A Rancher of Convenience by Regina Scott {Review}

A Rancher of Convenience by Regina Scott

Paperback, 288 pages

Published September 6th 2016 by Love Inspired 

 

 

Fill-In Father…and Husband  

Sweet mail-order bride Nancy Bennett can't believe it when her husband is exposed as a cattle rustler—and killed. And when the banker holding the ranch's mortgage questions whether she can run the ranch on her own, the pregnant widow has nowhere to turn. Until steady foreman Hank Snowden proposes marriage…

Racked with grief about his role in Lucas Bennett's death, Hank resolves to do right by the man's wife and child. So it's natural for him to step in as Nancy's newly minted husband. But the marriage of convenience may become more than a mere obligation…if only Hank and his bride can brave the first steps toward elusive true love.

 

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My Review: 4 Stars

 

This story is unique in the fact that it doesn't start out with Nancy becoming a mail-order bride. That's already happened and when her husband is killed, she's left to save the ranch, learning a lot about her husband that she had no clue about. Foreman Hank is prepared to help Nancy with the ranch, but when the bank puts the pressure on, he proposes to her. 

 

Hank is as steady as they come and a very admirable man. With a baby on the way, he's determined to be a great father. I love how he remembers the manners his mother taught him. Nancy is willing to learn all she can to stand on her own, but this arrangement works out nicely. As they each come to terms with their pasts, they forge on to shape their future together. There is an underlying thread of mystery and suspense, but the overall feeling throughout this book is very sweet, tender, and heartwarming.

 

This is the type of story that makes me long to live in simpler times on a ranch. Although life is busy and hard, it's satisfying and rewarding. The relationships are based on mutual respect and when a romance does blossom, it's endearing, and the friendships are full of loyalty. My heart loves these kinds of books. This author does a good job of bringing these feelings to the story and of making the characters come to life.

 

Content: mild romance; mild violence; mild religious elements.

 

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About the Author:

 

Regina Scott started writing novels in the third grade. Thankfully for literature as we know it, she didn't actually sell her first novel until she had learned a bit more about writing such as vocabulary, sentence structure, and plot. After numerous short stories and articles in magazines and trade journals, she got serious about her novel writing. The Unflappable Miss Fairchild was her first novel to be published (March 1998).

Besides her novels, Regina Scott has had published three Regency novellas ("The June Bride Conspiracy" in His Blushing Bride, "Sweeter Than Candy" in A Match for Mother, and "A Place by the Fire" in Mistletoe Kittens). Two of her novels, A Dangerous Dalliance and The Twelve Days of Christmas, have been translated into German. A Dangerous Dalliance and The Incomparable Miss Compton have been translated into Italian. Starstruck and Perfection have been translated into Dutch.

Regina Scott and her husband are the parents of two sons. They reside in the Tri-Cities of southeast Washington State and are members of the Church of the Nazarene. Born in 1959 and raised in the Seattle area, Regina Scott is a graduate of the University of Washington. She comes by her writing talent naturally--both her parents are excellent writers in their vocations as teacher and electrical technician. Her mother envisioned the plot for "Sweeter Than Candy," the novella which was written as a tribute to her.

Regina Scott is a devout Christian and a decent fencer; owns a historical, fantasy, and science fiction costume collection that currently takes up over a third of her large closet; and has been known to impersonate an independent consultant specializing in risk communication.