Stranger Within the Gates is an unusual book with an unsual ending.
From the Grosset & Dunlap jacket flap:
"Mary Garland and her three young children Stan, Fae and Sylvia were at breakfast just one week before Christmas when the letter arrived from Rex, an older son, saying he was married and would bring his bride home for Christmas. How could they bear to make this stranger welcome...
How could Rex, only eighteen, have married and not let them know beforehand—there must be something wrong? But even in their hurt dismay they determine to make full use of their strong faith and keep their hearts open."