For Love and Honor by Jody Hedlund: A Book Review

For Love and Honor
Author: Jody Hedlund
Genre: YA, Historical Fiction, Christian, Romance 
Publisher: Zondervan
Release Date: March 7, 2017
Pages: 324
Source: My State Public Library
Synopsis: Lady Sabine is harboring a skin blemish, one, that if revealed, could cause her to be branded as a witch, put her life in danger, and damage her chances of making a good marriage. After all, what nobleman would want to marry a woman so flawed?

     Sir Bennet is returning home to protect his family from an imminent attack by neighboring lords who seek repayment of debts. Without fortune or means to pay those debts, Sir Bennet realizes his only option is to make a marriage match with a wealthy noblewoman. As a man of honor, he loathes the idea of courting a woman for her money, but with time running out for his family’s safety, what other choice does he have?

     As Lady Sabine and Sir Bennet are thrust together under dangerous circumstances, will they both be able to learn to trust each other enough to share their deepest secrets? Or will those secrets ultimately lead to their demise?

     My Review: Sir Bennet returns home to find his family in debt and is forced to marry for money. He decides to enter into an arranged marriage to a wealthy noblewoman. Sabine is very wealthy, but she hides a secret. She has a blemish on her arm that many people think brands her as a witch. Because of her birthmark, she has very little chance of making a good marriage. She and her grandmother go to Sir Bennet’s castle to be wooed by the knight himself. Sabine finds herself falling in love with him. What happens when his family’s debtors decide to attack his castle, and what happens if Sabine’s birthmark is exposed? Will they be able to look past the other’s imperfections and love the other for who they truly are?

  Sabine is  a fun character. She has a dry sense of humor that draws Sir Bennet to him. She also has an appreciation for art. She is very clever and wants to help him out even if he marries her for her money. She is also very insecure, not only because of her birthmark, but also because she is plain. She doesn’t believe that anyone can love her. Throughout the novel, she gradually comes to accept her flaws and love herself. Thus, Sabine was a very relateable character because she embarks on a journey to be confident in herself and gradually changes throughout the novel.

    As for Sir Bennet, he didn’t really change much in this novel. I found him hard to like. He is very judgemental at times, and I didn’t like his actions in the beginning of using Sabine for her money. When he realizes that this is wrong, he makes a vow to not marry for her money. Thus, he seemed very honorable the whole time, and was more of a flat character. He was described as an all-around perfect hero. I wanted there to be more character development and felt that he was not really worthy of Sabine.

      Overall, this book is about choices, love, and redemption. The message of this book is to love yourself and to look past a person’s outward appearance. I thought Sabine’s storyline of people thinking she was a witch was more interesting than Sir Bennet’s storyline where his family are in debt. The story was very action-packed and fast-paced. I thought that there needed to be more development from the side characters. The one that I really adored was the grandmother, who did everything in her power to get Sabine and Sir Bennet together. I was glad to see the returning characters of Sir Derrick and Sir Collin, but I wanted the series previous leading ladies to make an appearance, which sadly they didn’t. Still, this was a sweet love story and a strong conclusion to the Uncertain Choice series. I recommend this story to anyone who likes unconventional love stories and those who want to see someone with inner beauty succeed in finding happiness.


Rating: 4 out of 5 stars