The Mountain Midwife

     The Mountain Midwife by Laurie Alice Eakes is one of the first books I've read by this author, and, I believe, the first contemporary book by this author.  I found the concept interesting: combining historical traditions of midwifes with modern-day medicinal practices.  The first chapter or so was fairly suspenseful, and grabbed my attention...but then lost it and didn't regain it until about half way through the book.  The characters take a while to connect with each other, and leave you wondering who's who and when they'll come together.  Basically, city boy meets mountain girl.  There are several stereotypes dealt with in this book, but then the characters would still act like the stereotype and make it a moot point.  I found that to be really annoying because it took up time in the book and just canceled itself out.  I didn't really connect to the characters or the setting, and had to push to get through this book.  I do, however, think that the midwifery work was fascinating and took a lot of research.  

     Ashley Tolliver is the daughter of a midway who is the daughter of a midwife, and so on and so forth.  They've been at their work in the mountains for generations, helping women.  When a mysterious couple shows up in the middle of the night with the woman's water broken, Ashley naturally does everything she can to help her.  There's something fishy about her though, and Ashley's fears and suspicions are multiplied when the lady is kidnapped on the way to the hospital.

     Hunter McDermott accidentally saved a whole family and is now on the news.  He goes back to his own family and discovers his roots don't lead to quite where he thought they did.

     Thank you so much to the Thomas Nelson and Zondervan Fiction Guild for providing me with a copy of this book to read and review.  All opinions are my own and were not required to be positive.