5-Star Review of "The Convenient Bride Collection"

Review of The Convenient Bride Collection:  9 Romances Grow from Marriage Partnerships Formed Out of Necessity

by Erica Vetsch, Amanda Barratt, Andrea Boeshaar, Mona Hodgson, Melissa Jagears, Maureen Lang,
 Gabrielle Meyer, Jennifer Uhlarik, & Renee Yancy

 Jennifer Uhlarik, & Renee Yancy



Join nine brides of convenience on their adventures in a variety of times and settings gone by—from a ranch in California…to the rugged mountains of Colorado…to a steamship on the Mississippi…to the dangerous excitement of the Oregon Trail…into high society of New York City. No matter the time or place, the convenient brides proceed with what must be done, taking nuptials out of necessity. . .and never dreaming that God might take their feeble attempts to secure their futures and turn them into true love stories for His glory.

 My Review of The Substitute Wife by Amanda Barratt:  Bristol, Connecticut, June, 1883; Dr. Raymond McNair is thrilled that the day has come for him to wed the incredibly beautiful young Audrey Whittaker, but she runs off with another man and her father offers to save him from disgrace by giving his other daughter, Grace, to him to marry.    Grace agrees and their marriage of convenience begins.  But somehow love takes root.  Will they make it through?  Will they allow love to grow in their hearts?   
       This is a 5-star romantic novella!  It is very sweet and a quick read.  This definitely left me feeling good about love, marriage, and life.  

MY REVIEW of One Way to the Altar by Andrea Boeshaar with Christian Linstrot Miller:  Montana, 1902; Leah Hermaning travels by train from Newport, Rhode Island to One Way, Montana to take over the position of school teacher but when she arrives her aunt and uncle tell her that the position has already been filled.   Her aunt and uncle are leaving town and have another plan for her life.   They want her to marry the sheriff, Jesse Waite.   What will Leah do?  Will she agree to marry the sheriff?  Why? oh, why is this her fate?  
       This is another 5-star novella that allows the reader to develop feelings of concern for the characters and great interest in their fate.   

MY REVIEW of Keeper of My Heart by Mona Hodgson:   May, 1866, Ian is traveling west with a wagon train and his wife dies.  He is left with his five children and his mother and no wife, no mother.    Neelie's abusive husband is killed and she works as a sharp-shooter and dresses in men's clothing as she puts on shows for groups as she travels west.   She finds her long lost brother and his new family as she heads west to her job.   Will she ever know what it means to be a mother?   Will she ever have the desires of her heart?  
       This is a 5-star novella that grabs the attention of the reader and pulls them into the story as they hope along with Ian and Neelie.   

MY REVIEW of Blinded by Love by Melissa Jagears:    Set in California, 1888, Helen is a spinster who has helped her sister and brother-in-law raise their children while living in a tiny attic room in their home. Neil Oliver is a wealthy business owner who has received news from his doctor that he is going blind.  He proposes a marriage of convenience with Helen so that she can help him as he loses his sight and fulfill needs of hers as well.   They marry but find they don't really know each other.  Can they find a way to connect?   Can love grow in their hearts?  
       This is a very short and quite interesting romantic novella.  I enjoy learning more about life and the ways that people acted and lived in the 1880's as I read this novella.  This is a 5-star romantic novella and one that will leave readers with a good feeling.  

MY REVIEW of Bonnets and Bees by Maureen Lang:  Set in Turnbridge Acres, Wisconsin, June 1871, Paul agrees to his brother's request to marry Virginia, a spinster who runs a hat shop when her father passes away and stipulates in his will that she must  marry in order to own the hat shop or her cousin will attain ownership of it.  Paul agrees to the marriage
 and when disaster strikes Virginia, Paul comes to her rescue.   Will his rescue be enough to give love a chance to grow between them?   Will this marriage become a real one in every sense?   
       This novella was very informative with a great deal of information concerning beekeeping included within the plot.  I rate this 5 stars and think readers will be all "abuzz" about it.  

