Now the premise of mail-order brides is bad enough but being court ordered to go and get married in another place feels a lot like slavery. Mary McCary never wanted this but after her father died she was refused a permit to sell his elixir, which sounds like mead, and about which later there was a lot of prejudice, honestly it would have been more interesting if they were doing something like Kombucha; which is actually a tonic and is sometimes a bit explosive when bottled.
Anyway she jumps off the train and is rescued by Steve Putnam who isn't looking for a bride but for a cook, so she does and romance happens. It felt a bit too rushed to be a proper romance and it almost felt like the author needed more to build the romance more obviously.
The second story is Mary's twin, Maggie, who ends up falling for the Carpenter,Jackson Miller who has sworn off love, but he keeps circling back to Maggie until they can't resist each other any more.
Both stories follow a similar track, the romance is happening outside of the organised bride auction but still the pressure to get married and then to give up their own means of survival is not ideal. Not bad reads but I'm not sure that Western is a good fit for my romance fix. ( )

Mail Order Brides of Oak Grove is two sweet love stories about twin sisters in the Wild West written by two authors: Surprise Bride for the Cowboy by Lauri Robinson features Mary, the responsible “older” sister, while Taming the Runaway Bride by Kathryn Albright features Maggie, who likes to do as she wants, not as she’s told.

Mary and Maggie have recently lost their father, who took them from town to town selling his miraculous tonic. Their lives were interesting but not very stable. With their father gone they have no way to survive except to continue to do what they know – brew up and sell more tonic. Big catch, though, they don’t have a permit to sell the tonic; women aren’t allowed to get a permit. They are arrested and given a choice: stay in jail or go to Oak Grove as mail order brides. They choose Oak Grove, although they have no intention of getting married, now or possibly ever.

Once they arrive in Oak Grove the fun begins. Maggie jumps off the train, right into the arms of Steve Putnam, who doesn’t ever intend to get married either. Maggie stays on the train with the other brides but ends up darting around town trying to avoid the persistent hopeful grooms and run smack into Jackson Miller, another dedicated bachelor.

Mail Order Brides is a fun book, with pretty, willful women, strong yet innocent and handsome, sexy men and a boisterous group of people, mostly wanting to make Oak Grove a better town. I love historical romance, not only for the happy ever afters but also for the history lessons cleverly woven in. It was interesting to get a glimpse into ranch life and to read about the constraints on women in those times, sent off to marry men they don’t know, start entirely new lives, and without many rights at all. I hope there will be many more books in this series as there are many more brides to get to know.

I received a copy of Mail Order Brides from author Kathryn Albright but I was not required to provide a review. All opinions are my own. I loved Mail Order Brides and you will too. ( )

SURPRISE BRIDE FOR THE COWBOY by Lauri Robinson

Mary McCary never wanted to be a mail-order bride, but falling off the Oak Grove train into Steve Putnam's lap changes everything... Could he be the cowboy to tempt her down the aisle?

Good book. The story opens with a prologue, showing Mary and Maggie in jail in Ohio. They have been arrested for selling their "tonic" without a permit. They are given a choice of staying in jail or becoming mail-order brides in a small town in Kansas. There really isn't any other logical choice, so they end up on a train bound for Oak Grove, Kansas, with several other potential brides.

Mary has no intention of marrying anyone. The first thing she does when the train arrives in Oak Grove is sneak out a rear door, planning to hide out somewhere until her latest batch of tonic is ready to bottle, and she can sell enough to move on. Things don't go quite as she planned and she ends up hired as a cook on Steve Putnam's ranch for a month.

Steve has no plans ever to marry. He saw what the hard life did to his mother and father and won't put himself through that pain. When his regular cook is injured, Steve needs to find someone to take his place. He's not too happy about hiring Mary at first, but it isn't long before he's glad he did.

I enjoyed the development of Steve and Mary's relationship. Sparks fly between them from the start. Mary needs a place to hide from the bride-hunting men of the town where she can also earn the money she needs to move on. She is feisty and independent, also kind and warm-hearted. Steve is honorable and stubborn. He needs a cook but suspects that Mary is going to be trouble. Over the next thirty days they move from adversaries to friends, to more as they get to know each other. I loved watching them butt heads over her tonic while at the same time they couldn't stop thinking about each other. It was fun to see the way that each got flustered by the other's presence and argued with themselves about what they were feeling. The sparks burned hotter as the time came closer when Mary would have to make a decision. The ending was fun as they were helped along by a rattlesnake and a kick in the pants delivered by the doctor.

TAMING THE RUNAWAY BRIDE by Kathryn Albright

Running from trouble, Maggie McCary signs up to be a mail-order bride. She doesn't intend to actually marry...until she shares one sensational kiss with Jackson Miller!

Maggie and Mary get separated when Maggie wants to stay in town and take advantage of the accommodations being provided for the brides. She has no more intention than Mary does of marrying, but she wants to be comfortable while earning the money to move on. When she realizes that Mary is missing, Maggie worries about her. She also feels bad about their argument but has to trust that her sister will be alright.

Maggie is a bit more sensitive than Mary and feels bad about being portrayed as one of the brides when she has no intention of marrying. She tries very hard to avoid leading on any of the men who pay attention to her. I liked that honorable side of her. She is also determined and clever and finds a way to promote her tonic that also keeps it fairly quiet. The only problem she has is her unexpected fascination with Jackson Miller.

Jackson is the town carpenter. He came to Oak Grove after his fiancée ran off with his best friend and he needed a new start. His brother was the preacher, and Jackson came to help build the church. His brother died before the church was finished, but Jackson promised to stay until it was done. Once it is, he plans to move on. Those plans are upended when he encounters Maggie.

I enjoyed seeing Maggie and Jackson get to know each other. Because neither intends to marry they think they are safe, but Fate has other ideas. Jackson is a bit closed off because of his past, but every time he encounters Maggie her vivacity shines a little more light into the dark corners of his life. There is also an attraction simmering between them, and when Jackson seizes the opportunity to kiss Maggie, the results are life-altering for them both. Neither can deny the effect on their hearts, but there are obstacles. Jackson is not one of the men who paid for a chance at a bride, so he isn't technically eligible to court her. Jackson also makes no secret of his disapproval of her tonic. Mary has the mail-order bride contract hanging over her head and the reason she had to sign it. Things look especially bad when she gets thrown in jail for selling her tonic and trying to evade her contract. The sheriff provided a unique and effective solution to the problem.

I liked the epilogue, which wrapped up the courting period quite nicely. I'm looking forward to reading more stories about Oak Grove's mail-order brides, as only five of the twelve promised have arrived. ( )