I have really enjoyed this series’s. You are looking clean books that have adventure, love and a bit of mystery. You will love this series!! Happy Reading 🤩

The Express Bride is a Christian historical romance novel by author Kimberley Woodhouse.

The Express Bride is part of the Daughters of the Mayflower series and specifically details The Pony Express. The setting is Utah Territory (1860).

Charles Vines was a cruel man before he met Jesus. He was so cruel his wife, Anna, left him. Anna later seemed to disappear off the face of the earth.

Jacqueline Rivers was taught by her dad how to run a Pony Express station. After her dad’s passing can Jacqueline (Jack) continue running the station in a man's world?

Even though I figured out the mystery early in the book, The Express Bride is a great mystery. I recommend The Express Bride to fans of Christian mysteries.

Disclaimer: I receive complimentary books from various sources, including, publishers, publicists, authors, and/or NetGalley. I am not required to write a positive review and have not received any compensation. The opinions shared here are my own entirely. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255

I loved this book. Great, well-built characters. Interesting story with vivid details. Another wonderful addition to an amazing series.

This was an especially intriguing book to read. I love learning everything I can about the Pony Express. Can you imagine getting your mail from a young man who rode a horse as fast as he could across country? The mail you receive may be old news by the time you receive it. I loved how the author described how fast the horses traveled to the way stations and barely stopped long enough to get a fresh horse, deliver the mail and take off with a fresh pouch filled with mail going to other cities. We all know the saying about how the mail is delivered come rain , hail , sleet or snow. These men lived that everyday.

Jackie is running the station on her own since her father passed away. The town she lives in is barely a town with few buildings and a handful of people. You could tell everyone was close and I loved how they had church every Sunday sitting around a table. Their discussions were lively and everyone came away with a renewed sense of His presence. I would love to be part of this little town and experience all it had to offer.

There are two intriguing mysteries going on in the story that kept me glued to the book. One is about forgery and the other is about a woman and baby who disappeared a long time ago. Two men show up in town to investigate for their employers. One will take on the forgery case while the other will
try to determine if he has finally found the lost child that his employer has been searching for.

Elijah is a wonderful character and intends to help his employer with a special request. Elijah finds himself in a little town where Jackie is. I think he was impressed that she was running the station and had everything under control. There is an abundance of historical facts in the book which I loved reading about. I thought Elijah was an honorable man and I liked how he felt protective of Jackie.

It is a great story about forgiveness, redemption and faith.

sadly i dnf this hole series because I just couldn't gt in to it , it why i haven't been post reviews

I have enjoyed the Daughters of the Mayflower Series, and this one is one of my favorites.

In the Express Bride, readers are exposed to the Pony Express and what life was like for those that ran stations and rode circuits. I was surprised to learn the Pony Express didn't run very long! How could I have missed that bit of information? This was all very interesting and the author's note at the end added more detail about this unique time in U.S. History.

I enjoyed this story line and learning about the Pony Express in the Utah Territory. I also enjoyed the cast of characters in the story. Each had a unique personality and purpose. The author did a fantastic job of bringing the story to life.

Pony Express… To be honest, I had never heard that name before! For those who also don’t know what I’m talking about, the Pony Express was a mail service of sorts? From what I understand, there were many pony express ”stations” throughout America that transported mail. It was faster, more efficient than regular stagecoach mail because young men (*coughs* they had to weigh less than 125 lb 😂) on mounted horses raced at very fast speeds non stop until the next pony express station to get the mail to the rider waiting in the next station.

The Express Bride revolves around this intriguing concept. It mashes up the story of a young woman, Jackie, secretly in charge of a Pony Express station her father managed until his recent death, and Elijah Johnsons, a successful young businessman with a tragic past.

I loved the family interaction between Jackie and her little ”brothers”. The carrier boys for the Pony Express became like her family, and the way she nurtures them and helps them to grow spiritually is so adorable.

