Will their lives and romance survive the trouble coming their way? Becky Pruitt has always prided herself on knowing everything that’s happening on her successful ranch, so an unexpected admission from her foreman, Nate Paxton, comes as quite a surprise. With the notorious Deadeye Gang on the loose, Nate–a former U.S. Marshal–believes Becky’s ranch is the best spot for a group of Marshals to use as a base to hunt them down. The timing couldn’t be more crucial for the town of Pine Valley, and Becky feels obligated to help. But after escaping the grasp of her harsh father, she’s never liked giving up control, of her life or her ranch. If there’s anyone she can trust with her ranch, and her heart, it might be Nate. But the outlaws won’t go away quietly, and as danger draws ever nearer, Becky and Nate are faced with impossible choices that will test their growing bond. Genre: Historical Romance Release Date: October 17, 2023 Click here to get your copy! |
I knew the final Wyoming Sunrise novel would be both exciting and full of shocking revelations about the Deadeye Gang. And I was right, I really was. Mary Connealy just delivered that and a whole lot more in Marshaling Her Heart.
I have been both dreading and anticipating Marshaling Her Heart. Dreading because it means saying goodbye to the Wyoming Sunrise characters. Anticipating because I knew that Mary Connealy would give Becky and Nate a humdinger of a tale and that the Deadeye Gang would finally get theirs.
Marshaling Her Heart kept me turning those pages with Mary Connealy's trademark blend of humor, romance, and wild west danger. I loved the addition of the young couple with new marriage issues getting some help and advice from the the 'older' married couples. I remember feeling a little annoyed when they got married so getting to see them have an adjustment and growing up period added some nice realism to the story.
As I said, I'm sorry to be saying goodbye to the Wyoming Sunrise ladies with their unusual and fascinating career choices. I do know that the end of one series leaves the possibility of a new one and making some new book friends, so....
Tell Tale Book Reviews gives Marshaling Her Heart by Mary Connealy a 4 Bark rating.
More from Mary
Becky wants the Deadeye Gang caught and thrown in jail as much as anyone, but the lawmen asking her to hire them on at her ranch aim to do their investigating while working undercover as cowhands. She runs a good ranch, however, and doesn’t like the idea of a bunch of low-skilled men making her look like she’s hired them foolishly.
Yet she goes along with it, suspicious and annoyed, because her foreman, Nate Paxton, a man she trusts, convinces her that these men are honorable. Then the three lawmen she hires, all of them U.S. Marshals, urge her to send every single one of her regular cowhands—except Nate, a former Marshal himself—off on a cattle drive.
Now she’s got Marshals cropping up everywhere. Her ranch isn’t being run in a way that suits her. She’s got trouble with her father, and an important speaker is coming to town to talk about women’s suffrage. So much is distracting her when all she really wants to do is make sure her herd is being tended properly.
Before long, Nate starts to question the behavior of the U.S. Marshals Service. They’re secretive to the point that they put him in jeopardy a few times before he decides to quit. Here he’d found a decent job on a top ranch, and he even shared a few special moments with his pretty, feisty boss that gave him ideas of how he’d like to change things around a little just so he could be with her. And then his brother, who’s still a U.S. Marshal, invades the ranch with a few fellow lawmen. Quite a few.
Meanwhile, the Deadeye Gang is more dangerous than ever. The woman coming to Pine Valley to speak is now at risk, which makes Becky frantic to protect her. The cattle aren’t being looked after like they ought to be. And yet Nate finds himself being drawn closer to Becky with each passing day. He’s determined to stand firmly between her and danger, but he’s got to keep up with her to do that. He soon discovers that nothing is easy when it comes to the hard-charging Becky Pruitt.
Wyoming Sunrise is a series I wrote in which I cast women as having nontraditional jobs: Forged in Love has a woman blacksmith, Laws of Attraction a woman justice of the peace, and Marshaling Her Heart a woman rancher. Those are all nontraditional for sure, but not really in my case personally. I must force myself not to make all my heroines feisty lady ranchers. It’s almost a reflex at this point. I fought that reflex as hard as I could, but I decided it would be okay to sneak one lady rancher into this series, and that’s Becky Pruitt. I slipped her into the western vernacular, the tough attitude, the riding skirts and boots and Stetsons—and I loved it.
Marshaling Her Heart is my first true lady rancher, and so I let loose and had fun with Becky. The foreman Nate recognizes intelligence and competence in his boss, and he’s smart enough to take orders from her because he knows those orders are the right way to run the ranch.
Add in the backdrops of the other books in the series, the vicious, stagecoach-robbing Deadeye Gang, the coming of the lady suffragist speaker to town, and you’ve got a story full of trouble, action, adventure, romance, and fun.
Mary Connealy (maryconnealy.com) writes “romantic comedies with cowboys” and is celebrated for her fun, zany, action-packed style. She has sold more than 1.5 million books and is the author of the popular series Wyoming Sunrise, The Lumber Baron’s Daughters, Brothers in Arms, Brides of Hope Mountain, High Sierra Sweethearts, The Kincaid Brides, Trouble in Texas, Lassoed in Texas, Sophie’s Daughters, and many other books. Mary lives on a ranch in eastern Nebraska with her very own romantic cowboy hero. |
It's Time For A Giveaway!
a $15 Amazon Gift Card and a paperback copy of the entire Wyoming Sunrise series!!
Blog Stops
Happily Managing a Household of Boys, October 27
Locks, Hooks and Books, October 28
Bizwings Book Blog, October 28
Debbie’s Dusty Deliberations, October 29
Jeanette’s Thoughts, October 29
Books You Can Feel Good About, October 30
Lighthouse Academy Blog, October 30 (Guest Review from Marilyn Ridgway)
lakesidelivingsite, October 31
Abba’s Prayer Warrior Princess, November 1
Book Looks by Lisa, November 1
Connie’s History Classroom, November 2
Mary Hake, November 2
Wishful Endings, November 3
An Author’s Take, November 3
Betti Mace, November 4
Truth and Grace Homeschool Academy, November 4
For Him and My Family, November 5
Holly’s Book Corner, November 5
Splashes of Joy, November 6
A Modern Day Fairy Tale, November 6
Pause for Tales, November 7
Life on Chickadee Lane, November 7
Tell Tale Book Reviews, November 8
Cover Lover Book Review, November 8
Labor Not in Vain, November 9
Jodie Wolfe – Stories Where Hope and Quirky Meet, November 9