  MY REVIEW of A Groom for Josette by Gabrielle Meyer:St. Louis, June 1856, Josette must marry within 3 weeks or all her father's estate and business will go to her half-brother.  She travels to a small town to respond to add seeking wives.   She finds a husband in Alejandre but he is the new preacher for the Comanche mission and she feels called to run her father's shipping business. How can they live so far apart?   Neither one can give up their calling.   What will God's plan for them reveal?  
       This may well be my favorite of the novellas featured here in this collection.   It is refreshing and new in its approach to the story.  Another 5 star novella!   

MY REVIEW of Wedded to Honor by Jennifer Uhlarik:  Petaluma, California, August 2, 1875, Honor Cahill advertises for a husband and Ash Rutherford answers her advertisement.   Honor's father stipulates in his will that she will inherit the ranch and land as long as she is married previous to the reading of the will.  What begins as a marriage of convenience may seem unlikely to last but as Ash and Honor work together on the ranch and battling her half-brother, Nate, who wants to take the ranch from her, things begin to change between them.   
        Readers will enjoy this 5-star romantic novella and watching the action and drama as Honor and Ash try to get along with each other and her half-brother.   

MY REVIEW of A Bride for Bear by Erica Vetsch:   Idaho Springs, Colorado, September, 1874, someone sends a package via the train to Bear McCall but he is shocked to find the "package" is three little girls. What will a bachelor who lives in a one-room cabin do with three little girls that he has inherited from his deceased cousin?  He finds a wife and quickly, that's what!   Emmylou has traveled by train in answer to an ad in the Matrimonial News to become a stranger's bride and he already married another woman!   Bear meets her and asks her to marry him and help care for Deborah, Miriam and Tabitha.  She agrees and a family is born.   Problems develop for them, but I won't spoil the book for other readers.  
        I really enjoyed this novella!   I love the historical features of this novella and all the others as well.   The characters are very believable and lovable.   I rate this novella 5 stars and hope other readers enjoy it as I did.  

MY REVIEW of Have Cash, Will Marry by Renee Yancy:  Set in New York City, April 28, 1899, the Honorable Robert Alexander Radclyfe has plans to refurbish his family's estate in England but he needs funds and his father intends for him to return with an American heiress as his bride.   Rob has a rule for his marriage partner though; they must be in love.  He meets Anna and falls for her but must convince her of his true love for her and not just her dowry.   
       Another top-notch 5 star novella!   Each of the novellas in this collection are fun, fast-paced and sure to delight many readers!    
I received a free ecopy of this book from netgalley in exchange for my honest review.

About the Authors:


Even though Erica Vetsch has set aside her career teaching history to high school students in order to homeschool her own children, but her love of history hasn't faded. Erica's favorite books are historical novels and history books, and one of her greatest thrills is stumbling across some obscure historical factoid that makes her imagination leap. She’s continually amazed at how God has allowed her to use her passion for history, romance, and daydreaming to craft historical romances that entertain readers and glorify Him. Whenever she’s not following flights of fancy in her fictional world, Erica is the company bookkeeper for her family’s lumber business, a mother of two terrific teens, wife to a man who is her total opposite and yet her soul mate, and an avid museum patron.

Amanda Barratt is a historical romance author with two novellas releasing in 2015 with Barbour Publishing. She fell in love with writing in grade school when she wrote her first story - a spinoff of Jane Eyre. Since then, she's penned novels set in Regency and Victorian England, and the Gilded Age. 
A member of American Christian Fiction Writers, she lives in the woods of Michigan with her fabulous family, who kindly put up with the invisible people she calls characters.


Andrea Kuhn Boeshaar has been married for more than 30 years. She and her husband, Daniel, have three adult sons, daughters-in-law, and two precious grandchildren. Andrea's educational background includes the University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee, where she studied in English, and Alverno College where she studied in Professional Communications and Business Management.
Andrea has been writing stories and poems since she was a little girl; however, it wasn't until 1984 that she started submitting her work for publication. Eight years after that, she was convicted about writing for the Christian market. She read books in her genre (Inspirational Romance & Women's Fiction), studied the market, and worked hard to hone her craft.



