Title: The Sheriff Takes a Wife
Author: Debbie Macomber
Series: The Manning Sisters #2
Rating Out of 5: 4 (Really good read!)
My Bookshelves: Contemporary, Contemporary romance
Dates read: 23rd October 2020
Pace: Medium
Format: Novel
Publisher: Mira
Year: 1990
5th sentence, 74th page: “Cody’s a reasonable man, and it’s obvious that he’s attracted to you.”

“I feel as if I’ve been waiting for you all my life.”
– Cody Franklin, sheriff of Custer County

The first day Christy Manning visits her sister, Taylor, she meets Sheriff Cody Franklin. To Christy’s shock – and Cody’s – they’re immediately attracted to each other. Intensely attracted. There’s a problem, though. Christy’s engaged to someone else, someone back in Seattle. So what’s the solution? See what happens when The Sheriff Takes a Wife!

Christy was not my favourite romantic heroine. There was nothing overly wrong with her. But I have never understood people pleasers. And she is the epitome of a people pleaser. Particularly as throughout the development of this story, she manages to constantly jeopardise her own happiness just to keep other people happy… not my favourite thing in a heroine at all.

Having said that, Cody is an absolute sweetheart. Again, not my favourite romantic hero… but definitely a lot more understandable and less frustrating than Christy. Particularly when it’s her actions that are constantly putting their relationship into jeopardy. And it takes a while for things to settle. But, once they do… well, I really didn’t mind this at all.

I picked this book up when I was at home sick. I was in that really irritating point where you feel well enough to want to do things. But you’re not actually well enough to do anything. This is the perfect book for that kind of feeling. It’s not exactly got heaps going on and it’s a pretty easy read. But it’s also got just enough going on that at the end of it, you feel like you might have accomplished something in the reading…

Towards the end of this novel, the Manning brothers most definitely steal the show. It’ll be interesting reading their romances and finding out more about these three men when I next pick up a Debbie Macomber novel…

Image source: Amazon

Title: The Cowboy’s Lady
Author: Debbie Macomber
Series: The Manning Sisters #1
Rating Out of 5: 4 (Really good read!)
My Bookshelves: Contemporary, Contemporary romance
Dates read: 22nd – 23rd October 2020
Pace: Slow
Format: Novel
Publisher: Mira
Year: 1990
5th sentence, 74th page: “Russ?”

“The only woman who interests me is you.”
Russ Palmer, rancher

When Taylor Manning accepts a teaching job in Cougar Point, Montana, she discovers that life there is very different from life in Seattle. So are the men! She soon notices a handsome, opinionated, stubborn rancher named Russ Palmer, and he notices her. In fact, they more than notice each other. And after a few months, Taylor’s certain of one thing. Despite their conflicting backgrounds, she’d love to be The Cowboy’s Lady.

This was a very sweet and relaxed romance. I bought it because I enjoyed Macomber’s novella Silver Bells and wanted to find out more about the Manning family. Starting with Taylor was definitely a good decision and I found that I thoroughly enjoyed this story. It was also a really nice and easy read, which I needed since I was recovering from being sick while reading this.

I did love that Taylor is definitely a feminist and argues for women’s rights. But she falls for a man who is most decidedly a chauvinist. At first I thought I was going to hate the dynamic and half expected Taylor to loose her sense of self in the new guy. But, this really didn’t happen and so I still got to have my happy feelings at the end of the novel.

As with most stories that have a teenager at the helm of the insanity… Mandy kind of stole the show for me. She is an absolute firecracker and I love how she goes toe to toe with her brother to assert her rights as a young woman. She also manages to cause problems and makeups between Taylor and russ. Which, of course just makes me all that much happier.

Having a male chauvinist as a lead made me think that I was REALLY not going to like Russ as a character. After all, these are the kind of people in my personal life that I absolutely avoid like the plague. But that really wasn’t the case. Somehow he drew me in, and even if I felt the need to smack him (metaphorically speaking), I still found myself really liking him and hoping for the best outcome. Which, after all, is exactly why I read romances.

Image source: Goodreads