Love Is Patient Romance Collection

by Erica Vetsch, Vickie McDonough, Janet Lee Barton

Enjoy the slow dance through the courtship of nine historical couples in the American west, including the territories of Arizona and Wyoming. Just at a time in life when they have nearly given up on finding love, romance enters their lives. But will it be true love, and will it be worth the wait? Find out in this delightful collection written by eight bestselling authors of inspirational romances. 

Genres: Christian Fiction, Christian Romance, Historical Fiction, Historical Romance, Christian, Historical

448 pages, Paperback

First published February 1, 2016

About the author

Best-selling, award-winning author of The Debutante’s Code, first in the Thorndike & Swann Regency Mystery Series, Erica Vetsch loves Jesus, history, romance, and sports. When she’s not writing fiction, she’s planning her next trip to a history museum. You can connect with her at her website, www.ericavetsch.com where you can learn about her books and sign up for her newsletter, and you can find her online at https://www.facebook.com/groups/inspi... where she spends way too much time!

Reviews

[Katie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I always, always look forward to these Novella colelctions because they are my FAVORITE things to read and I am sad to say this one did not always hold my interest.

I'll start with my favorites:
Spinster's Beau was absolutely beautiful! I loved the story line, I LOVED that it very briefly featured my favorite worship song (Come Thy Fount) and Jane and August are amazing.
Lady in Waiting and Shining Armor were also both brilliant and moving tales. Lady in Waiting definitely made me tear up quite a few times. I liked the idea of the 3 sisters becoming mail order brides.
I also enjoyed Birthday Wish and Harvest of Love.

Thinks I did not enjoy:
-We did not get a story about sister number 3
-The Spinster and... three stories in Cactus Corner. They did not hold my attention. Some felt a bit rushed.

I did like the majority of the collection, but I am not sure it is one I will buy a bound copy of simply because of the stories in the middle. I felt it lost the flow especially after going from the family of 3 sisters. I waited to turn the page, expecting the next sisters tale and was thrown into Cactus Corner. Then after 3 stories there, tossed back into a stand alone.

5 out of 9 were stunning and beautifully written. thank you Net Galley for an e-ARC for an honest review

