"The Husband Tree" by Mary Connealy

 


I am not so proud as to be able to admit that this was pure escapist reading for me. While I'd say the writing style was improved over Montana Rose, it's far from highbrow reading. And that's okay, as long as you understand what you're in for.

Belle Tanner Santoni has had three husbands, and a more worthless lot of men she could hardly have chosen. She's used to doing for herself on her ranch, and she's taught her four daughters to stand on their own two feet as well. Now that her third husband has joined the others buried underneath the husband tree, Belle is determined she will never marry again. Never.

Having been raised by women and now fleeing a woman who tried to set him up for a shotgun wedding, Silas Harden wants nothing to do with females. Not any of them. But he needs work, and when he rides into a Montana town and hears of an outfit hiring on for a late-season cattle drive, he agrees even though it's a woman doing the hiring. He's shocked when he finds out that it will mostly be Belle and her daughters working the drive. Even though he's dead set against getting involved with her, he can't help being attracted to her independence and strength.

The trail is long and grueling, and Belle is grateful for Silas's help as the days go on. Maybe he wouldn't be as miserably lazy as her first three husbands, if she was of a mind to marry again. Which she is most definitely not. No matter how kind and handsome he is, or how their stolen kisses have made her feel.

One thing I appreciated about this book was that Belle was an older heroine who has had time to come into her own. That's refreshing. But like the first book in the series, I wouldn't recommend this for readers under 16. Use your own discretion as always when choosing reading material.