All That Matters (Western Lovers: Ranchin' Dads #16)

I have been reading some of this author's very old titles this summer and can report that this one is well worth seeking out. Judith Duncan's stories are never about sophisticated urban boys and girls but rather about rural people living lives of quiet domesticity. I particularly liked this old title from the late 1980s. Briefly, Susan Lynton works for a government minister in Ottawa as his assistant. Nearly 30, she has had a fairly uneventful life but enjoys her job and has a good working and personal relationship with her boss - a man of her own father's generation. One summer he suggests that she take an extended summer break and travel to rural Alberta to fill in as cook on his nephew's ranch. She is taken with the idea and travels out to take up the job. 45 year old Jason Chisholm's wife left him some years ago, leaving him with a huge ranch and four children to bring up. Although all concerned have been marked by their experiences, none are dramatically traumatised and life has been moving on. Much of the story takes place, literally, in the ranch kitchen and Susan learns to cope with feeding a family of hungry kids and the adults who do the hard and unending ranch work. There is much description of the housework, doing the laundry for a large family, gardening, cooking, dressmaking, etc that takes place on an isolated ranch. Although this might sound boring, the author's intimate descriptions of these domestic activities (which most of us, her readers fulfil ourselves) nevertheless make for satisfying reading. Gradually, of course, Jason and Susan fall in love. Susan develops a close relationship with his eldest daughter but, one day the daughter catches them embracing and the girl is unable to handle it. Despite having agreed to marry Jason, Susan feels compelled to leave the ranch. Of course, eventually everyone is reconciled, love wins out and everyone is happy. Indeed, nothing much dramatic happens in this story - its charm lies in the intimacy, domesticity and sheer likeability of all of the main characters. I highly recommend this old title; it's well written, the descriptive narrative is first class and, overall, it's one of Judith Duncan's best.