Madeline Drake falls through time to a snow-filled night in Wyoming. She lands in O LITTLE TOWN OF BETHLEHEM, but it’s the frontier town of Bethlehem, not the Middle East. Madeline is an actress with a lot of experience in Western roles. Can she adapt, or will her determination to get home – or wake up, if she’s dreaming – ruin the experience? Some time passes before we know.
The town postmistress, Parithinia, or Ninny, Minch, is quite surprised by the new arrival. A lady shouldn’t be wearing a set of men’s pants. Everyone in town has to make do and mend, especially after Thanksgiving when roads and rail may be blocked. Sheriff Fischer has a better idea than most of how Madeline got here, but he can’t help her return.
Savannah Clarke is another lady about town, pinching the pennies and buying dry goods on credit. She thinks the newcomer may be an asset, but is concerned that Madeline may open a saloon. Her sister Inola, who is busy cooking, has no opinion on the issue. 1907 is a year when appearances matter, and ladies strive for social acceptance, as the town swells. New babies arrive each year, and Mrs. Bergstrom is expecting another child, who is weary from housework in the bare cabin. At the other end of the social scale are the family of the bankers, who hold haughty social evenings and promote temperance. Savannah, Inola and Ninny can’t afford to offend, but they try to help their neighbours, not ignore them.
Madeline has come from a bad place in her personal life, getting discarded by a boyfriend who was also in charge of casting a show. If she has no role, her self-control goes downhill. We see that taking time out may help her learn more about her strengths. The experience in Bethlehem feels a bit fake, in that she’s provided with suitable clothes, a saloon and funds. But the cold is real.
The detail is well researched, from how letters were postmarked to how piecrust was made. Entertainments were all-important and any books or magazines had to be shared. I found the tale quite long and wasn’t sure if it was romance or women’s fiction. As the action is necessarily confined to the streets and homes, preparations for Christmas fill the pages. Provided you want a thoughtful story about redemption and cultural contrast, Elizabeth Boyle has provided an enjoyable novel filled with character. O LITTLE TOWN OF BETHLEHEM shows the good and bad sides of Christmas past and asks us whether we would choose to stay.
With her beloved charm and wit, New York Times bestselling author Elizabeth Boyle brings to life a heartwarming story of empowerment, redemption, and the joy of finding friendship. Even during the holidays.
Madeline Drake is on the verge of stardom when an accident on a snowy Wyoming road sends her careening a century into the past.
Landing in the quaint town of Bethlehem, she discovers a place that operates by its own set of rules and the oddest gathering of lost souls ever collected. This quirky, small town, with its currency of wishes and second chances, has only one rule—you have until Christmas Eve to prove your worth before you can leave.
Having never been much for rules, Madeline begins an out-of-control campaign to get home immediately and regain her modern life. But to her dismay—and then utter amazement—her plans become entwined with that of the town's proper postmistress, Ninny Minch, and the even more scalding, Savannah Clarke, a widow hiding behind a wall of guilt and grief.
Now Madeline must assist these two unlikely women unravel the lies that have left them in knots for decades. Helping anyone other than herself doesn't come easily to Madeline, but as these fragile new bonds of friendship grow, she finds those threads of trust and acceptance, once woven, may be strong enough to unpack even the most closely guarded secrets.
Even a few of her own.
For fans of Debbie Macomber, Evie Woods and Barbara Davis, O Little Town of Bethlehem makes for an enchanting winter read on a cold, snowy night, as well as the perfect December book club pick.
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