Macgregor's Mail Order Bride

     In 1874, widow Mavis Miller travels to Sweetwater Kansas in response to a newspaper ad placed by rancher Mac Macgregor who is looking for a bride and housewife to run his home—where he lives with his three younger brothers. Mavis is not alone; best friend and confidante, Emily Johnston, keeps the reluctant and still grieving Mavis on point. And, if things work out for Mavis, Emily might just consider entering into marriage herself.
     There's only one problem: Mavis has immediate concerns about living and bearing children with the terse, taciturn Mac—even though Emily finds him infinitely attractive. Compound this with Mac's brother Jamie who could charm the birds from the trees and Mavis from her housework.
     And thus begins Macgregor's Mail Order Bride, Book 2 of Susan Payne's Sweetwater Series. Delightfully simple and simply delightful, we know those readers who were introduced to author Payne during an earlier visit to the Wild Women Blog with characters from Harrison Ranch, will enjoy watching Mavis and Emily first suffer from their conflicting feelings, then solve their conundrum of which is the “right” man to marry. 
     Just as with Harrison Ranch, this story is flavored, deliciously so, with details of preparing mouth-watering entrees and side dishes with an easy, almost effortless flair. Kudos to Ms. Payne for keeping this unique touch to the story.

On a scale of 1 – 5, Macgregor's Mail Order Bride deserves a 5.

Kat Henry Doran, Wild Women Reviews

Andrea Downing offers a Blast From the Past

Love: a word which needs to be said often

     1972 - Vietnam, the pill, upheaval, hippies.
     Wyoming rancher Cooper Byrnes, deeply attached to the land and his way of life, surprises everyone when he falls for vagabond hippie Cassie Halliday. Fascinated and baffled, he cannot comprehend his attraction—or say the words she wants to hear.
     Cassie finds Coop intriguingly different. As she keeps house for him and warms his bed at night, she admits to herself she loves him but she misinterprets Coop's inability to express his feelings.
     Parted, each continues to think of the other, but how can either of them reach out to say, "You were 'always on my mind'?"

Our Review:

          For those who “grew up” in the late sixties and early seventies—and have the tee shirts to prove it—it was a coming of age. Andrea Downing's entertaining and at times heart wrenching Always on my Mind, is a vivid reminder of just how the old days weren't always so good. 

          The difficulty single women encountered when trying to access quality health care, particularly when it came to choice in reproductive rights and single parenting; racial inequality and gay rights; war protests were only a few issues faced by those who now call themselves baby boomers. Thankfully, Downing doesn't let us forget the good, the bad and the ugly. 

          Thought provoking on a number of levels, Always on my Mind is heart breaking at times, sometimes anger producing, and offers an opportunity to sit back and think. Do not miss it. 
          On a scale of 1 to 5, Always on my MInd deserves a 6. 

     

Kat Henry Doran, Wild Women Reviews

J.L. Delosier's Con Me Once

Crime plays

. . .On the run for his life after witnessing a brutal mob hit, Frank Lambda, a inept superhero wannabe, meets mysterious Keira. She offers to turn him—and others like him—into real life heroes. Though Frank smells a con, he's desperate. With nowhere to turn, he joins Keira's misfit troupe of recruits for secret training under the guise of a Las Vegas comic con.

. . . Against a backdrop of a thousand spandex-clad cosplayers, Keira's true agenda—to steal millions from her mobster brother—is exposed. With their lives and a fortune at stake, Frank and his band of misfits learn how to fight wrongs while showing themselves the true meaning of heroism.

And so we have Con Me Once by J. L. Delosier, a mainstream thriller released on February 5, 2020 by the Wild Rose Press. Travel first to South Philly where Frank Lambda, aka Lambda Man, makes nightly rounds through the neighborhood, determined to keep neighbors and friends safe. Sometimes he's successful. Other times . . . not so much. And it's never an easy task when one decks himself out in a virulent green cape and itchy ski mask.

One of those 'friends' is Frank's roomie Rauch, a small time con artist who finds himself in deep trouble with a local mob boss. Frank is determined to save Rauch, the only one who was always there for him since they were two lonely misfits with nowhere to turn.

Playing savior takes the pair to Sin City USA for a comic con convention along with a troupe of wannabe heroes hiding in plain sight among a gazillion oddly dressed cosplayers. The fun goes to DefCon 2 in a blink.

Author Delosier's talent for writing sharp, wry dialogue leads to one laugh out loud moment after another. This warm and witty buddy story is one of a kind. Do not miss it.

On a scale of 1—5, Con Me Once earns a 6.

Kat Henry Doran, Wild Women Reviews

The Healing Summer by Liz Flaherty

     In Liz Flaherty's The Healing Summer, readers are treated to a contemporary friends to lovers story which runs the gamut of laugh out loud humor to heart-breaking sadness then back to gut-busting laughter.

     In the middle of the small southern town of Peacock, Tennessee, multiple and colorful characters abound, complete with the “southernisms” those of us who grew up in a small town will remember well. Each one, in their own way, add their own take on the goals, motivation and conflicts of heart surgeon Steven Elliot and Carol Whitney, of The Clip Joint fame. On top of all that, the author's talent for creating honest and realistic snappy dialogue is yet another treat.

     This story proves you really can go home again—and find a forever love. Do not miss this delightful story!

     On a scale of 1 – 5, The Healing Summer deserves a 6.

Kat Henry Doran, Wild Women Reviews