A Love of Her Own

Title: A LOVE OF HER OWN
Author: Maggie Brendan
Publisher: Revell
April 2010
ISBN: 978-0-8007-3351-3
Genre: Inspirational/historical

April McBride is still recovering from a broken engagement four years prior. She figures she will never marry, and is probably not intended to. When April gets a telegram from her brother Josh in Montana saying he’s getting married, April is the only one in the family able to attend. Her parents are on a tour of Ireland.

All goes well as April catches a train to Billings, Montana. But there she learns that if she waits for the next train to Lewistown she will miss her brothers wedding. The only other option is a carriage leaving the next morning.

April is warned that the carriage ride will be less than pleasant, but desperate to make it to Lewistown, she boards it. But then the carriage breaks down outside the town. April dresses as a man and rides the rest of the way into town where she meets Wes Owen, who is attempting to train a horse. April lashes into Wes, buys the horse then goes on her way.

The encounter with Wes opens up vast possibilities for frustration, embarrassment, friendship, and … love?

A LOVE OF HER OWN is book three in the Hearts of the West series. I had the privilege of reading the first two books in this series, but A LOVE OF HER OWN easily stands alone, though you want to miss any of the previous two books. Especially since book 1, No Place for a Lady is being made into a TV film.

April is a bit difficult to like at first as she is bossy, overbearing, selfish, and complaining. She does meet some wonderful male counterparts on her journey west, such as the kind doctor, Mark, also on the trip. Wes acts very kind and considerate but he is also very opinionated. The perfect hero for this heroine. It was interesting watching this romance develop. $14.99. 323 pages.