Short-Straw Bride by Karen Witemeyer

Title: Short-Straw Bride

Author: Karen Witemeyer

ISBN: 978-0-7642-0965-9

Publisher: Bethany House

Format: Trade Paperback

$14.99 US

Rating: 5 Cups

FOUR BROTHERS. FOUR STRAWS. ONE BRIDE.

NO ONE STEPS ON ARCHER LAND. Not if they value their life. But when Meredith Hayes overhears a plot to burn the Archer brothers off their ranch, a long-standing debt compels her to take the risk.

Years of constant vigilance harden a man. Yet when Travis Archer comes across a female trespasser with the vivid blue eyes as the courageous young girl he once aided, he can’t bring himself to send her away. And when an act of sacrifices leaves her injured and her reputation in shred, gratitude and guilt prompts him to attempt to rescue her once again.

Despite the fact that Travis is no longer the gallant youth Meredith once dreamed about, she vows to stand by his side. But will love ever be hers? Or will Travis always see her as merely a short-straw bride? (from the back of the book)

I loved this book!!!! I could not put it down and ended up reading in less than two hours and then reading it again!

The Plot:

After freeing her foot from a metal trap, a young Meredith discovers that the rough and tough Travis Archer is not quite as rough and tough as people describe him as. 12 years have passed and once again, due to overhearing the man who wants to marry her state that he is planning to burn down the Archer farm, she finds herself on Archer land.

Although things go terribly wrong as her intentions to warn Travis goes awry and she ends up being injured and in turn discovered in his bed by her uncle who is now demanding that one of the Archer brothers marry her, even though nothing improper happened.

Further trouble ensues as Travis and Meredith maneuver married life.

The plot was fast paced and continually had me flipping the pages.

The characters:

Meredith & Travis- both characters were headstrong and determined ensuring that interesting events would take place throughout the course of the book.

The Archer men were an interesting lot. Each one of them brought their own flavor to the book, which helped to round out the book nicely. And I would love to read more about them.

Cassie- Meredith’s cousin was a perfect secondary character and I thoroughly enjoyed reading the parts of the novel that she was in.

Roy Mitchell—I found him exceedingly annoying although I am not sure one is actually supposed to like the villain.

Overall:

I immensely liked this book. Not only was it a light little read, it was pleasantly charming as well.

Best Wishes & Happy Reading,

Angela Renee