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The Earl's Mistaken Bride by Abby Gaines

3/22/2012

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The Earl's Mistaken Bride
by Abby Gaines,
Book 1 The Parson's Daughters,
Love Inspired Historical, Dec 2011

The Earl’s Mistaken Bride is the most delightful Regency I’ve ever read. My senses tingled as I perused the back cover. Anticipation grew upon reading the front teaser blurb. And my imagination soared as I delved into a world where a season wasn’t related to the weather and a ton didn’t refer to a measurement. This is not my normal Old West fare, yet Abby Gaines drew me in with fascinating fleshed out characters trying to lead normal lives in a society most of us can’t even imagine. 
 
My anticipation for this book stems from the fact that it’s along the lines of a mail-order bride or arranged marriage story where the groom and bride don’t meet until the wedding is imminent. They must learn to put aside petty grievances and become respectful partners under strenuous circumstances. What a way to start a marriage, but hopefully, love will follow.  
  
However, The Earl’s Mistaken Bride differs from the above story lines in that the bride and groom know who they’re to marry and they both agree. Yet even with this knowledge, the groom is shocked when he lifts his new wife’s wedding veil. Surprise! She’s not the one he chose. Does this sound confusing? Well, let me explain… 
 
Lord Marcus Brookstone’s besotted grandfather allowed the Spenford estates to fall into disrepair when he neglected his duty and put all his attention on his wife. Marcus’ father reversed the damages expounding to Marcus that love was their enemy. He made Marcus put aside his childhood friend, a common gamekeeper’s son, and instilled in him the theory of class distinction. As the future earl, Marcus was to set himself apart from everyone except those of his class. He was not to claim love, friendship and other vices, concentrating solely on unemotional pursuits pertaining to the Spenford estate. Above all, he must never let his deportment flag or do anything to incite the tiniest scandal. 
 
Marcus did not want to marry lest he be tempted to fall in love with his wife. Besotted men make fools of themselves. They throw pride and deportment by the wayside and care not what others think of them. They forget who they are and everything they stand for. That is Marcus’s greatest fear. 
 
There’s only one person he shows affection for and that’s his mother. He’s so stricken when it appears she may die, he makes a deal with God… Marcus will find a wife to give his mother peace and in return, God will heal her.  
 
Who’s he going to marry? By rights, he should marry someone of equal  birth, a woman of great beauty who looks and acts like a countess. But all the women in his circle think only of wealth and status… of spending their wealth to draw attention to themselves. Certainly they’d make demands on him. Maybe even tempt him into falling in love. And that would be the ruin of them all! Marcus cannot go that route.
 
Instead, he goes back to his country estate knowing the parish reverend has five virtuous daughters—a necessary trait for a countess—he remembers that two of them are great beauties. He can’t remember their names, but that is a minor detail and easy to discover. On the way through the village, he finds one of the reverend’s daughters fending off a suitor. She’s quite beautiful and Marcus is instantly attracted. If he has to look at a wife across the table, she may as well be comely. In reply to his query, she coyly says her name is  Constance Somerton. She requests that he not report their meeting to her father  because she’s not supposed to be down in the village. Marcus is taken with her flirtatious ways and promises not to say anything. Why would he? His problem is solved… she’s the perfect Countess of Spenford.  
 
When the reverend asks Constance if she’s willing to marry the Earl, she thinks back to three years earlier when he helped her save a puppy in distress. She fell in love with him at the time and although she hasn’t seen him since, he obviously feels the same if he’s specifically asked for her hand. Elated that God has chosen to bless her for her faith in His guiding hand, she eagerly waits for her wedding day. 
 
The time has come. The reverend has pronounced them man and wife. Giddy with excitement, Constance can barely contain herself yet she waits in breathless anticipation to look once more upon her husband’s handsome face. He moves closer to her. He grasps her veil. He lifts it over her head...

Surprised and confused, Marcus stares down at his new wife. She isn’t the girl he met down in the village at all. She’s plain and angular where only beauty will do. She looks nothing like a countess when being a proper countess counts for everything! And as they ride off in their coach toward their new life together, he leaves her huddled in a corner alone. Because there are two things that he’s sure of… first, he kept his part of the bargain, so his mother  will live. And second, he doesn’t know what game his new wife is playing, but at least with her conniving nature and plain face, he isn’t in any danger of falling in love. 
 
Poor misguided Marcus and Constance with her dashed dreams. This marriage is going to take a lot of work. 
 
Read an excerpt…

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Abby Gaines, 2011 RWA New York
As a Harlequin SuperRomance novelist, Abby Gaines knows how to crank the tension out and she does it throughout the book. My emotions kept me glued to the pages, but the conflict kept me turning them. Like all happily-ever-afters, I breathed a sigh of relief at the end, but was sad it was over. The snappy dialogue and attention to detail would have kept me entertained for twice as long. I can’t wait for Abby Gaines's next novel. 
  
Disclaimer: I did not get this book for free... I paid full price for it and believe it's worth every cent.

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The Brides of Simpson Creek series by Laurie Kingery

9/18/2011

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The Brides of Simpson Creek series
by Laurie Kingery
Love Inspired Historicals

I want to bring your attention to The Brides of Simpson Creek series created by Laurie Kingery and published by Love Inspired Historical. Laurie has taken the mail order bride plot and flipped it upside down to create a series based on mail order grooms.

This series fascinated me from the moment I heard about it. I mean, we’re all familiar with the destitute or despairing mail order brides who choose to start a new life with a stranger in order to escape their old one. Let’s face it, in the 19th century, there wasn’t much for a woman to choose from if she didn’t have money to do what she wanted.

But why on earth would a man choose to be a mail order groom?

