Courting Miss Adelaide

Title: COURTING MISS ADELAIDE
Author: Janet Dean
Publisher: Love Inspired Historical
September 2008
ISBN: 978-0-373-82796-3
Genre: Inspirational/historical

Adelaide Crum is a spinster. And while she’ll never marry, she’d still love to have children. A darling little girl, one she could teach to sew… so when Adelaide hears of an orphan train coming to her town, she hurries to meet with the committee so she can be approved for a child.

Unfortunately, the committee doesn’t exactly see things her way. They insist that a child needs a mother and a father and they refuse to even consider her pleas for a little girl. Still, Adelaide can’t help but go when the orphan train arrives and pick out the child she wants…only to have that child go to a man and a woman.

When Adelaide struggles to heal from this newest rejection, she starts writing fashion articles for the newspaper editor, Charles Graves. She soon finds a friend in Charles, but for whatever reason, he refuses to support her quest to declare the home that the little girl went to unfit. Not even when the little girl is dropped off in town. Not even when evidence suggests otherwise… What can Adelaide do to make Charles see the truth?

COURTING MISS ADELAIDE is Ms. Dean’s debut novel, and it is a winner. Full of life, laughter, and unexpected twists and turns, COURTING MISS ADELAIDE is a novel that needs to have reviews written about it, so people will know what a treasure is lurking in stores waiting to be discovered.

Adelaide is a realistic heroine, feisty and caring, and I couldn’t help but fall in love with her. I also cared for Charles and felt for him as he battled his demons. A secondary character, Fannie, also won my heart and I hope to see more about this character sometime. Discussion questions are included at the end of the book. $5.50. 279 pages.