I like adventure stories. Sometimes, however, I want something gentle, sentimental, and sweet. In The Marshal Takes a Bride, Renee Ryan introduces readers to the residents of Charity House, an orphanage set up to care for the children of Denver prostitutes. Though the story gets a little too sweet every now and then, it’s still a nice feel-good read.

Charity House schoolteacher Katherine Taylor has a background not too far removed from that of her students. Widowed with a small child, Katherine’s mother turned to prostitution in order to survive and, as a result, Katherine has to bear the insults and standoffish attitudes of city residents whenever she goes into town. Her experiences have made her somewhat suspicious of men, and she feels safer leading a quiet life at Charity House, venturing out rarely except for her Sunday trip to church.

Katherine has also taken in her half-sister, Molly, a five year-old who’d lived with her father in a mining camp until the man died. As the book opens, Katherine and Molly are trying to get used to one another and this does not always go smoothly. In addition, one of the owners of Charity House has a widowed brother-in-law, Trey Scott, who spends a lot of time around the orphanage, playing with the children and sparring with Katherine.

Though it took me a little while to warm up to them, I actually liked the relationship between Trey and Katherine. Trey initially sees her as an overly prim and bossy woman, but as he starts to understand her background and her motivations, he begins to feel more drawn to her. Their relationship starts as a friendship, but grows into more.This growth is helped along by circumstances. When Molly and two of the teenagers living at Charity House come across Trey and Katherine having a deep discussion in the school supply closet, the gossip quickly builds. Given Katherine’s already precarious situation, what little reputation she has will be in tatters if action isn’t taken and Trey decides to marry her. This decision comes at first as a result of Trey’s inclination to do the right thing, but he soon begins to realize his very genuine feelings for Katherine.

Unfortunately, Katherine will have none of Trey’s proposal. The reason for her refusal sets up some of the very real -and rather well done – tension in the novel. Trey lost his first wife and unborn child to an outlaw’s raid on his ranch. Since then, he has become a U.S. Marshal, and his quest for vengeance against his wife’s attacker drives him. Katherine believes that Trey’s vengeance should be left to God and fears that his desire for revenge will destroy him. Trey, for his part, is falling in love with Katherine, but this leaves him caught between two women. He cannot entirely let go of his first wife, but the author does a good job of showing that he cannot win Katherine while still holding on to his lost love.

The story is ultimately very heart-warming, and I appreciated that. I also liked the manner in which the author used religious material in the story. This book contains more overtly religious discussion than many inspirationals I’ve read recently, but the author manages to work it all in without preaching to the reader. The reader simply sees characters who have a very deep faith working that faith into their everyday lives.

Still, even with these good qualities, The Marshal Takes a Bride does have some weaknesses of which readers should be aware. Though the book primarily manages to be heartfelt without being treacly, the initial scene at the opening (and its counterpart in the epilogue) will probably strike most people as cheesy. They certainly did for me, though I am glad that I continued reading. Even with those scenes and some slightly rushed plotting at the end, this was a delightful read. I will definitely pick up the next book in the series when it comes out.