Stetsons, Spring and Wedding Rings: An Anthology

This tantalizing trio of Western romances takes the reader to a time in the late nineteenth century--a time when a gentler element of society had begun to establish itself in Texas and Montana. The lawless element was still around but not as forceful as it had been in times past. In Jillian Hart's "Rocky Mountain Courtship" Joseph Brooks goes from shivering in the snow to wonderful warmth as he settles Clara Woodruw in his lap on his stallion Don Quixote and heads to his families ranch thinking this is the woman his mother plans for him to marry. Clara senses Joseph's ability to protect, defend, and provide as she gets to know him. She feels treasured--a brand new experience for her. Even though she had not come, looking for love, a kernel of hope starts to come to life deep inside but she soon learns Joseph's mother has other plans for him. Jillian Hart's characters are warm, often humorous, and ever so eager for life. Her writing style flows with a musical quality at times as the reader rides the up and downs of emotions reveled as Joseph and Clara try to bridge the gape between a prosperous rancher's son and a maid who arrived in patched clothes with less than ten dollars in her pocket. Jillian Hart gives the reader a strong hero and a strong heroine making "Rocky Mountain Courtship" a marvelous story. "Courting Miss Perfect" by Judith Stacy is a delightful trip to Texas with a socially disgraced Brynn O'Keefe. Traveling alone for the first time, due to Aunt Sadie's illness, Brynn finds herself having to deal with elements of society in Texas that she has no experience with--especially one Mr. Travis Hollister, a Pinkerton detective. He suspects her of being in cahoots with Hiram Smith, a traveling salesman that Travis thinks is a jewel thief. The humor in this delightful comedy of errors makes "Courting Miss Perfect" a beguiling love story of a "dyed-in-the-wool" bachelor lawman and a "try-to-be" proper back-east young lady with a strong personality. As she wiggles her way out of some sticky spots, often with the help of the ladies in Harmony, Texas, she wiggles her way into the heart of Travis. This one is an absolute delight to read. "Courted By The Cowboy" by Stacey Kayne takes place in Montana Territory where violence still pops up in places. U. S. Marshal Kyle Darby, while ridding the country of outlaws, makes a hasty decision that causing Constance Pauley to be badly burned. Full of guilt and concern, he travels with and cares for her all the way to California, leaving her in the care of his doctor cousin that knows how to treat her burns. He pays for her care in secret believing he will never see her again. Two years later his sister Stella shows up with the new teacher for the new school in Pine Ridge. Kyle sees the young woman he's thought about every day since he rescued her from a burning house where she'd been tied to a bed by an outlaw. A test of wills between two determined characters makes prime reading as Kyle and Con