The Merchant's Daughter

I must admit that Young Adult Christian novels aren't usually my first choice for preferred reading, but I did receive Melanie Dickerson's The Merchant's Daughter (#194) from the folks at Zondervan Publishing in a GoodReads Historical Fiction First Reads giveaway. I wasn't sure at first that I would like the book, since I'm not really a member of their target audience, but I do have to say that once I got into the story a bit, the action picked up and I really did want to find out what happened to the characters.

Set in England in the 1300s, Annabel Chapman is the merchant's daughter who is forced by her family's lack of duty to the local overlord into a three year period of indenture as a servant in their lord's household.  Of course, her brother offers her an alternative: he has promised Annabel as a bride to the loathsome bailiff in return for payment of the Chapman's fees.  Annabel is repulsed by the thought, and is determined to pay her family's debts to the new, young, and disfigured Lord Ranulf le Wyse. If she serves her term of indenture, perhaps she will then be allowed to enter a convent where she hopes to be able to finally read the Bible for herself.

Even though the course of true love never does run smoothly, the reader will be able to see the end coming from the first few pages.  However, it's always the obstacles that make the journey so interesting.  Although it was not immediately apparent, I was relieved when Ms. Dickerson did make a point of explaining that Annabel's long time desire to read the Bible for herself was fulfilled by reading for Lord Ranulf in Latin, not a skill possessed by many in a medieval village.  After all, if you are going to read historical fiction, you probably do it because you want to learn something new about a different place and time.  It's nice to know the author did the research to make sure the background is authentic.

If you're a young adult reader, or merely young at heart, this medieval romance based on on a Beauty and the Beast theme should be just the ticket.