kindle

On My Kindle ~ Stuck Together by Mary Connealy

/ Dora Hiers / 3 Comments
Purchase Link

When a lawman who values order gets stuck with a feisty crusader who likes to stir things up, there’s going to be trouble in Texas! 

Tina Cahill, newly arrived from the East, is determined to get the saloon in Broken Wheel, Texas, closed for good. To that end, she pickets outside the place every afternoon. Unfortunately, so far no one has paid any attention.

Vince Yates earned the nickname “Invincible Vince” because of his reputation for letting absolutely nothing stop him. Not his tyrant of a father. Nor the injuries he suffered in the Civil War. Nor the fact that he is Broken Wheel’s only attorney and sheriff yet has no law degree.

But Vince is about to face his biggest challenge yet: his past has just caught up with him. His father, mother, and the sister he didn’t know he had show up in Broken Wheel without warning. His father is still a schemer. His mother is suffering signs of dementia. And his surprise sister immediately falls for one of Vince’s best friends. Vince has a lot of people to take care of, and Tina doesn’t approve of how he’s handling any of them. But with almost all the other men in town married off, Vince finds himself stuck with feisty Tina over and over again. Of course, Tina is the prettiest woman he’s ever seen, so if he could just get her to give up her causes, he might go ahead and propose. But he’s got one more surprise coming his way: Tina’s picketing at the saloon has revealed a dark secret that could put everyone Vince loves in danger.

Sharing my thoughts~

There are only a handful of historical authors whose books I automatically snatch up, and Connealy, queen of romantic comedy with cowboys, is one of them. She had me chuckling from the very first scene, a wild saloon brawl instigated by the heroine. Tina, a woman who’s been abandoned for most of her life, is always thinking of causes to fight for, and she’s determined to shut down the saloon by picketing. As much as she annoys Vince, a self-acclaimed lawyer and a not-wannabe town-appointed sheriff, he can’t help but appreciate her spunkiness. 

Broken Wheel was a north Texas town set smack-dab in the middle of Indian Territory. Only idiots lived here, and idiots rarely needed a lawyer. Vince figured it was only fair to count himself and all of his friends among the idiots.


Vince hightailed it away from his childhood home after he healed from the war, escaping a mother with dementia and a tyrant father. But that doesn’t last long and Invincible Vince finds himself caretaker for his mother and a sister he never knew existed. As much as he might enjoy a lasting relationship with Tina, Vince recognizes that it’s only a matter of time before it becomes apparent which parent he’ll take after, and he refuses to pass either of those genes down to a child or to saddle his wife with a tyrant or a man who can’t remember her name. For me, how and when Vince finally resolves this issue seemed hasty and a bit rushed. But then, he was tracking down a…well, I won’t spoil your reading pleasure. 🙂

We met Vince and Tina in the second book in the Trouble in Texas series, Fired Up, where the fireworks were already sparking between these two. You can read my review here. All of the Trouble in Texas books can be read as stand alones, but really, why not scoop them up and settle in for a few laughs? With subtle spiritual references, both mainstream and inspirational romance lovers will enjoy Stuck Together.

Disclaimer: Sending a big thank you to Bethany House Publishers and NetGalley for allowing me the privilege of reviewing Stuck Together and for the free copy I received in exchange for my fair and unbiased review. This opinion is my own, and I received no compensation.

Have you read A BRIDE FOR KEEPS by Melissa Jagears?

/ Dora Hiers
Purchase Link

About the book~
Everett Cline will never humiliate himself by seeking a mail-order bride. Not again. He’s already been jilted by three mail-order brides and figures a wife just isn’t in his future. However, a well-meaning neighbor hasn’t given up on seeing him settled, so she goes behind his back to bring yet another woman to town for him.

Julia Lockwood has never been anything more than a pretty pawn for her father or a business acquisition for her former fiance. A mail-order marriage in faraway Kansas is a last resort, but she’ll do anything to leave her life in Massachusetts and the heartbreak she’s experienced there.

