option. Not knowing it was a trap, Lord Trent investigates an visitor on their property and next thing he knows, he is saying his marriage vows to a woman he doesn't even know. Neither Lord Trent nor Adelaide know how a marriage should be or even what love is. Adelaide only knows deception from her mother, and Lord Trent has a faint recollection of the beautiful marriage of his parents, but his father is no longer alive to answer his questions of how to truly love his wife. Thankfully, he has godly married friends that show him the best place to go for answers is the Bible, to see how Christ loved the church as his own body, and as a model for husbands.
Although I had never read any novels by Kristi Ann Hunter, I discovered I didn't need to because the characters in this novel can stand alone. However because of the way Hunter developed the characters of the novel, I want to find her first 2 novels and 1 novella to read, to continue the story of the Hawthorne Family. I love the setting and how the characters interact with each other. The story of an inconvenient marriage has been done before, but the questions that Hunter has the characters ask and think are so real, and I love how Lord Trent and Adelaide come to learn about a Godly marriage. Their missteps and confusion when they are first married is so sweet and pure. I am hoping there is another novel coming to continue the story of Lord Trent's older brother Griffith . Thank you Bethany House for sending me this story in exchange for a honest review.
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