This is a very quiet book. It's a good one, not my favorite re-telling of Beauty and the Beast, but then, I'm not sure I've read an amazing version of Beauty and the Beast. Just a note for everyone who hasn't seen the ranting reviews, this is a Christian novel. It had several excerpts from the Bible. I don't think it had gotten too preachy; I didn't think there were pages of Bible analysis, and that Dickerson used it to delve into characterization, which I enjoyed.Annabel has a choice. Her family has lazed around for 3 years, and now she must either marry the terrible, lecherous (this word was used SO much, that it got old) Bailiff Tom, or become an indentured servant to the hideous Lord le Wyse. You guess which one she chooses. The interesting thing is that Annabel has wanted to enter a convent for so long, but with her family poor now, she can't. She wants to serve God and be happy without men in her life. Her view was pretty constant, which I was surprised about. I figured that once she started fancying Lord le Wyse, she would throw her dream away; she did, after some circumstances, but not for a while.Annabel is gorgeous. I realize that this book is a Beauty and the Beast tale, but her beauty was so emphasized that it drove me a little crazy. Yes, I understand the girl is totally beautiful, we've figured that out. Please move on. I did like her constancy, and I liked her spirit and the love she had for God and the Bible. It was definitely endearing. Lord le Wyse is awesome! I admired him from the very beginning.There were a few flaws. The one that really stood out to me was that Lord le Wyse had a Bible. In the 1300's, I thought only the clergy could have a Bible. Of course, I'm probably ignorant about that kind of thing, but that just struck me as odd. Another thing was that I felt the reason why Annabel's family missed out on their harvesting chores was never explained. The book said they were lazy, and felt as if they were above everyone else because of their previous station. Still, I couldn't picture sweet Annabel being so selfish. That was just a little inconsistency.Everything else was just wonderful. It was an easy read and I really enjoyed reading it. I don't think I'll read it again, but I will read more of Melanie Dickerson, that's for sure. This is really more of 3.5 stars. The story follows Annabel whose family has skirted their responsibilities for three years in helping with the harvest. However, now that there is a new Lord in town, they must pay up. And do so, they have Annabel go work for the new Lord as a servant for three years. The plot seemed interesting enough at the beginning. I think one of my favorite aspects of the book was the portrayal of religion. It was very refreshing for me to see how the main character craved to read the Bible, but was unable to because she was a woman and had no access to the written word. It made me very appreciative of the modern era! My biggest problem came with the plot and the character development. At first, the story was very interesting. Rather than wanting to be married, Annabel wanted to become a nun and focus on reading the Bible. Lord de Wyse was hurt terribly by his first marriage and even though it had been years, he hadn't dealt with the pain. So you would think that it would take time for either to change their mind about being married or falling in love. NOPE! After three weeks (about the life span of a fruit fly), they decided that they are in love and want to get married. First of all, like Elsa says, "You can't marry a man you just met." You barely know each other. Yes, you have been reading the Bible to him and giving each other quick glances, but that means nothing!!! Secondly, Annabel was adamant that she wanted to be a nun. That was her dream for such a long time. And now that you "think" you are in love, you are just going to abandon it because you can read his Bible. I know that love makes you do stupid things, but you still have a brain. Use it. At one point during the story, she even prays for God to send her away because she seemed to be causing so many problems. And at that same time, Lord de Wyse remembers that he has an aunt who is a nun at an abbey far away and he could send Annabel there so she won't get into trouble. God answers prayers. So she finally got her answer to her prayer, but then suddenly in the middle of the trip turns around and goes back to him completely ignore her answer.And Lord dy Wyse, you were terribly hurt and pushed away everyone. Now, all of a sudden, everything is okay? You have been holding in anger issues, hurt, and insecurities for YEARS! And now, that you have met a pretty girl (who everyone comments on her beauty, all the time), you are suddenly okay. God can take away the pain and hurt, but it can be a process to deal with as well. There was no process here. Just boom! All better! I think that was my biggest problem with the book. There was no time to allow the relationship with each other to grow. Or to see how their relationship would each effect their walk with God. Just my opinion, but I think that the story and character development could have been better.
What do You think about The Merchant's Daughter (2011)?
I really liked this one. Good suspense, good romance, good drama.
—Linnea
