Years ago, Texas Ranger Jacob Dalton bailed an orphaned girl named Nell out of trouble more times than he could count. But now the kid he once called "Two Bits" has grown into a beautiful young woman—and is in more trouble than ever before.
Wounded in an ambush, Nell refuses to become a burden for her former guardian angel. Unfortunately, her injury has made it impossible for her to handle the ranches she's inherited, so she decides to get herself a husband. One thing's for sure: She isn't about to let Jacob bully her into saying "I do." When Jacob steps in line for her hand, Nell is forced to weigh her need for his help against a love too strong to allow him to sacrifice his future for her.
I have been reading Jodi Thomas’s popular “Wife Lottery” series for many years now and when I finally stumbled upon the final story of the batch called “The Texan’s Reward” which stars Jacob Dalton and Nell, I was pleasantly surprised by the results of this book!
Many years ago, Texas Ranger Jacob Dalton befriended a young orphaned girl named Nell (who he fondly calls “Two Bits”) and they had been the best of friends ever since. But years later, Nell is now a full grown woman and Jacob is having even more problems with her. After Nell gets injured in the last book when the notorious criminal Zeb Whitaker shoots her in the back causing her to barely walk, Nell decides to get married to a man who could help her around the ranch that she had inherited from Fat Alice, the former owner of a brothel. Unfortunately, Jacob Dalton refuses to let Nell marry anyone and he tries to convince Nell to marry him instead. Of course, Nell refuses at first for she does not want to keep Jacob down because of her injury, but as time goes by, Nell will soon discover that she might have feelings for the courageous Texas Ranger.
Jodi Thomas has done it again with her brilliant writing of the story and the characters involved! I loved the way that Jodi Thomas wrote the story as it explores how strong love can be, even if a terrible tragedy (such as Nell getting shot and her injury causing her great pain if she tried to walk) could separate two lovers in a second. I was literally on the edge of my seat trying to see if Nell could ever recover from her injury and could she ever touch Jacob ever again due to her injury. I loved how Jodi Thomas explored all of those insecurities and present it in an emotional context that literally had me crying and hoping at the same time. Probably the best parts about this book were the character themselves as they were extremely intriguing and brilliant to read about! I really loved the character of Nell as she was shown as being an independent and kind hearted woman who, despite her injury, is willing to take care of her ranch and protect the people she cares about (especially Jacob)! I also loved the fact that Nell cares so much for Jacob that she was willing to forsake her chance at marrying him just so he could marry someone who would not weigh down his lifestyle (he is a Texas Ranger after all). I also loved Nell’s relationship with her friends such as Marla, Gypsy and Randolph Harrison as she treats all of them like family and I loved the way that Nell stands up for them whenever they are in danger. But, Jacob Dalton is probably my most favorite character in this entire book as he is truly one of the best western romance heroes I had ever read about! I really loved the fact that Jacob Dalton truly cares about Nell and was willing to be with her despite her injury and I loved that aspect of Jacob’s character. I also loved how heroic Jacob was as he can easily take down any threat that would harm Nell and would put his life on the line for Nell. But the romantic and giddy side of me will always love the physical aspects of Jacob Dalton as he is constantly described as being good looking and having a well toned body that I just can not help but fan myself in anticipation every time they mention his good looks!
For anyone who does not like language and violence, there is some language in this book such as various uttering of the “h” word and the “d” word, but it is not as bad as some romance novels that I had read. Also, there is some violence in this book which involves a lot of gun shooting and anyone who does not like gun violence might be unsettled by the gun scenes in this book.
Overall, “The Texan’s Reward” is a truly great finale for the fantastic “Wife Lottery” series and I am pretty sure that any fan of western romance novels will enjoy it for many years!
Not much happens in the way of relationship until 90% of the book. The characters spent very little time together throughout the book. The plot was very uninteresting too. Very little happens.
The heroine wants to marry another man because she doesn't want to burden Jake. Jake refuses to let her marry. Then at the end of the book, Jake turns around and tells her that she should consider marrying the other man... See what I mean? This isn't at 50% into the book, but the end! Come on! I want something more to happen between the hero and heroine instead of one of them pushing the other away for 90% of the book...
