Short-Straw Bride by Karen Witemeyer

Short-Straw Bride by Karen Witemeyer. BethanyHouse, 2012. 363p. (9780764209659)

I could not wait to read this book. So much so that I read the first 70 or so pages on Google books and then went to Barnes and Nobel the next day and sat on the floor for two hours finishing the story. They had the AC set way to low and I was freezing, but it was well worth it.

Turns out I didn’t need to freeze in Barnes and Nobel because a few weeks later I received a copy from Bethany House to review. That was last June or July and my delay in writing and posting this review has nothing to do with what I think of the book. So if you haven’t read this yet, let this book review remind you of a great summer read that you missed.

Back Cover:

Four brothers. Four straws. One bride.

No one steps on Archer land. Not if they value their life. But when Meredith Hayes overhears a plot to burn the Archer brothers off their ranch, a long-standing debt compels her to take the risk.

Years of constant vigilance harden a man. Yet when Travis Archer comes across a female trespasser with the same vivid blue eyes as the courageous young girl he once aided, he can’t bring himself to send her away. And when an act of sacrifice leaves her injured and her reputation in shreds, gratitude and guilt prompt him to attempt to rescue her once again.

Despite the fact that Travis is no longer the gallant youth Meredith once dreamed about, she vows to stand by his side. But will love ever be hers? Or will Travis always see her as merely a short-straw bride?

My Review:

This isn’t your typical marriage-of-convenience story where the couple is in dire straits (think Love Comes Softly) or a mail-order-bride tale. Instead both Meredith and Travis secretly love or think highly of the other but are too prideful or misguided to acknowledge their feelings to the other.

Nor are they isolated or semi-isolated. Travis’ three brothers live in the house, two temporary farm workers are old friends of Meredith’s father, and a tradesman stops by with deliveries every few months.

Another difference is that the story is not solely about the couple falling in love and overcoming their personal obstacles. Instead, while that still is a part of the tale, there is more focus on what brought them together in the first place: the threat against the Archer’s farm that Meredith warned them against.

This book is full of good laughs - or if you're reading it in Barnes & Noble and can't laugh out loud, it'll make you smile like crazy. One lady saw me sitting on the floor with a big grin on my face and asked what I was reading. :-)

There is a fair amount of kissing – after all Meredith and Travis are a married couple in the process of figuring out that they are falling in love (hope that’s not a spoiler for you…). But the romance is sweetly and sincerely written.

Go read it! Find it at a library near you; Buy it from Amazon; Buy itfrom B&N; Buy it from ChristianBooks

Disclosure: I received this book for free from the publisher for review purposes. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission.

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