A marriage of convenience between laundress and cook Grace Martin and the innkeeper may lead to love.

A J Cronin was commissioned by The American Weekly to write a Christmas story for the December 21st issue in 1958. His vision for the story is described in his letter of acceptance: “It came to me very strongly that to achieve the highest and most profoundly touching results I should go back to the first Christmas of all and create a vivid reconstruction of the effects of the birth of the Child upon certain characters, notably the wife of the innkeeper where no room was found for Mary and Joseph. The title of the story would be The Innkeper’s Wife, for she, as I imagine her, is the central human character—a good and tender-hearted woman, childless herself, and bullied by an assertive and miserly husband.” Here now is the alternative story of Christmas, narrated with great skill, by the author of The Citadel, Hatter’s Castle and The Stars Look Down

Ciro and Jacob were innkeepers when Emperor Caesar Augustus decreed that a census be taken of the whole Roman Empire. It happened that their Inn was in Bethlehem, where a young couple named Joseph and Mary were to register. The Innkeeper's Wife encapsulates the Christmas story, as it tells about relationships that were born on the same night Mary delivered her first child, Jesus. This is the ongoing tale about Ciro and Jacob who gave shelter to Joseph and Mary though their Inn was overflowing and beyond full. It is story of two people as they loved and cared for a very special family. Maritie Wellbrock graduated from Beaver College with a major in religious education. She married Anton, who became a pastor later in life. She has been with him to India on short-term mission work. For years their home has been opened to people from many places for ministry, prayer, teaching and outreach. Maritie has the gift of hospitality, and sometimes thinks of herself as the innkeeper's wife

One night angels came to some shepherds and announced that a very special baby was born. The shepherds who were the first to know rushed by an inn and woke the innkeeper's wife. She was so upset to be awakened by such an ordinary event that she scolded the shepherds for disturbing her! But what news they had! She changed her mind when she realized how special this baby was.

Only two weeks from his crucifixion, Jesus has stopped in Bethlehem. He has returned to visit someone important—the innkeeper who made a place for Mary and Joseph the night he was born. But his greater purpose in coming is to pay a debt. What did it cost to house the Son of God? John Piper shares a tale of what might have been through the story-poem of an innkeeper whose life was forever altered by the arrival of the Son of God. Ponder the sacrifice that was made that night. Celebrate Jesus's birth and the power of his resurrection. And encounter the hope his life gives you for today—and for eternity. This imaginative story has been redesigned and makes a great gift for families.

The Innkeepers Wife is a story that came as a vision to the author. Follow her as she imagines what it must have been like inside the inn with no room. Christ was born that night as a homeless child. Someone took his family in.

First Series from Bestselling Author Julie Klassen! The lifeblood of the Wiltshire village of Ivy Hill is its coaching inn, The Bell. But when the innkeeper dies suddenly, his genteel wife, Jane Bell, becomes the reluctant owner. Jane has no notion of how to run a business. However, with the town's livelihood at stake and a large loan due, she must find a way to bring new life to the inn. Despite their strained relationship, Jane turns to her resentful mother-in-law, Thora, for help. Formerly mistress of The Bell, Thora is struggling to find her place in the world. As she and Jane work together, they form a measure of trust, and Thora's wounded heart begins to heal. When she encounters two men from her past, she sees them--and her future--in a different light. With pressure mounting from the bank, Jane employs innovative methods to turn the inn around, and puzzles over the intentions of several men who seem to have a vested interest in the place. Will her efforts be enough to save The Bell? And will Thora embrace the possibility of a second chance at love?