Patterns of Love is set in Iowa in 1897. The Linberg family has moved here from Sweden. Their daughter Inga is one of the girls we met arriving in Ellis Island. Giving selflessly of herself, Inga becomes the caretaker of Dirk Bridger's two young nieces and his ailing mother. What is most intriguing about this book is to witness Dirk's hardened heart begin to change and to experience the adjustment to a different country that Inga must endure. The reader cannot help but to be drawn into their house and the trials they are facing as tragedy pulls them together. I also loved the letters that Inga received from her friends Beth Wellington, from book one of this series, and from Mary Emeline Malone, who we learn will be the focus of book three. To get the updates on Beth who we grew to love in the last book gives you a sense of unity between these books. I thought this book was an easy read with a wonderful message.