Morning Comes Softly

Debbie Macomber

A man in Montana is looking for a mail order bride to help raise his niece and nephews. Yet it is not the 19th century, but the end of the 20th. OK, so instead of mail order, he placed a personal ad. Still Travis Thompson agreed to marry Mary Warner from Louisiana sight unseen.

Mary answered his ad to end her loneliness. She is the typical 19th century spinster displaced into the 20th century. She is over 30, has rarely dated, her family is dead, and she is the librarian. She always considers everything carefully before proceeding. Although she answered Travis' ad through an impulse, she considered her choice before committing.

In Montana Mary meets three children who are grieving over their parents and this lone man who had no idea how to raise them. He is determined to keep them; he will not let the state take them to foster homes. Travis and Mary are wed and she becomes part of their lives, changing the dynamics into the beginnings of a family.

What a charming novel! The misunderstandings are quickly resolved, the children are fairly normal, and the house is not misrepresented. Mary is able to step in and give these people what they need, someone who can take care of them, love them, and restore a semblance of normalcy into a world that has been upheaved. This is a recommended heartwarmer.