Mail Order Bride

I really liked this book. A modern mail order bride story between Julianne and Blake. There is also another love story between Shell, Blake's son, and Loni. I thought the author did a great job with both of these and how their stories and lives intertwined - a lot of authors can't pull this off. Such a sweet romance that starts off as a marriage of convenience but turns to friendship and then love. So glad they actually communicated. This one leaves you with a good feeling and hated to see it end.

This is a sweet contemporary western romance, with quite a bit of angst. It’s a story not only about two very opposite strangers joining forces each with their own goal, but also about families created out of necessity and in the end hoping to find happiness. Julianne , a single woman living in NYC and working in an ad agency, has had a health scare and leaves that life when she answers an ad from a rancher seeking a wife. Blake, a cowboy to the core, needs a wife and an heir in order to inherit the family ranch. Needless to say, the move has not been smooth. One is taciturn, the other one is filled with hope of a home and a new life. Secrets are kept and doubts make them wonder what the future holds for them. Feelings not expressed , causes a riff . Will they ever get their HEA? Add to this the sub-plot involving Blake’s son, Shell, and his ex-girlfriend Loni, and you have an entertaining book filled with complex characters. A reminder that sometimes what we embrace in life and makes us happy, isn’t always what we wish for. I was gifted a copy of this book. The opinions expressed are solely my own.

Mail Order Bride took a step back in time and gave it a modern twist. How can something that seems as archaic as a Mail Order Bride end up becoming so much more? Barbara McMahon turns complicated into simple with a tale of risky choices and second chances that becomes a poignant story of love, life and hope. Blake and Julianne discover a blessing in disguise and so did I.