I have to admit-I was disappointed in this book. Mostly because I got to love Nell in the previous books and the romance between her and Jacob Dalton seemed very interesting. Oh, well...
Here's the story. In A Texan's Luck, Nell suffers an injury and is unable to move freely, she's in a wheelchair. Her life is also endangered by the bullet still lodged in her back, near her spine. She's in pain. Having pushed Jacob away awhile ago she decided to buy herself a husband, placing an ad. Hearing about the hare-brained notion Jacob races to her side, for he has always loved Two Bits and he wants her to be his wife...
"She didn’t look more than eight, but she stood proud when she told him she had dreams. She planned to be the highest-paid lady of the evening in Texas when she grew up. He swore he’d marry her first and make an honest woman out of her. Jacob laughed, remembering how she’d called him every name she could think of for trying to interfere with her dreams and yelled that she’d charge him double when he came begging to her bed."
She used to be so feisty, yes? At first I was curious about this plot line-Nell is seriously injured and may remain so for the rest of her life. But the changes it brought in her were just too much. It made me sad, but I liked this passage, for it illustrated her life now.
All her life she’d been brave. She’d run with the wind behind her and dared anyone to stop her. And now . . . now she feared a breeze.
Most of all, it bugged me how and WHY she pushed Jacob away. At first I was sympathetic, but as the book went on it became obvious Jacob loved her and wanted to be her husband, but all she kept saying and thinking was...
"Well, she knew what was right for Jacob, and that was for him to walk away from her and get on with his life."
"Nell had to think about what was right for him. No matter what he claimed, he deserved more than she could offer as a mate."
"He deserved more than she could offer. She would never hurt him, but she couldn’t ruin his life."
Now, isn't that HIS choice to make? It always bothers me when characters make these decisions for the good of another, without asking them. You can't decide his fate based on what YOU think is best for him. Don't you trust him enough to believe him when he says you make him happy and he wants to be with you? And this goes on, and on and on. Another thing that bothers me is that eventually Jacob agrees and they decide to be friends, and it turns to a HEA SPOILERS AHEAD!!!!! after she's cured by falling down(since then the doc can operate). Somehow I didn't think falling down would help with the bullet near the spine. So, the conclusion is-they can't be happy if she's almost-paralyzed and can if she isn't? What kind of a message is that? There are a lot of people with similar and worse injuries(minus the bullet, maybe) and they shouldn't be with their loved ones? It bothered me here, because for all it's described their love is strong and great, it's not enough to defeat her condition/problems. What's love worth when you can be together only when things are good? i would've preferred it if the miracle hadn't happened-or at least that they'd come together beforehand.
Also, the gold. All the fuss about it in the whole series and NOTHING is resolved? It made me feel unsatisfied with the suspense/mystery development. If you're going to drag this thing throughout the series, then make it good!
I still liked the writing and there were good/funny moments(one of them is featured below), but this book is not what I've hoped for.