[Christy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I received the book from Netgalley for free for my honest review. Thank you.
I picked that I would like to read The Love is Patient Romance Collection. Which is 9 Christian Romance Novellas. I loved them. I love these kind of collections. They make you wonder if it's really like living the way it is described back then. So here goes.
1.The Spinster's Beau by Jill Stengl
We are introduced to Jane. She lives with her brother Jordan whom is the military. He is a lituant.She is a midwife. One night she is woken and leaves to go for a mother she assumes. Until she goes to the Dr. He needs help with Mad Durant. Whom is a trapper (I guess traps animals). He doesn't believe in Jesus, he ricks of alcohol, and spews foul language. Jane does what's right and prays and sings to him. Hoping he will survive his injury. Will August Durant change or will he stay Mad Durant? Will he accept Jesus? Will he quit drinking. I liked this novella. I learned what a trapper was.
2.Lady in Waiting by. Erica Vetsch
Yay! When I seen the content and it said Erica Vetsch I was wondering if I would be able to continue the Mail Order Bride Series that was in Where the Heart is Romance Collection. Yay it's Jane's story. Jane consider;s herself as the odd ball. Her 3 sisters have blond hair and her's is brown. She call's herself plain Jane. She is set to marry Harrison. Harrison has secrets. Jem the help and friend to Harrison believes that Jane can help save the ranch. Is love worth losing? Over work?
3. Shining Armor by. Erica Vetsch
Continuing from the previous novella. We have Gwendolyn's story. She is a mail order bride with her 3 sisters. Gwendolyn is set to marry her groom-to-be Zebulon Parker. Turns he died and he was a old man. She meets Matt his grandson. Matt doesn't want to get married. Preacher can't take her with him so he leaves her with Matt, and his sister Betsy who is a wheel chair. Preacher will come back and get her in 6 weeks. Gwendolyn has 6 weeks to change Matt's mind. He is so opposed. His family was hurt before and people judged his sister unfairly. I just love these mail order brides. I feel as i know each character.
4. A Birthday Wish Darlene Franklin
We are introduced to Gladys. She wants to do something nice for the cranky Norman Keller. She attempts to decorate his house and falls into Haydn. The mysterious man staying at the Keller Property. Haydn is visiting his grandpa. His grandpa has a birthday wish. How will the birthday wish end? Will Haydn do what is grandpa wishes? Or leave town and Gladys behind. I loved Old Man Keller.
5. The Spinster and the Cowboy by. Lena Nelson Dooley
The novella starts with Joshua getting a letter from his father. The letter tells Josh to listen to a family friend. So the friend wants Josh to go and visit India and help he run the family ranch. The letter was a year late. Maybe Circle C ranch is no longer there and India might have moved on. I loved the town Cactus Corner. I loved the characters Josh and India. I love that the author wrote from his and her P.O.V. It was a lot of Josh's P.O.V. Can Josh take the cowgirl and pluck her in San Francisco. Will she want to give up her family ranch?
6. The Spinster and the Doctor by. Frances Devine
This novella takes place in Cactus Corner. YAY! We are once again introduced to Elaine. She is a 40 year old spinster. We are introduced to the new Dr. He is 45 and has a troubled past. What made these love pass them by?Do they both still believe in love? I loved this novella. Being able to acknowledge that you can love and be loved at any age. Bad rumors start to spread about the good DR. Could it ruin his fresh start in Cactus Corner? I liked reading this novella. I loved remembering about the people and friendship from the previous novella.
7.The Spinster and the Tycoon By Vickie Mcdonough
We are continuing in Cactus Corner. This novella is about Jody. She was in the previous 2 books. The Novella starts off with jody trying to figure a way to make her boss not bid on her picnic basket. They are having a bidding for picnic baskets.She has tried to stop all her bosses advance and marriage proposals.He doesn't seem to understand. Aaron buys the old mercantile and as he is the town he accidentally buys Jody's basket. Jody was planning on buying the mercantile so she could expand the orphanage. What plans will Aaron have for the mercantile? What will happen? Who get's the mercantile at the end? What schemes and plans will Jody do to get the old mercantile land? I've loved reading about Cactus Corner. Reading about India, Elaina, and finally Jody's story.
8. Harvest of Love by Janet Lee Barton
We meet liddy who is a predicament, she is a widow who is pregnant. She has to pay her farm payment. Isn't able to work the fields because of her pregnancy. The town banker offers marriage and he will forget the payment. She want's to save her farm. In comes Calvin he wants to help her out he knows what its like to lose someone. He is also a widow with 2 small girls.What arrangements will Calvin come up with? Can Liddy help Calvin and not get attached to his daughters? Can 2 lonely people find love again? This was one of my favorite out of the novellas.
9. Hope's Dwelling Place by. Connie Stevens
Amelia is on her way to a teaching position. She is getting away from high society life. That her family is part of. She doesn't want to get married and be in a loveless marriage like her parents. So she becomes a school teacher. Hank is Amelia's neighbor. He longs for his own family. His father doesn't approve of his career. His father wants him to become a farmer and Hank doesn't want that. Along comes 3 orphans. Nobody wants them and amelia tries to get Hank to take care of them, she has grown to love them. What will happen to the orphans? Can Amelia realize love is real before it's to late?

I've loved reading these novellas. Some I like more than others. I loved reading about he frontier and the prairie. They remind me of the days of Little House on the Prairie. I'm glad I was able to read and write a review of Love is Patient Romance Collection by the publishers and NetGalley. The opinions are my own. Thanks.

[Edward Arrington · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Spinster’s Beau by Jill Stengl is an interesting story set in 1823 about a spinster who lives on Mackinac Island with her younger brother and serves as a midwife to the local women. Dr. Beaumont, the military doctor at Fort Mackinac, sends for her late one night to assist in treating two fur trappers who got into a fight and did serious damage to each other. She makes quite an impression on one of the trappers, August Durant, who decides he wants to pursue her after he heals. Their worlds are so different his chances seem slim to none. Was there a man alive with enough patience to win her love with such huge differences in their beliefs and way of life?

