Book Review Cowboy Creek Christmas by Cheryl St.John and Sherri Shackelford

Cowboy Creek Christmas

Love Inspired Historical

8 November 2016

Mistletoe Reunion by Cheryl St.John 
When Marlys Boyd moves West hoping to find acceptance for her doctoring skills, she's surprised to find her former fiancé, Sam Mason, running the local newspaper. And with the ladies in town determined to make a match of the doctor and the single father, she's not sure she can resist building the family they once dreamed of.

Mistletoe Bride by Sherri Shackelford 
Pregnant by a man who betrayed her trust, a mail-order marriage is Beatrix Haas's only hope. But when she arrives in Cowboy Creek and learns her intended groom has died, she needs a new daddy for the baby that's coming right away. Blacksmith Colton Werner offers the mother and child the protection of his name, but can their marriage of convenience ever lead to true love?




My Review.
This book is set in Cowboy Creek. It follows three books in a continuum all about mail order brides. These two novellas are stand alone stories but do include characters from previous books. Both novellas are written by authors who wrote in the original series. (I haven't read the previous three books yet but had no problem following the stories)

Mistletoe Reunion by Cheryl St John

This book is features Marlys who is a doctor of alternative medicine and a woman who has moved west hoping she will be accepted. Sam has also moved west to Cowboy creek to run the newspaper with his son. They knew each other previously where Marlys broke off an engagement. I enjoyed the story and how the characters interacted. Throw in a young son who is withdrawn and you have the making of a good story. In fact he stole the story at times. I enjoyed how the story was written and now want to read the first three books.

Mistletoe Bride by Sherri Shackleford

This story is about Beatrix who arrives from Austria heavily pregnant to meet her mail order groom only to find he has been killed and she is about to have her child. She is in a bad way and has trouble speaking English. Enter Colton who can speak German although slowly and is able to translate for her. He also offers to marry her when things are looking bad to give them both his name and protection. We learn Beatrix's story early on but Colton also has some issues he needs to deal with and has been dealing with. I can understand how he feels and why but at the same time wanted him to realise things were not all he thought they were. Sherri has done a good job showing how things that happen to us often affect our thinking and actions long after an incident happens.

If you enjoy Historical romance with a touch of Christmas these novellas are for you.

Cindy Helms - Who's New - Virtual Book Tour

Children’s Book / Picture Story Book Date Published: April 14, 2016 Birdie and his friends are back! All of Birdie's friends in the town of Ponderville are in for a treat. Someone new is moving to Ponderville! In this second picture book by Cindy Helms, everyone is curious to see who could possibly be their new neighbor.   Part mystery and part matching game, Birdie and his friends track down and reveal “Who's New” with intriguing shapes leading the way.  How well the newcomer will fit in? Will Ponderville be welcoming?   Cindy Helms is an artist based out of Centennial, CO. She has two sons and two cats. She loves road trips, camping, and being around friends. Contact Information Goodreads: http://bit.ly/1Uz0TN4 Web: http://www.cindyhelms.com Purchase Links Amazon: http://amzn.to/1UYPNgl My Review: This is a cute book. The pictures are well done and bright and colourful. In the book we are trying to see who the new person is by trying to match a shape. Children will have fun working out who it is. A good book to give to a child as a present.

Book Review: Cowgirl in the Kitchen by Julie Jarnagin

Serenade Books (June 30, 2016)

Just as she's about to make her dream come true, disaster strikes. The only way she can get back in the saddle is to strike a bargain—with a man her family despises.

Jentry Lawson's dream of becoming a world-class barrel racer is about to happen—until she and her horse are injured in a terrible accident. Forced to move back home to Texas to recuperate, her Dallas-based brother makes her an offer she can't refuse. He needs someone he can trust to oversee the renovation and grand opening of his new restaurant. If she'll take that on, he'll finance her return to the arena. It doesn't take Jentry long to discover she bit off more than she can chew. Swallowing her pride, she asks for help from Gavin Easton—a man her brother despises. But he's the one person who can make the restaurant succeed.

People in Glover never thought Gavin Easton would amount to anything. Ever since his own restaurant in town burned down, he's taken odd jobs to provide for his niece, whom he is raising alone. When beautiful and stubborn Jentry offers him the perfect job, his first reaction is to turn her down flat. No way he's going to do anything to help her brother! But there's more at stake than his pride. Can he trust his future to the woman whose brother tried to ruin his reputation—and his life?

Besides, how can he manage a restaurant, when he can't manage his heart?

My Review:

Firstly thanks to the publisher for my review copy for an honest review.

I enjoyed this book. It is the final book in a series but it can also be read as a stand alone book. I haven't read the others and didn't feel I was lost or confused. 

Jentry is back home after a accident barrel racing and is now trying to get a new restaurant owned by her brother and herself ready to open. She needs a manager and wants to hire Gavin who many in the town including her brother have labelled a trouble maker. Gavin is also raising his adorable niece and trying to make a life for them. I enjoyed how this story played out. We see Jentry's feelings of not being good enough or living up to her brothers expectations and we also see Gavin feeling that he will never measure up to the towns peoples expectations. Seeing why they feel this way and what happens was good to see. What I also enjoyed was the waiting to find out exactly why Jentry's brother didn't trust or like him.

I enjoyed this book and would happily read others in the series and by this author. 

Book Review Mail Order Surprise by Lucy Thompson

Forget Me Not Romances, a division of Winged Publications (April 19, 2016)

 

Blurb

Colorado, 1881. Lydia Walsh is on the run. The quiet rancher she marries and expected to find safety and protection with turns out to have three siblings, next to nothing to live on, and is a crack shot who may or may not be one of the states best cattle rustlers.

Beau Harding wants to keep his family together and do the right thing by them. His mail order bride comes with her own set of baggage: two more mouths to feed and empty hearts begging him to fill. The job he took for some quick money gets him thrown in jail for rustling, and then to clear his name he takes on another job--and learns that his wife may have been the one plotting his family’s downfall all along.

Review

Firstly thanks to Lucy for my copy for an honest review.

I have to say wow what a great debut novel by Australian writer Lucy Thompson. I was hooked from the beginning. We start with Lydia and her two children running for a train trying to avoid someone following her. She is off to become a mail order bride in the hopes of safety and a new life. What happens when she arrives is interesting. She finds Beau has left a few things out of the letters he wrote her like siblings.

I love the different twist and turns in the book. I really felt for Lydia I could feel her pain and wanted to know what was going to happen as I was reading. There were times I just needed to keep reading to find out what was going to happen next. Lucy had me on the edge of my seat several times. This is an excellent debut noveI and if you like Mary Coneally's books you will enjoy this story. I eagerly await the next book in the series.