A white-bearded country preacher poked his head around the side of the buggy. Jacob smiled. There was no mistaking the man’s occupation. He had a Bible in one hand and a .45 in the other. “Are you in trouble, son?” His voice boomed as if he were speaking to the multitudes. Jacob held his hands wide and walked closer. “I am in need.” Before he could say more, Wednesday waddled toward them. The preacher laid down his gun. “I can see you are. Lucky I came along.” He stepped from the buggy, the Bible held toward heaven. “Praise the Lord I made it in time before another one of God’s children was born a bastard.” He motioned Wednesday closer. “Afternoon, my name is Brother Aaron. I’m a sworn man of God, licensed to marry and bury folks.” He looked at Jacob. “That’ll be a dollar, son. In advance of the ceremony just in case one of you changes your mind halfway through.” Jacob couldn’t manage enough spit to swallow. He took a step backward and raised his hands again, realizing he much preferred the gun pointing at him than the Bible. “Are you going to do right by this little lady, sir? It looks like you robbed the cradle, and before spring she’ll be rocking one.” Brother Aaron raised his eyes to heaven again. “Lord, I’m not here to judge sinners, just help them get to going on the straight and narrow. If it weren’t for sinners, you wouldn’t need no preachers, so thank you, Lord, for putting these two fornicators in my path.” Wednesday finally figured out what the preacher hinted at. She found her words with none of the hesitance Jacob had. “I can’t marry him, preacher. He’s already got a wife, and she’s in a bad way.” Brother Aaron shook his Bible and his fist at the sky. “Lord, you do try me greatly sometimes. I’m not judging this sinner who takes advantage of young girls and beats his wife, but Lord, if you could strike him dead, I’ll do the funeral for free.” Wednesday started giggling. Jacob had enough. He stepped forward. “I didn’t take advantage of this girl, and I’ve never hit any woman in my life.” He took a step closer to the buggy. “And only a few preachers.” Brother Aaron lowered his arms and looked at Jacob. The old man might be twice his age, but Jacob saw a challenge in his eyes. Jacob opened his jacket so the man could see the Texas Ranger badge on his vest. “I found this girl yesterday, lost and hungry. I need your help to get her to safety before she delivers that baby.” The preacher cocked his head and looked back at heaven. “Thank you, Lord, for not listening to me.” He smiled at Jacob. “How may I be of service? I believe in always helping those in need.”
Nice conclusion to this historical romance series. I liked the plot, especially all the misfit characters banding together. The action was sometimes a bit slow and the heroine was a little too stubborn. However, they talked out their problems so overall a good story. When a bullet leaves Nell wheelchair bound, she refuses to marry her long time special friend Ranger Jacob.
i can gladly say that this one was absolutely the best in whole series!
i looved it :D and ended up reading the whole book with a big grin on my face... at some point the book was actually very sad... because Nell (the heroine) cant walk coz of an accident that happened in book 3, but she doesnt give up the thought of ever walking gain and so she tries and tries... sometimes its sad to look her struggle but its worth the feeling you get at the end of the book when shes finally able to run again :D
the hero... oh the hero was something :D jacob shows up in every book in this series and i was very excited to learn that the last book was his story with Nell!!! Jacob is a texan ranger and he is one big, hot, young man :D
i wont go into any details of the story but ill say that it was great! the plot, the mystery were very interesting and the love story was breathtaking... i loved both the hero and heroine... i loved everyone whom Nell sheltered in her home (she had a bunch of different people :D)
Jodi Thomas writes the most wonderful people. I love all the characters who end up in Nell's home. The thing is, though, they've stolen the spotlight. I wanted Jacob and Nell's story to be theirs, not everyone else's. I wanted the two characters I really liked in previous books to have a more impressive story. You know they end up together, but the story is all over the place. There are two secondary romances in the book. Two!
Still, this is a decent ending to the series. And I do love the characters.
The fourth book in the Wife Lottery series by Jodi Thomas. Nell, or "Two Bits", was introduced in the previous books. She was injured and unable to walk. Now she has decided she wants a husband, in name only, to help her with her properties and has put out an ad to find one. This brings, Jacob Dalton, Texas Ranger, and good friend, back to town.
I have loved this series but like many I felt let down on this addition to the series. Not sure exactly what it was but I just didn't feel as connected to this one. The story seemed to drag for me. But it wasn't all bad. There were parts that had me curious as to what would happen next and the extra characters added some entertainment I enjoyed. The book seemed to pick up for me towards the end and, ultimately, I gave it 3 stars because of that.
This is the final book in the Wife Lottery Series. The whole series is wonderfully written with an interesting storyline and lovable characters.
Jacob Dalton, a Texas Ranger, comes "home" to Nell to stop her from marrying a man, any man. She put an ad in some papers for a husband, by name only, so she can have a last name and they can run her properties. Nell was in an accident in the previous book and is now confined to a wheelchair. She thinks that she has no hope for a happy future, and doesn't want to ruin Jacob's future of a wife and kids. The only problem with this is that there is only one woman in Jacob's future, and that would be Nell.
