“East to West (Mail Order Bride Steamy Western Romance”

by Lolita London

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Driven to escape a painful loss, and to find the life of love and passion she yearns for, Mary Gray leaves Boston on a journey that will end with her being a mail order bride…or will it?

Arriving at her destination, Mary is met not by Tom Addison, her groom-to-be, but instead by his mother, Jenny, and told meeting Tom, and subsequently their wedding, would be postponed…until after the crops were harvested. While my heart broke for poor Mary and I thought evil, mean thoughts about Jenny’s husband, James, and the importance of the annual crops was not lost on me – I found this simply hilarious!

I felt for Mary during her journey to find shelter and employment, but this is also when two great characters – Mrs. Lester and Annie Townsend are introduced. All alone in the world – and “abandoned”…until the crops are in *TeeHee!* these two strong, caring women are exactly what Mary needed to help keep the panic from settling in.

Mary is taken aback when she finds herself attracted to her newest…and oldest student. She feels guilty and unfaithful to her still absent husband to be, but the naive, inexperienced, lonely young woman, spurred on by the free-spirited Annie, gives in to temptation and the rakish ‘Tom’ introduces Mary to a world of intimacy she never knew existed.

Tom and Mary are cute and likeable. They’re at the age where they’re ready to speak out and speak up…almost. James Addison is…ugh! I wanted to “reach out and touch him” several times! He was the biggest mystery to me. I would have liked to learned more about him and what changed him (and when) from being the man Jenny married. But then, it’s Mary and Tom’s story, right? LOL! Jenny Addison, while seeming beat down and pathetic in the beginning, had me cheering before the story was over! Readers obviously get to witness Jenny getting her groove back! LOL!

Is this a historical romance as far as wording and phrasing is concerned? No. Oh well, I’m over it. But, it is an entertaining, well-written melodrama with developed characters and plot that will have your emotions running the gamut from sympathy to laughter. Supporting characters are spot on and memorable.

This is the first book I’ve read from this author, and I received an ARC-copy in exchange for an honest review, but I’m sure I’ll be reading more of her work.