If you follow me on Instagram, there’s a 75% chance that you have seen at least one of the movies from the series. Not too long ago, I remembered that the movies are actually based on books so I decided to read them too. To cut the long story short, I was greatly impressed and would recommend reading it to everyone who likes this kind of literature.
If you know nothing about the series, let me explain a little. The book series (as well as the movies based on it) called Love Comes Softly tells us the story of an 1800-s pioneer family. I would say that this is Christian series, but I think it should be interesting for any reader interested in the topic. The books talk about life's hardships and their solutions, family values, and relationships. The Wild West, romance, and wisdom - everything that I love!
More About the Series
The book series consists of 8 interconnected novels, all of which can be easily ordered on Amazon. According to the author, the readers kept requesting sequels, and this is why she wrote that many. Originally Janette Oke planned to stop after the fourth book, but everyone wanted to know what happens next! The eighth book seems to be a good final novel so I don't think there would be a point in writing more.
Regarding the movie series, there are eight movies as well. I won't talk about them here because even though they are generally based on the books, the movies are very different (especially the last ones). I have to say though that most of the main storylines and names are kept in the movies, and I love them dearly. You can also only watch the movies and still have a good time and enjoy the stories!
More About the Novels
If you decide to read the series, you should start from the very beginning and read in order. Every book has a quick recap in the beginning, but it would make more sense to follow the story chronologically. When I was reading the books, I wrote down a few sentences about each to tell you more about them. You can also find a more detailed description online.
1. Love Comes Softly
The first book is very similar to the movie but (as it often happens) tells a bigger story and involves more characters.
2. Love's Enduring Promise
This book stands out by having a very captivating story. The plot is pretty close to the movie but gives us a better view of the whole story. Moreover, it also shows some other storylines.
3. Love's Long Journey
The third book shows the reality of pioneers in detail: a journey in a wagon, life in a shed, and very hard work. After reading this, you start appreciating the comfort of your life in the modern world even more.
4. Love's Abiding Joy
You should read this book if you were ever wondering how it would be to travel across the whole country in the 19th century. Also, the plot includes some drama that kept me up way longer than I expected.
5. Love's Unending Legacy
The fifth book surprises us with unexpected turns and clearly shows how some problems appear when people wouldn't talk about their thoughts and feelings.
6. Love's Unfolding Dream
This book is about teenagers and about love for medicine. It describes a girl's world while discovering their personality and great passion for this hard but very important job in a very interesting way.
7. Love Takes Wing
The seventh book reveals the story of a young girl who unexpectedly had to face social life after living in a village most of her life, and some admirers as well!
8. Love Finds a Home
I would call this book Solitude and Maturity. This is the story where the main character didn't get married as soon as she hit puberty but was looking for her place under the sun.
Advantages and Disadvantages
All of these books I've read in about a week. Captivating stories and interesting language make it easy to read, but I wouldn't say that actions were happening too quickly. I have to say that the first books were a little better than the last ones (as it often happens). On the other hand, I really appreciated the fact that in different books the author was describing different spheres of people's lives and relationships, rather than repeating similar stories over again.
As for me, I also appreciated the fact that the books were easy to find online (in Russian) - I downloaded them on my phone so I could read them literally everywhere. Most of the books can be also found in audio format on YouTube (again, in Russian), so that was very convenient for me as well.
My Rating - 9.5
This time I'm giving a very high rating to this book series because I loved it! I'm only taking half a point off because I think this series will be interesting for a very limited audience - the girls who like romance.
Let me know if you read it or saw it!
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