I really loved this book and the whole series. I can honestly say every book was good and special on its own. If you like historical romance and like to read about people overcoming obstacles, I would definitely recommend this book.
Everyone called her Poor Child as if she'd stopped being an adult when she lost the ability to walk.
Originally I wasn't going to read the final book of the series, since Nell didn't interest me much as a side-character in previous books. But then something happened in book 3, and I realized Nell's book would probably feature her as a disabled character. So I read it.
It turned out to be just an okay read. Cute, not bad, but ultimately not well executed.
I think this is going to be the last book by Jodi Thomas I read. To me, her books have some of the same flaws:
1) Little character development or depth. We spend an entire book with these characters, but they remain shallow and one-dimensional, we don't get to know them or what it's like to be them, live in their time or their life.
2) Too much filler, then a great rush in the main story. We have SO MANY side-characters in this book: a drunkard wandering priest, an ex-prostitute gypsy granny, a nurse, a 15-year-old pregnant girl, a fugitive train-robber, an ex-prisoner accountant, a shy cook. All of these people live in the same house with the main characters. They ultimately bring nothing to the story, they just keep taking up time with unnecessary and meaningless shenanigans.
So we bide time for most of the book looking at the cook cooking, the priest preaching etc., and then, after 93% mark shit starts to go down. And see a whole book's worth of plot being squeezed into the last pages, crammed and rushed and of course not much good like that.
3) An underdeveloped love story. The biggest flaw of all in a romance is a lacking romance storyline. And it was not enough for me. The main characters know each other for a long time at the moment the book starts. They both love each other very much and they both know it. So for the book to go on, they need to spend little time together (hence the meddling side-characters).
Their relationship doesn't grow or change. They're just biding time until the author tells them "it's okay now", they kiss and it's THE END. I'm not a fan of books where wedding is the end. Courtship is not a relationship. Real relationships (in historical romance) start after the wedding. It's left out of the picture.
Basically, the characters spend most of the book apart, the hero proposes several times, gets shot and stabbed a couple times, finally the heroine agrees to marry him.
I have no idea why I didn't enjoy this book very much. The romance between Nell and Jacob is sweet but it seemed something was missing. Nell was attracted to Jacob but he always looked to her as a sister. When he felt something more for her it just didn't seem to flow from anywhere that I could see, just blammo "I'm attracted to you!" No wonder she doesn't trust it. I don't know if there are more to this series but I'm taking a break from it.
I cannot say enough good things about this book. The main and secondary characters are well developed and worth knowing. Jacob Dalton and Nell, Two Bits, have been in the wife lottery trilogy, making this the fourth book. I know that I will be revisiting these great books again.
This was definitely not your usual romance novel well except maybe for the finale. I enjoyed every bit of it even it there were parts I was scared for the heroes. But you can enjoy that too, you know :) I liked both hero and heroine even if half of the time they were making decisions for each other and making each other miserable by the result. I liked storyline too. It was more an adventurous-detective kind of story even if there was love in the air not much was found in the plot and I personally find that refreshing. It reminded me of my youth's novels that would feel like detectives masquerading as love stories. I liked the whole gang of that Fat Alice's house. They all were quite colorful personages as were their names. Such a bright people couldn't be named simply John or Mary. Maybe be that's another reason to have main heroes named Nell & Jacob? So they stood out? :) Well, Hank was pretty ordinary name, but he spent most of the story in bed and then in jail so maybe he doesn't count :) The only pity was that they haven't found that missing gold. But maybe in some other story they will?
Dang it! This book got me WAY too close to crying at the end! There's not much to say, it was really good, the whole series was really good! This book, out of all of them in the series, was a little more Western than Romance and it worked perfectly.
It left me sad because you spend the whole book/series getting to know the characters so well, and then it just ends and you catch the tiniest glimpse of their future, and their growing old together, and even now it just makes me want to cry. :'(
P.S. As in all of the books, the intimate scenes were still too detailed for my taste, less frequent in this one but still too descriptive.