Laurie’s reasoning in the Brides of Simpson Creek is sound and believable. It’s 1865 Texas and the war is over. So many men and boys were lost in the fighting with some towns hit hard than the rest. So it is the case in Simpson Creek. Men are in short supply and almost a dozen young women of marrying age want a family of their own. Without the men, the town won’t survive. When one enterprising young lady suggests they place an ad for husbands, the idea doesn’t set well with everyone, but the ones looking to get married are all for it. And so The Simpson Creek Society for the Promotion of Marriage aka The Spinster’s Club is born. An ad is submitted to the Houston Telegraph with explicit instructions for marriage-minded bachelors to write back and wait for an invitation before appearing in town. With business taken care of, the ladies start checking the post office. It would be nice if men did what they were told, right?

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Book 1 – Mail Order Cowboy

Milly Matthews and her sister, Sarah, are trying to protect their ranch from Indians, rustlers and unruly neighbors. Milly is also the one who thought up the Spinster’s Club. She wants a man she can love and trust to help her run the ranch. And she’s adamant that men who reply to the ad should follow the rules and not just show up in town without an invite.

British Cavalry officer, Nicholas Brookfield isn’t really interested in finding a wife and settling down in Simpson Creek. He’s on his way to a job at the British Embassy, but after reading the ad where ladies were looking for husbands, he just has to come take a look – without writing of his intentions. He just shows up in the middle of a Spinster Club meeting and once he sees Milly, he's a goner. 

Brave, spunky heroine vs dashing, protective hero. I thoroughly enjoyed this book.

Foreshadow: Throughout this book, Milly’s sister, Sarah had one crippling fear – that one of the marriage-minded bachelors would be a Yankee and try to hide it. By the time I finished Mail Order Cowboy and was ready for Book 2, I was yearning for the heroine to be Sarah and the man who comes calling to be a Yankee. Laurie did not disappoint me.

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Book 2: The Doctor Takes a Wife

Sarah Matthews takes over the running of the Spinster Club when Milly marries. Sarah is still mourning her fiancé who never returned from the war – most likely shot by a Yankee. She loathes Yankees. When a badly-needed doctor answers the ad, Sarah takes on the task of corresponding with him. During their correspondence, Sarah’s interest is sparked. Her attraction intensifies the first time she sets eyes on Nolan – until he opens his mouth and his words have a flat, nasal accent! Betrayed by the lying Yankee, she passes him off to the Spinster's Club.

Dr. Nolan Walker is a widower who wore the blue during the war, but treated men of all colors. He wants to settle down where no one else cares either. Nolan doesn’t want to choose another member of the Club, he wants the woman he fell for through the letters, and he’ll wait until she’s ready to accept him. But will Nolan’s dream come true when Sarah’s prayers are answered and she has to choose?

Brave, misguided heroine vs honorable, lonely hero. This book sent me on a rollercoaster of emotions, but what I liked best was the snappy interplay between Sarah and Nolan.

Foreshadow: Sarah’s housemate is Prissy Gilmore, the new chairwoman of the Spinster’s Club. Sarah is hoping Prissy will meet someone this time. But in the background of this book is Caroline who lost her fiancé in Book 1 and feels her life is over. I really want to read Caroline’s story.

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Book 3 The Sheriff’s Sweetheart

Prissy Gilmore, the mayor’s daughter, is easily attracted to handsome men so when she sets her cap for the new sheriff the minute she lays eyes on him, she has a hard time proving he’s really the one for her. But no man could be better for her than the honorable sheriff who only wants to take care of her and protect her town.

Sam Bishop and his dog are on the run and need a place to lay low. When Sam spots an ad for marriage-minded bachelors, he heads to Simpson Creek intent on finding a job and attracting a rich wife to cover his gambling problems. It’s his lucky day when he rides into town and within minutes of each other, gets a job as sheriff and meets the mayor’s attractive daughter. After awhile, Sam wishes he hadn’t lied about his credentials and wants to come clean with Prissy. But can he come clean with her and keep her love before his past catches up to him?

Devoted, impetuous heroine vs dishonest, loyal hero. At first, this hero made me mad. I understood why he did things, but that didn’t explain his continued dishonesty. Yet, Laurie took this ‘bad boy’ and turned him into a worthy hero.

Foreshadow: Caroline applies for the town's schoolmarm job. If she can’t have a family of her own, she’ll teach other people’s children. Oh Laurie – why haven’t you written a story for Caroline?

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Book 4 The Rancher's Courtship

Guess what? I was over at Laurie’s website the other day and she has the 4th book in the Brides of Simpson Creek coming out in November and yes, the book is finally Caroline’s story. The Rancher’s Courtship has Caroline working as the town schoolteacher when her deceased fiancé’s brother, Jack, shows up with twin six-year-old girls and a herd of cattle. Jack is unaware of his brother’s demise and had planned to leave his daughters with the newlyweds while he finished his cattle drive. Oh, this sounds like another good one from Laurie Kingery although I’m not sure it classifies as a mail order groom story. Of course I’ll have to read it to be certain, though.


I sure hope Laurie will be at the ACFW conference in St Louis this coming week because I’d personally like to tell her how much I’m enjoying this series, as well as find out more about Book 5 scheduled for Jul 2012 according to her website.

Good twist on an old theme, Laurie. I'm enjoying this series immensely.

You can find out more about this Texas-born author at http://www.lauriekingery.com/index.html


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    What is a book?

    A book is an adventure I'd love to take but know I never will. It can make me feel everything is right in the world. And it can make me want to throw it across the room regardless of what it knocks over. A book can make me laugh and cry. It makes me realize no matter what I'm going through, someone somewhere is in a much worse predicament
    than me. 
    My all-time favourite book
     is the Book of Ruth 
    in the Bible.
    Anita Mae Draper

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