The Mail Order Bride’s Secret by Linda Broday – a Review

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Description:
When three young children show up on outlaw Tait Trinity’s doorstep, he knows he can’t help them—a wanted man has no business raising kids. And yet he can’t bring himself to turn them away. At a loss, he sends for the mail order bride he’d been writing to, hoping the demure dressmaker will be the answer to his prayers.

Melanie Dunbar is nothing like the bride Tait was expecting. She’s rough and tumble…and hiding an ulterior motive. Dangerous men have taken her sister hostage, and if Melanie wants to see her alive, she’ll have to betray her new husband. There’s only one problem—the more time she spends with Tait, the more she comes to care for him. Yet as the noose begins to tighten, Melanie will have to make a terrible choice: save her sister…or the man she loves.

Review:

The Mail Order Bride’s Secret by Linda Broday is the 3^rd book in her Outlaw Mail Order Brides series. As I have said previously, I have become a big fan of Broday’s western historical romance stories, and The Mail Order Bride’s Secret is once again another fantastic story line. Refresher: The story takes place in Hope’s Crossing, which is a town run by outlaws, who have started a clean slate on their lives, with building a family and changing their lives for the better.  

Tait Trinity, our hero, is suddenly left with three young children (two twin boys and a baby girl), when his sister is brutally murdered.  Tait decides to get a mail order bride to help him take care of the children; he also knows his life could be short term and dangerous, as other criminals are also after Tait.

Melanie Dunbar, our heroine, finds herself in trouble, as she and her sister, Ava are put in jail because of something her father did.  The crooked Judge makes a deal with Melanie; he will free them if she can bring Tail Trinity to him, as well as the money he stole.   Knowing they could be in jail for a very long time, Melanie accepts the deal. In doing so, she responds to Tait’s letter accepting her as his bride.

When Melanie arrives in Hope’s Crossing, she is immediately surprised at her attraction to Tait, and though she has no experience taking care of children, in a short time she finds herself caring about them all.  Quickly, her relationship with Tait heats up, and they both find themselves caring deeply about each other.   Melanie feels guilty, and tries to find a way to get the money and return it to the Judge, to free her sister, and at the same time, not have Tait hurt.

Tait is determined to find the man who murdered his sister, and knows that the children and Melanie will always be in danger with threats against him.  He will take matters in his own hands when Becky (the baby girl) is kidnapped, and he with Jack and Clay (previous book heroes), will try to rescue her, and find the man who killed his sister. When Melanie gets a threat by the Judge to bring the money, she too takes matters in her own hands by traveling to free her sister.

What follows is an exciting story line, with nonstop action, dangerous situations, with their lives on the line and a wonderful sweet romance between two people with flawed pasts that will catch up with them.  The last half of the book was tense and exciting, as they both find themselves in dangerous situations, which will bring them face to face with the evil villains.

Linda Broday once again gives us another wonderful western historical romance story, as The Mail Order Bride’s Secret was a great addition to this series.   It was emotional, tense, exciting, sweet romantic story, with a fabulous group of secondary characters and a great couple.

Reviewed by Barb

Copy provided by Publisher