Somehow (I won’t tell you how because It’s a spoiler) Elijah and Jackies stories come together and both are faced with difficult choices that will forever impact their lives. That’s when they turn their eyes to God for guidance and discover that God’s plans are far greater than they would’ve ever imagined.

From criminals to treasure hunts, this book will transport you to the little pony express station… where supposedly nothing happens…were Jakies’ only dream was to run it for the rest of her life and live quietly with her brothers….until somehow she is wrapped up into spy work, forgery, and Elijah Johnson 😂.

What I loved about the book was reading about the lives of the people who run such establishments! It was super interesting seeing how this ”family” worked together to make their pony Express station successful.

The characters arc’s was very well done as we see spiritual growth as well as a good Christian message.

I found it really edifying the little verses scattered through the book. I loved how the characters prayed about things in their heads before making decisions, and it was refreshing to see the male MC doing the same, asking God to take hold of his thoughts and actions, etc.

Content-wise, this book is one of the cleanest books in the whole world. In that regard, I felt the love relationship in this book was too abrupt? Not a fan of insta love, but in this case, it was somewhat cute.

Jackie is supposed to be 26 but to be she felt like a 20-year-old… The way she approached things was a little too childish.

The plot was good, but it was way too slow for my taste. I need action when reading historical fiction books! There were some parts in the book that I felt didn’t move the plot forward and I would even dare say not necessary?

My fav section of the book was the first 5%…If you read this book you’ll know why… After that, everything slows down. I don’t want to say I didn’t like the book, because I found it refreshing, I’d rather say this is more of a book to read little by little and not in one sitting. The messages are very deep and will leave you pondering life and your relationship with Christ ❤️.

Cleanness: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 5/5

Characters: ⭐️⭐️⭐️3/3

Plot: ⭐️⭐️⭐️3/3

 

My personal rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️ 3/5

The Express Bride #9 The Daughters of the Mayflower by Kimberley Woodhouse

1860 Utah Territory and the Pony Express bring this delightful story to life. The author brings the lives of those living in the Utah Territory and history to life with vivid descriptions. I did not know much about the Pony Express before reading The Express Bride. I like that the main character, Jacqueline “Jack” Rivers is the station manager; a woman station manager is unusual. There are long held secrets that come to light after a loved one dies. Jack is shocked when the secret is revealed. She is further shocked when a passenger steps off the Stage Coach. A heartwarming story.

~I received a copy of this book from the author/publisher (no monetary gain were exchanged), this is my honest review~

I have always been fascinated by the Pony Express so I expected to enjoy this book and was not disappointed. I really did enjoy the characters of Jack and Elijah as well as all the Express boys and Elijah's employer, whose story of personal redemption was especially compelling. There were times I found Jack a little simple in her thinking, but it honestly made a lot of sense the more I learned about her upbringing so that worked for me. I found the counterfeiting subplot unnecessary and found it to be more of a distraction than a help in moving the story along. What I did not expect was to have a character who is never alive in the entire course of the book to steal the show. I personally thought Jack's father, Marshall Rivers, was the most interesting character in the entire story, and I found myself wanting less of other parts of the story, especially the counterfeiting parts, and more of him. The few letters he left for Jack just left me wanting more - I wanted to know all about his story - his thoughts and his faith through the hardships he described. But alas, that was not the story I got. So while this was a good story, it was somehow made a little less by making me want a different story.

This is a wonderful historical romance!

I absolutely loved Jack Rivers! She has been shaped by the dad who raised her and the life that they have lived running a Pony Express Station and stagecoach stop. She has a firm foundation in Christ and a love for the bible. As her life goes through unexpected changes she finds that she needs every bit of that foundation to help her get through.

I definitely enjoyed seeing how the relationship between Jack and Elijah grows throughout the book. The mystery that is involved about the counterfeiters is interesting and brings just the right amount of danger into their lives.

This story has a strong component of the redemption of Christ. This brings up the need to see beyond the past of a person and move into forgiveness. We all know people that have changed drastically and now need these things from us.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher through NetGalley. I was not required to write a positive review. All of the opinions expressed are my own.