The drama is so manufactured that I kept rolling my eyes. Nell wants to get married but she doesnt want to marry Jacob because she doesnt want to “burden him” with a “cripple”... even after he tells her he sees her as a woman, even after he said that he wont get married to anyone else but her.
Someone makes an attempt on Nells life and she talks about how the only person she feels safe with is Jacob, how he’s her first everything, how he sees her as a woman... and she still refuses to marry him?!
This goes on and on. Cue me rolling my eyes.
I only kept reading to find out about mysterious suitor Number 12. What a waste of time.
Great series. Glad to read Nell and Jacob's story. Always liked these characters. I rather enjoyed the strays picked up in the story. I didn't love the plot of the dangers to Nell, but the rest was great. I especially enjoyed the epilogue and learning where all the characters lives went. I would've liked a little more info on the other characters from the first books of the series included somewhere.
I liked the main characters earlier (in the previous 3 books) but here, their arguments, stubbornness and sadness is just overwhelming
The book was mainly 2 themes: Nell struggling with her condition & Dalton being lured in then pushed off :S then there is some secondary characters who all had sad stories
Nell was an orphan who was taken in by an old madam, Fat Alice, who owned a house in Clarendon, TX. She took Nell in claiming that Nell was the daughter of one of her girls. Nell was now in a wheelchair having taken a bullet meant for one of three women rumored to have robbed Zeb Whitaker after knocking him out, leaving him for dead in the middle of nowhere. All three women swore they never took a single coin. The three women were Nell's adopted family and she was trying to save them when she was shot in the back. The old buffalo hunter died searching for his lost gold. The women had sent Nell back East to school and Nell returned now considered quite wealthy due to holdings she received as inheritance from the women who raised her. Nell couldn't manage her properties with her being in a wheelchair so she advertised for a husband to manage the properties for her. Jacob Dalton was a Texas Ranger that Nell had followed around from the time she arrived in town. Jacob was seventeen and a new Ranger. Clarendon's sheriff sent him a note about what Nell had done. He returned to town and went to Nell's home and told her that she was his family and that he was going to marry her as he had promised when they were younger. Nell had another suitor named Randolph Harrison, #12, with her at the time and Nell hired him as her bookkeeper while she was deciding what to do. Another suitor showed up and told Nell that he wanted to buy one of her properties and Nell told him that she would look into it. She didn't understand why Walter Farrow wanted that particular piece of property that she considered the worst of the ranches she owned. It was rumored that Zeb had hid out at that ranch for a time and Walter may want to see if the missing gold was on that piece of property. Jacob slept in Nell's barn the first night he came home and in the morning he woke to someone taking a shot at Nell. He left Rand and the sheriff with Nell so he could track the shooter. What Jacob found was a pregnant fifteen year old girl who was born on the first Wednesday in May. Her name was Wednesday May. Her step-mother had beaten her and father had dropped her off in the middle of nowhere and left three days before Jacob arrived. Jacob took her back to Nell. Nell fired her nurse when she found out that her nurse had sent letters to Walter Farrow in Nell's name saying that she agreed to marry him. She hired another nurse who arrived at her house, drunk after traveling on a train that had been robbed. The robbers had killed six of the people on board and Jacob went after them. He caught up with them and tied up the son, fifteen yr-old Hank, of the leader of the gang. The leader killed two of the gang, fought with Jacob and cut him up pretty bad. He left Hank and took off. Hank brought Jacob back to Nell. Other Rangers caught the three remaining gang members. Jacob passed out for three days after being wounded and the nurse identified Hank as one of the robbers and he was taken to jail. Jacob didn't want to see him hang after all he had done to help him. Jacob went to town to get Hank out of jail and was hit over the head with a whiskey bottle. He was found by one of the girls working at the local bar. The posse who came to pick up the train robbers wanted to take all the robbers in, including the boy, Hank. They thought that knocking Jacob out would allow them to take the boy too. While Jacob was tracking the