His Forbidden Bride (The Brides of Paradise Ranch: Book 7)

Merry
Farmer
Genre: 
Historical

Diagnosed with consumption and given only months to live, Honoria Bonneville makes a decision - she’s wasted too much of her life with her controlling father and bossy older sisters. She asks Solomon Templesmith, a man she’s admired for years, to marry her, hoping to spend her last days happily. It’s no hardship for Solomon, the town’s successful banker. He’s always admired Honoria and wants to make sure her last days are spent in a loving environment with someone who cares for her. It sounds good, but that’s easier said than done with a biracial couple in 1876 Wyoming, especially when Honoria’s bullying, blackmailing, manipulative father is hell-bent on running both Solomon and his business into the ground. 

 

“His Forbidden Bride” is a fabulously creative and unique take on the old Cinderella storyline, set in late nineteenth century Wyoming. Ms. Farmer touches on several issues, such as emotional abuse, bullying, and bigotry, handling each one beautifully. A certain plot element was predictable, and a sugary-sweet scene towards the end drags on a little long. Otherwise, the characters are beautifully complex and well developed, and the storyline is guaranteed to keep any lover of historical western romances eyeball-deep in the pages until the very end. It’s a quick read, but chock-full of action and messages of hope and goodness overcoming the vileness of the world.   

 

Clarice Silvers