Review: Widow Woman

Book Review: Widow Woman, by Patricia McLinn

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1880s Wyoming Territory - As strong as the ranch she runs, widow Rachel Terhune has one dream—to fulfill the legacy she inherited from her father. Hiring Texas cowboy Nick Dusaq has nothing to do with the fierce pull between them and everything to do with saving her land.
The solitary cowboy newly arrived in Wyoming after bringing in a cattle drive, recognizes a kindred heart scarred by cruelty. He would ride away – he should ride away – if only her ranch didn’t need him so damned badly. Her ranch — not the widow woman like none he’s encountered before — is the only need he’ll let himself consider. Because he knows he's not a man entitled to any second chances of the heart.
Passion as powerful as the harsh beauty of the land around them bonds Rachel, the widow woman devoting every bit of her strength and courage to holding onto her Wyoming Territory ranch, and Nick, the loner cowhand with dreams of his own.
Yes, they have passion. But does it hold the promise of healing and love ... or the destruction of dreams?


Genre: historical romance

Publishing date: September 2010

Mature content: yes

Review: I was first drawn to this book mostly by its title, because Widow Woman reminded me of the lyrics in Garth Brook's That Summer. Being a western historical romance was the additional push I needed to download and start reading it immediately.

And I throughly enjoyed it. Up to a point.

Rachel is an interesting character, but not entirely consistent, and sometimes she seems to forget to behave like the strong, independent woman she's supposed to be. Nick, on the other hand, is a haunted man and though I understand he does need to overcome his demons before he can accept Rachel's love, there were a few pages where I just wished he could hurry and get on with it.

And basically that was my feeling over the entire second half of the book - wishing for the story to unfold once and for all. Rachel's marriage after Nick's departure is maybe accurate in the social context of the time and place, but given her previous marriage, and additional marriage and an additional dead husband is just one too many - of each.

Alba (Nick's sister) and Davis' romance is sweet as a side story, but it came too late in the book, when I was already too bored to enjoy it. Overall, it is a well written book, but the plot is a bit too long to sustain my interest, so I can't bring myself to rate it better. Still, there are some raving reviews on Amazon and Goodreads, so clearly not everyone faces the same problem I did.  


Happy Wednesday,


the book worm, book blog

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