The Pelican Bride

The Pelican Bride, by Beth White

Back Cover

She’s come to the New World to escape a perilous past.

But has it followed her to these far shores?

It is 1704 when Frenchwoman Genevieve Gaillain and her sister board the frigate Pelican bound for the distant Louisiana colony.  Both have promised to marry one of the rough men toiling in this strange new world in order to escape suffering in the old.  Genevieve knows life won’t be easy, but at least here she can establish a home and family without fear of persecution for our outlawed religious beliefs.

When she falls in love with Tristan Lanier, an expatriate cartographer-turned-farmer whose checkered past is shrouded in mystery, Genevieve realizes that even in this land of liberty one is not guaranteed peace.  Trouble is brewing outside the fort between the French colonists and the native people surrounding them.  And an even more sinister enemy may lurk within.  Could the secret Genevieve harbors mean the undoing of the colony itself?

Review

What a delicious novel!  Full of rich history, sweet romance, and held together with a thread of danger, The Pelican Bride is the full package.   

History has always fascinated me.  And more than just the history itself, but the people who lived it.  When I read about a historical event, I’m always wondering “What were the people thinking or feeling at that time?”  “Why did they make the decisions that they did?”  In The Pelican Bride, Beth White writes in an attempt to answer the questions surrounding the “mail order brides”, who went to Louisiane in search of new beginnings.  In my opinion, Ms. White couldn’t have done a better job.  She brought the time period to life with colourful characters and an intriguing storyline.  While “mail order brides” will always be a hot topic for romance novels, Beth White has definitely set her novel apart from others of the same genre. 

Fascinating from beginning to end, I definitely enjoyed this read.  I can’t wait for book 2! 

Book has been provided courtesy of Baker Publishing Group and Graf-Martin Communications, Inc.  Available at your favourite bookseller from Bethany House, a division of Baker Publishing Group.