Lady-in-Waiting by Erica Vetsch depicts the trials and tribulations of mail-order brides in the 1800s. As the intended bride left everything behind to go wed a man she had never met in a place she had never seen and he is waiting for his intended to arrive with no idea of what he is getting into. Erica Vetsch lets her humor slip through a bit when Jane first meets a bow-legged cowboy with some missing teeth and about three times older than her. Is this her new husband? I am not telling. She cannot believe that her new home is nothing but a mud hut called a soddy. Her life just seems to be going downhill quickly.

Shining Armor by Erica Vetsch begs the question what does a woman do when she arrives at her destination as a mail-order bride and learns that the man who sent for her is dead? Then she learns that he actually sent for her to become the bride of his grandson who wants nothing to do with a wife. It seems like an impossible situation since she has nowhere else to go. Today things like this would not happen but this was shortly after the Civil War and she had traveled from Massachusetts to the Wyoming Territory. Traveling in those days was a much bigger deal than now. Could she be patient to see what God had in store for her?

A Birthday Wish by Darlene Franklin brings us a young woman who follows the leading of her Lord to try to brighten the life of a lonely old man. She meets a young man who is visiting the old man. Interestingly, he seems drawn to her at times and pushes her away at other times. She seems to be a woman of utmost patience as she tries to show Christian love to the old man. As she does, she also struggles with an attraction to the young man.

The Spinster and the Cowboy by Lena Nelson Dooley brings together an Arizona rancher’s daughter and a San Francisco lawyer who have not seen each other since she was nine and he was twelve. Their fathers were best friends so Joshua felt it was important to honor the request of India’s father and check to see how India was doing with the ranch after her father’s death. Joshua and India are both in for a big surprise when she learns who he is.

The Spinster and the Doctor by Frances Devine tells the story of Elaine, a close friend of India in the previous story. Elaine volunteers at the orphanage in town, sharing her love with the children. The elderly doctor retired and left Cactus Corner after bringing in Dr. Dan Murphy to take his place. The doctor has a history that he wants to leave far behind but it seems to follow wherever he goes. Elaine is attracted to him but she keeps hearing rumors that cause her to hold him at arm’s length. Does he have any chance of winning her over?

The Spinster and the Tycoon by Vickie McDonough continues the Cactus Corner story as Jody, the fourth member of the close-knit group of friends, tries to wrap up the drive to raise funds to buy the empty mercantile building next door to the orphanage so they can expand the orphanage. Just as Jody completes the last fundraiser and has the money to buy the building, she learns that it has been bought. The new owner, Aaron, is chagrined to learn that the building he has bought is separated from the railroad by an orphanage and has a large gulch at the back. Then Jody and Aaron meet and the battle begins as he tries to convince her that the orphanage should relocate while she does all in her power to stop him from proceeding with his plans to build the hotel next door. Who is going to win this war?

Harvest of Love by Janet Lee Barton was heartwarming as the neighboring farmer with two young daughters seeks to help the newly widowed woman who had just learned that she was expecting a baby a day or two after her husband died from a rattlesnake bite. She is in dire straits due to the note on her farm that is almost in default and the deep longing to raise her child there. Cal discovers that there are ways to help her that help him in return without placing any undue or untoward pressure on her as the banker has attempted to do.

Hope’s Dwelling Place by Connie Stevens is the story of Amelia Bachman and Hank Zimmermann who both had a tendency to run ahead of God and make their own plans. Even though they wanted to be in God’s will, they both had parents who sought to control their lives and dictate their respective occupations. Were they going to be able to follow the paths that God had for them or be forced into doing what their parents wanted?

In each story the main characters must learn that God works on a different time schedule than humans and patience is indeed a virtue. I received an advance copy of this book from NetGalley. This is my honest review. All opinions are strictly my own.

[Trixi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Enjoy the slow dance through the courtship of nine historical couples in the American west.


With that introduction I couldn't resist reading this collection of romance novellas! I enjoyed every one of these, they each had a unique and fun storyline and different characters to come to love for myself.