This was not my favorite. The research was fantastic, and the writing was well done, but the story and pacing did not captivate me. I was unable to complete the book. I would be willing to read this author again though, since this problem could be on my end and simply have to do with my reading interests at the time!
I will not be posting a review to my blog or goodreads because I do not like to post reviews if they are below 3 stars. I would give this one 2.5 stars since I was unable to finish it.

The Express Bride by Kimberley Woodhouse has been one of my favorite reads this year!  I loved the premise of Jacqueline Rivers taking over the running of the Pony Express station when her father died.  
I loved learning about the Pony Express when I was a child, so reading in greater detail about the Express and how the stations and riders worked was fascinating.  This piece of historical fiction is so much more than a love story!  There is that, but just as impressive is the intrigue, mystery, and danger that run throughout the story.

I highly recommend this book!  My thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for giving me an ARC for this my honest review.

This was a fun read !
 I totally enjoyed reading this book over Christmas this year.  I loved getting to learn more about the pony express and a certain girl :) plus I really enjoyed the way Kimberley Woodhouse worked in the story of Daniel as well. A very well done book and I look forward to reading more books by this author.

You can never go wrong with the Daughters of the Mayflower" series. Each book is written in a different historical time period, which is fascinating. The book Express Bride is one of my favorite stories. The story characters come to life and very likable. The storylines draw you in and makes you feel like you're a part of the book! I would recommend the book and series to others.

Thank you NetGalley for the opportunity to read this book for my honest review.  One of my favorite genres has always been the 1800's Christian Fiction. This book didn't disappoint.  "Jack" has just lost her dad and she's taken over his Pony Express and stagecoach station, when two strangers show up needing lodging for 2 different reasons. This book had a few twists and turns but not so many that you couldn't follow along. I appreciated that the characters had a tangible Christian faith that wasn't just mentioned in passing. The author did a good job of portraying fallen people in need of Jesus and how to become a Christian.

I have been reading this series from the start and really enjoying it. This one came out a few months ago, *coughs* ok maybe more than a few. I had received a copy from the publisher through NetGalley and life became a little crazy and different than I thought it would be. So I had books that I'd agreed to review and some fell through the cracks. Like this one. It wasn't purposeful, just life. So here I am trying to go through and read and enjoy these books that slipped through the cracks. I picked this one up this morning thinking that I have a couple quiet hours that I could read/skim it and write a review on some of my thoughts. Y'all, I'm here to tell you that I was completely sucked into the story. Completely! The prologue...oh my heavens! It caught me, hook, line and sinker! And yep, I was sunk.

I've always loved the idea of the Pony Express. Growing up I'd lived close by the route that the riders would follow and it intrigued me. So when I saw that this series was doing a Pony Express story you better believe I was excited. Then, like I said, it fell through the cracks. But I thoroughly enjoyed the time I spent reading and learning more about the way the stations ran. It was a great way to enjoy and learn more about history all while having a mystery surrounding the characters and storyline.

I'm not going to give anything away by talking about the characters because I know I would. Just know that there is suspense, murder, mayhem, mystery, mistaken/hidden identities, heartaches, mistakes, friendship, forgiveness, love, and much more within these pages. I loved it! I couldn't read it fast enough.

If you haven't read any of the books in this series (I believe there are 11 out right now with a 12th one soon to be released) no worries. You can read them in order or just pick one or two to enjoy. And this would be the one I would suggest you read if you haven't read any and just want one. Especially if you're interested in the Pony Express.

Content: Clean. There are moments of peril and suspense and a couple murders but they are not graphic. No swearing and just a chaste kiss. This is a Christian Fiction novel so the characters do talk about God and church. They hold church services and pray and talk about being saved by Jesus.

I received a copy from the publisher, Barbour Publishing, via NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions in the review are my own.

Happy Reading!!!

