Cody’s Promise

WESTERN  Colorado, 1898 - Lydia Parsons never dreamed she would end up a prostitute.  She had plans and dreams (not to mention class), but when her parents died and she was forced to leave her home, she found herself in Willow Creek with no money.  Madame Love, owner of the local saloon, took her in off the streets, but soon Lydia found herself forced into selling her body and became a prisoner of the saloon.  The one bright spot in her life becomes Cody Butler.  Once a week, he pays Madame Love handsomely to spend a few hours with Lydia.  When Cody offers to take her away from her miserable life at the saloon, she longs to go, but Madame Love has stolen something precious from Lydia, and she cannot start a new life with Cody until it is returned to her.

This is a typical “hooker with a heart of gold” story.  The two main characters each have obstacles to overcome before they can be happy together.  The story, especially the beginning, feels a bit rushed and the ending is abrupt.  Readers might wish for a stronger heroine as Lydia is frightened “to her soul” by almost everything, but it works out as Cody is willing to sweep in and rescue her.  Fans of Pretty Woman and Cinderella will find what they are looking for in this book that puts a western spin on a rags-to-riches story.

Leslie Stokes