I'm going to touch on a couple here in my review. It doesn't diminish my pleasure in each of these nine stories, but I wanted to highlight two. I really loved the ones by Erica Vetsch with Mail-order brides. Four sisters each answered newspaper advertisements for Mail-order brides to go out west. With no other prospects, they jumped at the chance for love! What they find along the way was so much more and each one was challenged by them. We get to meet two of these sisters, Jane Gerhard in Lady-In-Waiting and Gwendolyn Gerhard in Shining Armor . I really like these two sisters and loved watching how their happily-ever-after played out. I'm going to be scouting out the stories for the other two sisters because I enjoyed these so much.

The other one was A Birthday Wish by Darlene Franklin. We meet Gladys Polson when sets out on a mission to brighten old man Norman Kellers life by cheering him up at Christmas time. Then she quite literally falls into the arms of Haydn Johnson, Mr Keller's grandson returned from University. What a fun love story between these two! Darlene Franklin always incorporates a strong faith theme in her books, it's one reason I really enjoy them.

Each of these nine stories were sweet, fun, full of faith, and shows how love can come in God's timing!

*I received a complimentary copy through Netgalley and wasn't obligated to leave a favorable review. All opinions expressed here are my own. *

[Ardith Dursma · Rating 5 out of 5]

Highly recommend this book.

All of these short stories were very good. Each was different with a unique set of circumstances and how they worked through these to experience a good relationship,

[Stephanie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Another day, another book!

This western historical romance collection had some good reads (no pun intended) and some mehhh reads. Overall, it was a pleasant, rainy day read.

Onward and upward...

[Marg · Rating 4 out of 5]

most of the stories were excellent

[Traci · Rating 3 out of 5]

There were a few repeat stories in the book. That is always disappointing. They were good but the were over so quick that it was hard to enjoy them.

[Teresa Brown · Rating 4 out of 5]

This had some fun short stories, although it was hard to get to into the books.

[JLynn · Rating 4 out of 5]

A lot of nice stories.

[Jess · Rating 3 out of 5]

Overall 3 stars, but the reason I read this was for Erica Vetsch’s novellas (there are nine total novellas but two of them are hers). Hers would consider 5 stars.

[H · Rating 3 out of 5]

Between two and four stars, depending on the story.

[Terry Yaceyko · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good read

[Elsa · Rating 5 out of 5]

A cute collection of sweet romaces, some stories fit together but not all.

[Marvy Herrera · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wonderful collection! :)

[Teri-K · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm finding I like these collections of novellas by different writers, as they give me a chance to try out authors I haven't read before. In this collection they are all set in the American West and tell stories in which someone has to wait patiently for their HEA.

I look for one of three things in an historical novella - characters who come alive, a unique and interesting plot, or really good writing. A unique setting or historical detail is a welcome bonus. A story that has at least one of these elements should get a good rating from me.

The quality of the stories was uneven, running from 1-5 stars. My favorites were:
"Lady in Waiting" by Erica Vetsch An interesting mail-order bride set up that made a good story, well written.
"A Birthday Wish" by Darlene Franklin A young woman takes on the town curmudgeon for a missions project in this nicely told story that made me smile.
"Harvest of Love" by Janet Lee Barton Delightful story about neighbors who help each other out and find love in the process. I really like that it wasn't about "instant attraction" but a relationship that developed as they worked together.
"Hope's Dwelling Place" by Connie Stevens This 5 star story had it all - characters who came alive, an interesting plot and good writing. The setting of a German community in Texas was different, and I also love that I've learned something new - about Sunday Houses. That's why I read historical fiction in the first place. I'll be looking for more by this author.

Worth reading, too are "The Spinster and the Tycoon" and "Shining Armor", which only suffered from a too-quick resolution. And be warned that, though several of the stories clearly go together, at least one story in each series is missing. So if you insist upon a complete experience you'll be disappointed. Though there were some very good stories I gave only 3 stars overall, as some of the stories were bad enough to be difficult to finish.

I received a free copy of this book in return for an unbiased review.