This story was written in the third person but more speicifically third person omnscient. The major conflicts are both internal and external as characters battle themselves, other characters, society and nature. The popular themes include captialism, change of power, death, empowerment, female roles, greed as downfall, lost love, quest for discovery, will to survive and working class struggles.

Jacqueline Rivers has only known the life her father has left her working at the Pony Express Station in Utah, now with his death she is lost. She is a strong character who is not afraid to take on more roles than would traditionally be hers but at the same time does have fears about her role and doing what is right for all those who rely on her. Elijiah Johnson is all about helping his boss see through his demons. That means starting to look for his lost child and former wife, with his boss ill, he is determine to help to elder man fight for something. He does not know a lot about the this new area but finds himself having a hard time commmiting to his journey once he meets Miss Rivers. This story is goes through the adventure of Elijiah Johnson meeting Miss Rivers and works along side her to discover his boss's missing child and to help Miss Rivers keep her stationhouse open and take down a counterfit opeartion. All while attempting to stay alive and complete his orginal task.

The ideas are original in the sense they attempt to take on society roles for women back in the day. The voice is strong as each character has a unqiue type of communicating to one another. The flow is organized and the sentence structure helps to enhance the overall story. Yes, I would recommend this book. This is a good recommendation for those insterested in historical reads, intersted in the mails systems back in 1860 or looking for light hearted read. This is not a good recommendation for those looking for lots of action, lusty love scenes or looking for a tale mixing modern day times and olden times.

Ms. Woodhouse has written another awesome book in the Daughters of the Mayflower series.  In this book, Ms. Woodhouse has entwined a wonderful story along with the Pony Express.  Jacqueline Rivers ("Jack") manages an Express station that was originally managed by her father who has passed away.  Marshall Rivers is the only father she has known until circumstances, and a young man named Elijah, come waltzing into her life.  Jack finds herself in new territory when she becomes enamoured by this young man and he so to her.  When forged Treasury notes come into play and some weird happenings, things get a little dicey at the station.  Charles Vines is a sinner who has found the Lord and now he wants to find his daughter.  As events come together, new bonds are formed and surprises amast.  Loved this historical fiction read!

Jacqueline Rivers, better known as Jack, is the new unofficial manager of the Carson Sink Pony Express station in Utah. Unofficial, because she’s inherited the station from her father and the owners of the Express might not take be keen on having a female as a station manager. But she’s determined to keep her father’s business going. She’s a great character—intelligent and hardworking, and not afraid to stand up for herself.

Elijah Johnson visits Carson Sink on a mission for his employer—to find his long-lost daughter. He has almost no clues, not even a name, but Carson Sink is a Pony Express station which at least means he can communicate with his boss. The Express in the title is the Pony Express, which ran from Missouri to California between March 1860 and October 1861 (when the completed telegraph rendered the Pony Express obsolete).

I’ve never read any novels about the Pony Express before. It’s hard to imagine living in a tiny town with only two women, and no shop other than a blacksmith—a necessity for a Pony Express station.

I thought the novel was excellent. It’s the perfect mix of romance and suspense, set against a fascinating historical background. The writing is solid, the plot works well, and the characters are both intriguing and likeable. The Express Bride is part of The Daughters of the Mayflower, a multi-author series set in a range of different time periods. This is the first book I’ve read in the series, and it definitely worked as a standalone novel.

Recommended for fans of Christian historical fiction with a western setting.

Thanks to Barbour Publishing and NetGalley for providing a free ebook for review.

The Daughters of Mayflower is a  fun series as each book goes thru a different historical period.  I have read every book  in the series so far and really enjoyed each one.  I had never read any books about the pony express.  So this was a really fascinating book for me.  The Express Bride was filled with history. But it also it included romance and suspense.  This book got my attention from the first page to the last.  This is the 4th book I have read from Kimberly Woodhouse.  And I guarantee it wont be the last.  It is obvious she puts a lot of time into research.  I received a complimentary copy from NetGalley.  All comments expressed are my own.