train robbers, someone had broken into Nell's house and stolen an ugly picture off her wall. The picture was given to Fat Alice by the guy who gave Nell the property that Walter Farrow wanted to purchase. Rand stayed at home to guard the house and Nell. While at the house he and Marla seemed to become better and better friends. Rand had been put in prison when a girl he and his brother both liked, snuck into his bedroom and had sex with him. She thought that it was his brother and when she found out it was Rand, she accused him of raping her and got sent to prison. Jacob had wanted Nell to fire the nurse because she showed up drunk and was considerably smaller than Nell. She took her first day off due to being drunk but Jacob couldn't do anything about having her leave because of him leaving to go after the robbers. The nurse actually took charge and made Nell walk while supporting her with a belt. She forced Nell into doing more exercises and walking around to get strength back into her legs. She told Nell that she would take her swimming for exercise too. When Jacob went into town to collect Hank, Nell went into town when Jacob didn't come back as he said he would. Nell, along with Marla, her cook, and Rand, snuck Hank out of jail in her wheelchair. The posse thought they were putting Nell back into her wagon when they were actually putting Hank in her wagon. Jacob woke up in the bar after the being hidden until he woke up by Pearlie. Jacob snuck back to Nell's and it was agreed that he should stay away from the house until the guys hired by the railroad to bring in the robbers had all left town. A couple had remained to try and find Hank since they didn't know where he was. They thought he might be hiding nearby. The best hiding place they could think of was the old Stockard place that Walter Farrow wanted. Jacob found a dog that had been shot and cleaned up his wounds and fed him. He also looked around the place knowing that Stockard had been friends with Zeb. The preacher came out to visit Jacob and he found a coin by the well. They got to talking and it came up that someone had stolen the money from Zeb. Maybe Stockard had stolen the money when Zeb was knocked out and hid the money because he was to afraid to show it with Zeb around, only he died before Zeb. The preacher said he wanted to come back the next day and look around only he was drinking when he left and he fell into the flower bed at Nell's and hurt his leg. He wouldn't let Nell's nurse look at it. He said he would let Nell's (male) Dr. take a look at it because the Dr. was due to show up in a day or two. Jacob and Nell weren't talking much. Nell had told Jacob that she was hurt to badly to be a real wife to him. Jacob was afraid to touch her. He said that Nell could marry Rand. Nell told him that she couldn't because Rand would soon discover that he was in love with Marla and that marrying him would only hurt Rand and Marla. They discussed this while Jacob was helping the Nurse out by taking Nell swimming. Rand took Nell to the train station to meet her doctor and his new wife. While there, she was taken by two men who worked for Walter Farrow. Jacob saw her in the buggy and followed, watching closely for a time to get her to safety. Mr. Farrow told Nell that he would going to have her thrown in the river and let her drown. He was mad at her mostly for turning down his proposal of marriage. As the two men were driving Nell to the river, she pulled herself up from behind them and knocked one out of the buggy. Nell was thrown. Jacob got to her but was shot at least three times. The sheriff arrived and Jacob passed out. Nell's doctor removed the bullets from Jacob and told Jacob that the bullet lodged in Nell's back had moved and he had operated on her. Jacob spent a week recovering and had to take Hank to Ft. Worth for trial. Nell was still not away when he left. He couldn't get any information regarding her healing while he was dealing with Hank. Hank was given a ten year sentence for the train robbery. Wednesday sent Hank a note telling him that she would wait for him. Jacob went back home and Nell opened the door and walked to him. She was still trying to get used to walking again but she was no longer in pain and getting stronger every day. Jacob asked her to marry him again and she agreed. Jacob became the sheriff and later became a Senator for the state of Texas. Marla and Rand married about a year later. Hank and Wednesday married three weeks after he was released from prison and he became one of the finest builders in Texas. Jacob and Nell and three daughters and one son. Their only son married Rand's daughter. Hope Dalton is credited for founding one of the nation's largest teachers' colleges while raising six sons.