Mona Hodgson from Arizona writes historical romance set in American history. Mona is the author of Keeper of My Heart in The Convenient Bride Collection, The Family Quilt in A Cup of Christmas Cheer Volume 3, Two Brides Too Many, Too Rich for a Bride, The Bride Wore Blue, Twice a Bride, The Quilted Heart Omnibus, Prairie Song. Her writing credits also include nearly thirty children’s books, and hundreds of short stories, articles, and poems in newspapers and magazines. Follow Mona on her blog at www.monahodgson.com and at ttp://www.facebook.com/author.mona.

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from bio on her webpage:

Melissa Jagears is a stay at home mother on a tiny little farm with a fixer-upper house. As much as she loves writing and reading about homesteaders, she is so glad to be a homesteader during an era with modern grocery stores to take up for her slack. She is an ESL (English as a Second Language) teacher by trade, and still works occasionally in that field along with being her church’s financial secretary and writing novels.

She and her husband have been married since 2001 and have a daughter and two little boys. Her husband shares her fascination with traditional living except for being more hands on. He loves blacksmithing, knife smithing, traditional archery, hunting, etc. Generally whatever a mountain man does, he does it or has or wants to attempt it. He comes in handy for research! And of course, the rest of the family gets involved. She has her own blackpowder rifle, named Calvin, that her  husband made for her.. And she is pretty sure her daughter is probably one of very few her age who can instruct adults how to shoot a longbow properly. The boy digs random holes in their yard to make “cement” with dirt and water making our yard a tripping hazard. The baby does what babies do.

Maureen Lang has always had a passion for writing. She wrote her first novel longhand around the age of 10, put the pages into a notebook she had covered with soft deerskin (nothing but the best!), then passed it around the neighborhood to rave reviews. It was so much fun she's been writing ever since.

Most of her books are historical, with an emphasis on faith and romance. 

Maureen lives in the Midwest with her husband, her two sons, and their much-loved dog, Susie. Visit her Web site at www.maureenlang.com.

Gabrielle Meyer lives in central Minnesota on the banks of the Mississippi River with her husband and four young children. As an employee of the Minnesota Historical Society, she fell in love with the rich history of her state and enjoys writing fictional stories inspired by real people and events. Gabrielle has two novellas releasing with Barbour Publishers in 2015. She can be found on her personal blog at www.gabriellemeyer.com, or her group blog, www.coffeecupsandcamisoles.blogspot.com, where she writes about her passion for history, Minnesota, and her faith.

Jennifer Uhlarik discovered the western genre as a pre-teen, when she swiped the only “horse” book she found on her older brother’s bookshelf. A new love was born. Across the next ten years, she devoured Louis L’Amour westerns and fell in love with the genre. In college at the University of Tampa, she began penning her own story of the Old West. Armed with a B.A. in writing, she has won five writing competitions and finaled in two other competitions. In addition to writing, she has held jobs as a private business owner, a schoolteacher, a marketing director, and her favorite—a full-time homemaker. Jennifer is active in American Christian Fiction Writers and lifetime member of the Florida Writers Association. She lives near Tampa, Florida, with her husband, teenaged son, and four fur children.

Renee Yancy has been living vicariously through historical fiction since she was a young girl. Her all time favorite book is Shogun by James Clavell. The characters are like old friends every time she re-reads it.

In my teens she discovered Anya Seton and Pearl Buck and read every novel they wrote.She is  an archaeology buff as well and that shows up in her writing. Her goal in writing her stories is to be as historically and archaeologically accurate as possible.

Every object she describes, from jewelry, dishes, furniture and glassware, are actually in museums all over the world. The food and dishes she describes are authentic recipes gleaned from intensive research. She  visited Ireland, Scotland, and England to stand in the places her characters stood. 

The Vanderbilt mansion in historic Hyde Park, NY, is the setting for the characters in Have Cash, Will Marry. It is now a National Historic Park, and you can visit the house and the gardens, just as she describes them in the story. 

If you ever visit Ireland, you can stand on the Mountain of the Witch and feel the wind on your face like her character Ciara in A Secret Hope.