Blackstone's Bride

Rating:
Summary: Greed held her prisoner, but love could set her free.
Review: Eleanor Scarborough Miller had been a schoolteacher in Charlotte, North Carolina, when a young man from the Carolina hills had wooed her at the most vulnerable time in her life. She married him and went with him to his mountain home, only to discover that he had married her because he thought that she had money. Now, widowed and alone, Eleanor lives atop a hill that is rumored to hold more gold. She's a prisoner in her own home, kept there by her greedy in-laws who won't let her leave. Her in-laws are scared that if Eleanor leaves, gold-hungry hordes would flock to their backwoods area; and Eleanor is scared that if she doesn't leave, her in-laws will eventually kill her to keep the gold they think is there. Her in-laws' brutality is confirmed when Eleanor finds a man nearly beaten to death, stumbling up the mountain toward her home, nearly killed by her in-laws because he had innocently trespassed upon their land.

Jed Blackstone was a happy-go-lucky sort who managed to eke out a living by playing cards. In his free time, he chased women and liked to read encyclopedias in the libraries. His no-responsibilities lifestyle abruptly came to an end when he received word that his half-brother was going to lose his farm if Jed didn't have the money to help him. Fortunately for Jed and his brother, Jed had acquired a valuable piece of land in a poker game. While heading toward his hometown, though, Jed stepped onto the wrong piece of land - and was nearly killed for it. Eleanor takes him in and begins to nurse him back to health, but Jed can't wait to leave, desperate to get back to his family before they lose their farm. When it comes time for him to leave though, will he be able to leave Eleanor behind?

This story was different from most I have read, I noticed that right away. The hero and heroine were a bit unconventional. Eleanor was older, more educated, and more mature than Jed. Jed was not rich, did not possess superhuman strength, and seemed to have more issues than Eleanor. It was refreshing to break free from the typical hero and heroine, no matter how small the break actually was.

Unfortunately, the book tended to drag for the first 200 pages, and after that the plot moved too fast. Much of the book was spent with Eleanor chattering on about escaping, with Jed lying in a bed while his cracked ribs healed. Eleanor was a bit too annoying for my tastes, but still a fairly good character. After the first 200 pages, though, everything seemed to happen. The author had a lot of plot holes to close up in a short amount of time, and she accomplished this task, but left me feeling too rushed. Some of the subplots, and characters, added on at the end of the book really could have been left out without any damage to the story itself.

Altogether, though, the story is a good one. If you like a romance story that is a little different, this may be the one for you to read. I'm looking forward to reading more from this author in the future.

Rating:
Summary: Greed held her prisoner, but love could set her free.
Review: Eleanor Scarborough Miller had been a schoolteacher in Charlotte, North Carolina, when a young man from the Carolina hills had wooed her at the most vulnerable time in her life. She married him and went with him to his mountain home, only to discover that he had married her because he thought that she had money. Now, widowed and alone, Eleanor lives atop a hill that is rumored to hold more gold. She's a prisoner in her own home, kept there by her greedy in-laws who won't let her leave. Her in-laws are scared that if Eleanor leaves, gold-hungry hordes would flock to their backwoods area; and Eleanor is scared that if she doesn't leave, her in-laws will eventually kill her to keep the gold they think is there. Her in-laws' brutality is confirmed when Eleanor finds a man nearly beaten to death, stumbling up the mountain toward her home, nearly killed by her in-laws because he had innocently trespassed upon their land.

Jed Blackstone was a happy-go-lucky sort who managed to eke out a living by playing cards. In his free time, he chased women and liked to read encyclopedias in the libraries. His no-responsibilities lifestyle abruptly came to an end when he received word that his half-brother was going to lose his farm if Jed didn't have the money to help him. Fortunately for Jed and his brother, Jed had acquired a valuable piece of land in a poker game. While heading toward his hometown, though, Jed stepped onto the wrong piece of land - and was nearly killed for it. Eleanor takes him in and begins to nurse him back to health, but Jed can't wait to leave, desperate to get back to his family before they lose their farm. When it comes time for him to leave though, will he be able to leave Eleanor behind?

This story was different from most I have read, I noticed that right away. The hero and heroine were a bit unconventional. Eleanor was older, more educated, and more mature than Jed. Jed was not rich, did not possess superhuman strength, and seemed to have more issues than Eleanor. It was refreshing to break free from the typical hero and heroine, no matter how small the break actually was.

Unfortunately, the book tended to drag for the first 200 pages, and after that the plot moved too fast. Much of the book was spent with Eleanor chattering on about escaping, with Jed lying in a bed while his cracked ribs healed. Eleanor was a bit too annoying for my tastes, but still a fairly good character. After the first 200 pages, though, everything seemed to happen. The author had a lot of plot holes to close up in a short amount of time, and she accomplished this task, but left me feeling too rushed. Some of the subplots, and characters, added on at the end of the book really could have been left out without any damage to the story itself.

Altogether, though, the story is a good one. If you like a romance story that is a little different, this may be the one for you to read. I'm looking forward to reading more from this author in the future.