Rugged characters, lawlessness, and the spare life of the frontier can make for compelling reading in a well-written Western. I can always soak up a good adventure tale or an emotional tale of love found amidst hardship. Unfortunately, Audrey and the Maverick was no such thing. A trainwreck almost from start to finish, I found…
Texas Wedding for Their Baby’s Sake by Kathryn Albright is one novel where a reviewer doesn’t need to worry about spoilers. In essence, the novel’s entire plot is summarized in its title, leaving very little to a reader’s imagination. Whoever comes up with such a title? Right now, for the sake of the review, let’s…
One of the reasons I don’t always like inspirationals is that the spiritual element seems forced, inauthentic, or overdone. In When Love Blooms by Robin Lee Hatcher, this wasn’t the case at all. The religious tones of the book are actually at times more believable than the romance. Emily Harris is a privileged young woman…
The plot of Carolyn Davidson’s Eden isn’t bad. The characters, though, pushed it into the C rage of grading. And then it was the writing that brought it down to the D. Katie spent years being mistreated and abused by her “guardians,” a family that took her in as a charity case and used her…
Note to self: Step away from the Brava westerns. The Education of Madeline is the second one I’ve read in recent months, and it’s as disastrous as the first. I’m starting to get the impression that readers who want something more than a sexual checklist should look elsewhere for their entertainment. Madeline Brewster is a…
I love adventure, and I supplement my historicals with plenty of romantic suspense and urban fantasy. However, there’s something about Christmas that makes me crave an old-fashioned emotional romance. I don’t need spies, secret alliances, or things that go bump in the night; a dashing hero, a strong heroine, and a story filled with sweet…
Reading Leaving Whiskey Bend I was hoping for a solid American Western as a break from the norm. Unfortunately for me, I found an American Western with the most ridiculous characters I think I’ve ever read, or ever want to read. Hallie Wolcott left her home and parents years ago to travel west alone to…
Tall, Dark, and Texan is the latest installment in Jodi Thomas’ Whispering Pines series. I haven’t read the previous books, but this worked as a stand-alone. Set in 1850s Texas, I found it a gripping, emotional read, and was left wondering why I haven’t read more historical romances set in the American west. Jessie Barton…
A couple of times a year, I read a book that so epitomizes a certain adjective that it could be reviewed in a single word. Promises Reveal is one of those books, and the mot juste is “convoluted”. I will, of course, extend the review beyond my single word and explain why. I’ll start by…
War romances have a tension and urgency to them not generally found in other settings. Something about the passion of the fight and the very real chance that events may separate the lovers can give a love story an unusally vivid quality. Though filled with hardship and grim events, at their best these stories also…
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