[Callie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I, as I mentioned in one of my other posts, do enjoy reading novella collections. I really enjoyed the Lassoed By Marriage Collection that Barbour publishers put out earlier this year, and I loved watching the Love Comes Softly movies this summer, plus I have been studying 1 Corinthians 13. Thus, I figured that I would like this collection. However, I found the stories to be slow moving with abrupt matrimonial endings. I didn't connect with the characters, but I did like some of the plots (especially if they could have been fleshed out into full novels). Once again, this was an opportunity to check out unfamiliar authors without having to read full novels, but I cannot honestly say that I would go back and look up any of the authors from this collection. I do, however, still plan to read more novella collections from Barbour publishers as I have enjoyed them in the past. I think that other readers may like this book, and that it may have just been me who was not patient (wink) enough to appreciate this theme in the collection.
Thank you to Barbour publishers and Net Galley for providing me with an electronic copy of this book to read and review. All opinions are my own and were not required to be positive.

[Tima · Rating 4 out of 5]

True love sometimes takes time and patience. Eight authors come together to tell nine romantic stories of love in the West. Sometimes, just when it seems that love has passed you by, romance will come and surprise you. Each author wrote the novella with the title in mind, but most of the stories do not tie together except for the theme. Two of the stories are from a collection previously published about mail-order brides who are sisters.

I enjoyed each of these stories. It was a nice break from the suspense I had been reading. While the outcome is expected, the authors wove faith, love, and the hardships of the frontier together to create entertaining and sweet novellas that can be read quickly. I enjoyed being able to place the book aside and come back when I had only a few minutes to read without interrupting the story line. My only complaint would be that the stories about the sisters only included two of the four sisters. I later read another novella collection that had the other two sister's stories. But otherwise this was a sweet book that I would recommend to anyone who enjoys historical christian fiction.

I received this book free of charge from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.

[Sara Brooks · Rating 5 out of 5]

With such a great line up of authors, I knew this collection of novellas would be great! The theme of each of this collection is: sometimes love requires waiting and a healthy does of patience. I really enjoy a set of novellas from time to time because each story only takes about two hours or so to read. I read a lot of books, most of which are full length novels and they take anywhere from two days to a week to read (depending on how “into them” I get) so those stories take more time to see the end result. A novella is short and sweet, much like a Hershey Kiss instead of a full chocolate bar.

As with any collection like this there will be some stories that are better in theme and quality than others, but I enjoyed each novella in this collection for the fun fast reads they are. In other words I didn’t set my expectations too high, I wasn’t disappointed, and I don’t think you will be either.

I received a complementary copy of Love Is Patient Romance Collection: True Love Takes Time in Nine Historical Novellas from Barbour Books. I was not required to write a positive review, only my honest opinion.

[Amber Ballard · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read The Love Is Patient Romance Collection. I absolutely love these little novella collections!! Every time I've read one of these little novellas I find new authors to fall in love with! My favorite by far in this collection is Erica Vetsch! I just wished this would have had all of the sisters stories in it, but I did find out that you can get their story through her other book The Sagebrush Knights!!! That will be one I will have to buy. I also loved Jill Stengl The spinster's Beau! The one book I didn't care to much about was A birthday wish by Darlene Franklin. I just didn't like it. All in all I will continue to read these little short love stories!

[Rebekah · Rating 5 out of 5]

Spinsters, plain janes, and mail order brides all find out that self image is not as important as character and the beauty others seen in you. Lovely stories that show that beauty on the inside translates to beauty on the outside. Guys this goes for you too, external appearance is greatly enhanced or diminished by character. These stories are particularly dear to me as that is just what I told my husband when he asked to date me. These stories really do ring true. Wonderful reads.

[Denise · Rating 3 out of 5]

9 love stories at once is a bit much, somewhat like a candy overload. On their own, these were good novellas, but the collection as a whole didn't flow as well as it could have. There were multiple sets of two or three stories that were related but not all of the characters involved in them had their story included in the collection. It felt like strings were hanging because of that, then you jumped to a different city for an entirely new set of characters.

[Cynthia · Rating 5 out of 5]

I received this book as a win from Goodreads Giveaways. I loved each of the stories that were part of the collection. It makes you remember no matter hard the situation you can turn things around and make them better.

[Dorothy · Rating 5 out of 5]

9 stories of men and women who found love in the west. Some of the stories were related in that the women were friends. While some of them were from different parts of the west. All of them found love by following the way that God lead them.

[Melissa · Rating 4 out of 5]

there were some I really enjoyed and some that could have been left out:)