Men are optional. That’s the credo Emma Chandler’s suffragette aunts preached and why she started a successful women’s colony in Harper’s Station, Texas. But when an unknown assailant tries repeatedly to drive them out, Emma admits they might need a man after all. A man who can fight–and she knows just the one.
Malachi Shaw finally earned the respect he craved by becoming an explosives expert for the railroad. Yet when Emma’s plea arrives, he bolts to Harper’s Station to repay the girl who once saved his life. Only she’s not a girl any longer. She’s a woman with a mind of her own and a smile that makes a man imagine a future he doesn’t deserve.
As the danger intensifies, old feelings grow and deepen, but Emma and Mal will need more than love to survive.
Review
Karen Witemeyer writes some of the best historical romance novels out there. My thoughts:
What I liked:
Malachi. He has a harsh past, but he overcomes it. He is also the true epitome of a western hero. He’s there when he’s needed. He knows his way around a gun. He’s not afraid of anything. He’s gruff and tough, but a teddy bear to those he loves.
Emma. I’m not going to lie, when I first read the premise of this book I was nervous. I thought Emma would be a fierce feminist that fit current times more than historical times. This is not the case. Emma is amazing from her the first time you meet her in the book and she manages to stay that way until the book is over.
The romance. It’s a little different than most romance novels because Malachi and Emma have a history…and it’s a positive one. I’ll admit that what keeps them from getting together right away is a bit lame, but there’s so much going on around them, that neither the characters nor you have time to focus on that reason.
The secondary characters. I enjoyed learning and meeting all the women in Emma’s town.
Suspense. I figured it out! But it was fun doing so, and definitely kept me invested.
Spiritually, the novel shows what love in action looks like as well as trusting God in tough times.
What I didn’t like:
There was nothing specific about this book that I didn’t like, but I will admit that something about it didn’t make it as memorable as her other books.
Romantic Scale: 8
Overall, a very cute and enjoyable book.
**I received a copy from Netgalley. My opinion was not affected in anyway.**
remaininhislove 