By Kelly Bridgewater
When Trace Riley finds the smoldering ruins of a small wagon train, he
recognizes the hand behind the attack as the same group who left him as sole
survivor years ago. Living off the wilderness since then, he'd finally carved
out a home and started a herd--while serving as a self-appointed guardian of
the trail, driving off dangerous men. He'd
hoped those days were over, but the latest attack shows he was wrong.
Deborah Harkness saved her younger sister and two toddlers during the attack, and now finds herself at the mercy of her rescuer. Trace offers the only shelter for miles around, and agrees to take them in until she can safely continue. His simple bachelor existence never anticipated kids and women in the picture and their arrival is unsettling--yet enticing.
Working to survive the winter and finally bring justice to the trail, Trace and Deborah find themselves drawn together--yet every day approaches the moment she'll leave forever.
hoped those days were over, but the latest attack shows he was wrong.
Deborah Harkness saved her younger sister and two toddlers during the attack, and now finds herself at the mercy of her rescuer. Trace offers the only shelter for miles around, and agrees to take them in until she can safely continue. His simple bachelor existence never anticipated kids and women in the picture and their arrival is unsettling--yet enticing.
Working to survive the winter and finally bring justice to the trail, Trace and Deborah find themselves drawn together--yet every day approaches the moment she'll leave forever.
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| www.goodreads.com |
My Thoughts:
I have only read two of Mary Connealy's previous novels, but
The Accidental Guardian appeared to
be a decent novel by its synopsis, so I signed up for a chance to read one of
her novels. Being a historical western, I knew there would be cowboys and women
trying to survive in the wild west of early America with plenty of conflict and
unrest. Connealy does exactly that.
Her writing takes you into the untamed wilderness and
allowed me to struggle with the characters. Her point of view is third person,
and she does a great job at staying in a single person's point of view when she
is in that section of the novel.
The
plot is different. I honestly don't know much about the
Wagon Trains that have moved west. I have heard about them and even
played the
green and black version of Oregon Trail as a child, but other than that,
I
really had no interest in learning more. But Connealy does create a
captivating
story with wonderful characters who shine and prove their worth on the
page. Also, another thing that bothered me was making the second house
for the just arrived girls. It would NOT take five days to cut down the
logs and build a house. It would take ALL summer and tons of work. Very
unrealistic.
The romance appeared really rushed just like building the
cabins. Deb and Trace meet and start to feel emotions right away and take
action on those feelings not long into the story. I shook my head in disbelief.
Why so quickly? Yes, they have to survive a winter together in the middle of
nowhere, but did they really have to rush through their emotions? Couldn't they
have gotten to know each other better?
Overall, The
Accidental Guardian by Mary Connealy shows why she is a popular writer when
it comes to historical westerns. I had no problem visualizing the wild west and
the non-modern world. The characters struggle with challenges I don't face with
today. I believe fans of Karen Witemeyer, Regina Jennings, and Melissa Jagears
might enjoy another historical western novel.
I received a complimentary copy of The Accidental Guardian by Mary Connealy from Bethany House
Publishers, but the opinions stated are all my own.
My Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars
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