Historical fiction fun...

It is 1871 and the Ladies' Emigration Society has promised Caroline Jamison, a young Civil War widow, and several other single women homestead claims in Cayote, Nebraska. But when they arrive, the women discover that Mr. Drake, the man in charge of the Emigration Society, has actually lined up marriages for them instead. Only Caroline isn't interested in marrying again. She and five of the other women insist on filing homestead claims in Plum Grove, Nebraska instead.

Sixteen Brides by Stephanie Grace Whitson is an entertaining historical fiction novel with a lot of humor and a lot of heart. The five women who are the main characters each have their own story to tell: Caroline, a southern belle who married a yankee; tall and plain Ella, who came out with her mother, Zita; Ruth, also a widow, and her fourteen-year-old son, Jackson; rough-around-the-edges Sallie, who divorced her abusive husband; and Hettie, who secretly ran away from hers. I liked them all. There's romance in this novel, too, some of it predictable, some of it unexpected, all of it enjoyable. Plus, I've been drawn to homesteading stories and this time period in American history ever since I was a kid and first read all of the Laura Ingalls Wilder books...so for me, this novel checked all the boxes.

Happy Reading!