About the Book
If Molly Hatfield's purple attire doesn't blind you, her dazzling smile will. She doesn't just sing to the cattle, she puts on a whole show. If only she wasn't so stubborn about her brother's care. Or so distrustful of a certain handsome doctor...
There is nothing Molly wouldn't do for her teenaged brother, Donny. Blaming herself for the accident that left him wheel-chair bound, Molly has dedicated her life to his care. But in 1896, gainful employment for a woman is hard to come by. So when Molly learns that an eccentric rancher in Cactus Patch, Arizona, is looking for an heiress--someone to take over management of the ranch in exchange for future ownership--she jumps at the chance to provide a real home for her brother.
If she proves to have a knack for ranching and agrees to remain single for life, the ranch can be hers. Neither stipulation worries Molly. She's resourceful and hardworking. And she gave up dreams of marriage long ago when she dedicated her life to her brother's well-being.
However, Molly didn't bank on meeting Dr. Caleb Fairbanks, the town's handsome and charismatic young doctor, whose backfiring automobilie almost gets him killed when Molly thinks she's being shot at and fires back.
But it's how he is with her brother that really alarms her. Caleb sees past the wheelchair and genuinely likes Donny, but Molly fears he's putting unrealistic ideas into her brother's head. Falling in love with Caleb would threaten everything she's worked for, even her brother's future happiness. It'll take an act of congress to convince her otherwise--and maybe even a little help from above.
My Thoughts
This was a really good book. I read the first book in this series last year so as soon as I heard about this one I added it to my wish list.
Molly was a great heroine. I loved her devotion to her little brother and greatly admired her for all that she did to both protect and provide for him. It was also cool how she stuck it out at the ranch, even though it was difficult, because she knew it was the best chance for them to have a home. Caleb was probably my favorite character. He was very well written with just the right blend of gentle, kind, funny, and strong. I also loved Bertha (his horseless carriage) and Magic (his dog). I especially loved the relationship between Magic and Orbit the blind foal-it was so cute.
It was also fun to revisit Cactus Patch and the Last Chance Ranch and all the quirky characters there!
About the Author
Thrills, mystery, suspense, romance: Margaret penned it all. Nothing wrong with this--except Margaret happened to be writing for the church newsletter at the time. After making the church picnic read like a Grisham novel, her former pastor took her aside and said, "Maybe God's calling you to write fiction."
So that's what Margaret did. She's now a New York Times bestselling author and a Romance Writers of America RITA finalist with more than 25 novels to her credit. Her first non-fiction book "Grieving God's Way: the Lasting Path to Hope and Healing" has won much critical acclaim. She is currently working on the third book in her "Brides of Last Chance Ranch series."
Not bad for someone who flunked 8th grade English. Just don't ask her to diagram a sentence.
I received this book free from the publisher through the BookSneeze®.com book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own.