Awww, the 'Wife Lottery' is such a good little heartwarming series! Each novel is like catching up with a group of friends that you haven't seen in a while. I still think my favorite book is 'The Texan's Wager' which was #1 in the series. There's just something about quiet, gentle Carter that stuck with me more than the other heroes. My favorite heroine is Sarah. She was described as fragile, and sickly but let me tell you she was brave and spunky when the going got tough! Overall there was something great about each individual story. 'The Texan's Reward' focuses on Ranger Jacob & Nell (a.k.a. Two Bits). Nell has been in love with Jacob since forever. She was always wild, exuberant, & had no trouble keeping up with her ranger. That is until a horrible accident leaves her paralyzed. Nell is left in a wheelchair and decides that she can't expect to spend her life with Ranger Jacob anymore. She decides to place an ad for a husband to help take care of her, and her properties. However Jacob has other thoughts about this situation! This is a cute romantic story. It's got some drama of course..otherwise there wouldn't be much plot. I liked Nell and Jacob just fine. Neither of them will probably leave a lasting impression, but I enjoyed reading about their adventures. I will also say that there are a lot of side characters that we get introduced to. They all manage to feel like old friends, even family, by the end of the story.
I really enjoyed this series! I can't wait to read more books by Jodi Thomas in the future.
Fourth in the trilogy, this story was gently foreshadowed in the earlier books, but I wasn't sure whether the author would actually tell it given how young Nell was when we first met her. Anyway, she's all grown up now, and she was shot in one of the earlier books. The bullet is still lodged in her back, so she's wheelchair bound and most movement causes her pain. She has also inherited Fat Alice's properties and has decided to buy herself a husband by offering to split them 50-50 with him. Having rejected the first eleven applicants, we open with Nell interviewing applicant number twelve while Jacob finds out about the scheme and rushes across state to prevent anyone taking advantage of her and offer himself as applicant number thirteen (i.e. the only one who hasn't been in it for the money). Nell says no to Jacob (she doesn't want to stick her dear friend with a bride in a wheelchair) and tells number twelve that he's welcome to stick around so she can get to know him. He turns out to be a decent guy. Unlike applicant number fourteen...
With a bunch of appealing secondary characters and a couple of sweet secondary romances in the background, this is the story of two old friends falling in love surrounded by a found family. There are also villains, shootings, a drunk preacher and several twists and turns even I wasn't expecting. I don't think you need to have read the earlier books in the series to get full value from this one because, like I said, Nell was a kid then and there's only one very token mention of Bailey, Sarah and Lacey.
-4 stars, maybe 3.5. more to the story than just the angst people who both believe the other one deserves someone better than them.
"you don't have to talk to me. you just have to marry me. near as i can tell, that ends most of the talking between men and women."
"she fought down a giggle thinking his kiss reminded her of a slippery frog's belly."
"he wondered if at any time in all her life, Nell had ever known she was loved. it might not seem like an important thing when you know you've been cared about. but if you've never known love, would you even know to want it?"
"i will guard the virtues of these ladies with my life." (-preacher) "its a little late for me, but i thank you for the offer." (-pregnant gal) "not for me. i've been waiting years for someone to guard my virtues." (-old ex-hooker)
"Walter Farrow doesn't strike me as a man who cuddles up to closely with reason."
"i wouldn't mind tripping him to see how many times he rolls."
"what are you doing?" Nell asked as Gypsy stared down the road. "i wanted to see if he hopped along when nobody was watching. i swear he's the biggest toad in texas."
A great ending to a wonderful series. It was nice to see Jacob and Nell mature. I wish I'd read their story when I read the rest of the series but it could be a stand alone book. The secondary characters were all interesting and the epilogue was exactly what this needed. If you're looking for heat this isn't it but it's very sweet. How I rate a story. (In order of importance): Does it keep my attention? 🌟 Yes, although life got in the way, once I was able to focus on the book, I finished it in a day. Is it plausible / logical? 🌟 Yes, the concerns their love faced were understandable and their actions / reactions made sense. Grammatical errors or odd, repetitive language? 🌟 No, this was well edited Do I like the characters? 🌟 Very much! I liked then in the previous stories of this series but this was a great ending for them.
All in all - A Great Read - 5 stars. 🌟 🌟 🌟 🌟 🌟
There are very few stories that I'll give a 1 star. If I finished reading it then it had to be "ok".