Although Everett doesn’t see how a beautiful, cultured woman like Julia could be happy sharing his simple life, he could really use a helpmate on his homestead. Determined to prove she’s more than just a pretty face, Julia agrees to a marriage in name only. Faced with the harsh realities of life on the prairie and hesitant to explore the tentative feelings growing between them, can Everett and Julia ever let each other in long enough to fall in love?

Sharing my thoughts~
Wow! A Bride for Keeps is one of those books that I wondered if the hero and heroine would actually find their happily ever after!

Poor Everett. Mail order brides never chose him, and he’d given up after four tries. So when his too-helpful neighbor persuaded her friend Julia to travel all the way from Boston to wed, Everett practically ignored her. Not only is he scared of rejection, but she’s so beautiful. She’d never make it through a Kansas winter, and he doesn’t want to give the town more reason for gossip.

Julia Lockwood’s father and ex-fiance were only concerned about her good looks, and used her as a commodity, with no regard for love or her feelings. When she arrived in Kansas, Everett’s features remind her of her ex-fiance, almost frightening her off. But she’d traveled all this way, and her friend wouldn’t lead her astray. Besides, without any other living relatives, she has no other options.

He needs help on the farm. She needs protection and a roof over her head. They strike a deal, and along the way Everett decides he wants this bride for keeps. This book is so much bigger than the romance, although it’s sweet, and at times, frustrating. A Bride for Keeps shows us that no matter the dark shadows of our past that continually rise up and taunt us, with God’s help, we can overcome. God covers us with forgiveness and healing, and breaks the chains of fear so we can move on with our lives. It’s about a loving God who never gives up on us and showers us with grace. A Bride for Keeps is a definite keeper for my kindle shelf!

Disclosure: Sending a big thanks to NetGalley and Bethany House Publishing for providing me with an advance review copy. The opinions expressed in this review are my own, and I received no monetary compensation.

post signature

Announcing…Journey’s Embrace is finally here!

/ Dora Hiers / 4 Comments
Journey’s Embrace 
releases today with


Meet Sage and Delaney~


He heard water running in the shower. Now what? He glanced around the room, his gaze stopping at her bedside table. Curiosity made him investigate. A raggedy stuffed doll with red stringy hair sat plopped against the lamp. Cell phone charger. A picture frame. 
Who did she want to see when morning dawned? Who was the last person on her mind when she turned out the light at night?
He picked up the frame and stared at a picture of the three of them. Dane, Steven and Sage, at her college graduation. He smiled. Humbled, yet gratified, at the same time. She pictured them the same way he did. 
As family.
“Why should I leave my house?” Her quiet words from behind surprised him. 
He fumbled with the picture frame and settled it back on the table. He hadn’t heard the door open or the water stop. He turned around, gulped. 
Dane’s shoulder length hair framed her face and rosy cheeks shimmered with goodness. Wearing jeans and a turquoise shirt that hugged her figure, she reminded him about what was good in life. Wholesome, outdoorsy. 
It made him think about campfires and roasting marshmallows, about cooler temperatures and football games, about the spectacular colors and beauty of fall. How leaves fall from the sky to make room for new green buds in the spring. Seasons. And how life changed. How she’d grown from a pesky kid into a beautiful woman.
Dane made him forget the ugliness in the world. 
But only for a minute.

Like what you’ve seen so far? You can purchase it here ~ Purchase Link

After an injury forces Deputy U.S. Marshal Sage Michaelson off duty, he heads to his hometown with two things on his mind: recuperating and reevaluating, but Sage can’t refuse his best friend’s plea to keep a protective eye on his little sister after someone ransacks her house. But Delaney’s not so little anymore—and definitely not the young “Dane” Sage remembers. 

Flight Medic Delaney Hunt has loved Sage forever. But, he’s all about control and order while she embraces life and takes risks. As much as the idea appeals to her, she doesn’t need Sage looking over her shoulder. But when things go wrong and she finds herself hanging by her fingertips, who does she call to rescue her?

Will Delaney ever be the woman Sage wants by his side? Can Sage learn to live by grace, recognizing that God is in control? Can they overcome their fears to embrace life together?

For God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love and of self-discipline. (2 Tim 1:7 NIV)