“Linda Broday’s heroes step right out of her books and into your heart.”—Jodi Thomas, New York Times bestselling authorAn outlaw falls for his mysterious mail order bride in this sweeping western epic by beloved author Linda Broday.Accused of crimes he didn’t commit, ex-preacher Ridge Steele is forced to give up everything he knew and make his home with outlaws. Desperate for someone to confide … confide in, he strikes up correspondence with mail-order bride Adeline Jancy, finding in her the open heart he’s been searching for. Upon her arrival, Ridge discovers Addie only communicates through the written word, but he knows a little of what trauma can do to a person and vows to stand by her side.Addie is eager to start a new life with the kind ex-preacher and the little boy she’s stolen away from her father—a zealot priest of a terrorized flock. As her small family settles into life at Hope’s Crossing, she even begins to find the voice, and confidence, she’d lost so long ago.But danger is not far behind, and her father will not be denied. While Addie desperately fights the man who destroyed her childhood, a determined Ridge races to the rescue. The star-crossed lovers will need more than prayers to survive this final challenge…and find their way back to each other again.
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Got cowboys? This author writes them in spades! Linda brings her outstanding series to a comforting close with a novel that wraps the reader in the warmth of a cowboy’s embrace. Just about the best place to be at the end of the day. Once you get started, you’ll want to read the entire series.
Awesome storytelling brings Ridge and Addie’s happily ever after to life.
I adored these two so much – they were the perfect ying-yang to the other, proving right from the start how they could provide the safety, comfort, grace, and acceptance they each needed so desperately. There was so much going on in the story, flowing from one valley and trial right to the mountain tops, and through it all, Ridge and Addie shared a united front. I love these kind of relationships and seeing the characters grow beautifully together.
While some plot lines in this story tend to make me cautious or avoid the story all together, they were handled in such a way that I was able to go with it and enjoy the story without cringes. The whole world of Hope’s Crossing with all the family, friends, and animals was a delight to live in for the time I was there.
This book feels like the cherry on top of a yummy sundae of a series. The whole series is terrific and isn’t one to be missed. For me, even though Jack’s story still reigns as my favorite, Ridge is right barely behind/beside him.
What a great ending to this series! I enjoyed the unique circumstances Addie and Ridge had to overcome. It is a great example of how important communication, in any form, is in a relationship. The characters are wonderful and the plot was great.
This is an enjoyable western romance featuring Addie and Ridge, two damaged souls who come together to form a lasting bond. Addie has been in prison, but the reader doesn’t know exactly why for some time, which builds tension and reader interest. All we know is that she has escaped from a dangerous secret religious society run by her father a religious zealot.
Addie suffers from what we now know is PTSD from the trauma of her past and her imprisonment, and she has lost the ability to speak. How she regains her voice, and her trust again is part of the story that is handled with tenderness and care and made me love Ridge as much as she does.
Ridge is an escaped outlaw, accused of a crime he didn’t commit, and has taken refuge with other outlaws in New Hope. In his past life, he was a preacher, and the two sides of his life are at constant odds. He knows he has to do what is needed to survive, to avoid the hangman’s noose, but can he stay safe forever? Can he protect Addie and the people of New Hope forever? I was as eager as Ridge to find the answers to those questions and when they came, they were most satisfying.
Another part of the story that I really enjoyed was how the community was so strong and understanding, there was so much goodness from people who suffered greatly. Western romance is not a genre I usually read, and I must say this has a been a delightful surprise!
So I’m a little late reading Once upon a Mail order bride and getting my review up thanks to getting Covid and having it kick my butt. Better late than never. I have been a fan of this series since Clay’s book. I love reading about mail order brides and life back in the wild west and this series has both those. Ridge Steele has been my favorite since book 1, so finally getting his story was great. It was nice to take a step back from the stress of life and enjoy his love story.
Ridge was everything I wanted and more. I really enjoyed his back story and getting to know what made him the way he was. He had such a good heart and was easy to fall in love with. Addie was amazing and perfect for Ridge. Not only was she smart and pretty but brave and loyal too. She did what was right no matter the cost to her. They made a really cute couple.
The plot was really good, but I did take one star off because there was so much danger coming at the couple from both sides and I felt like it was a bit too much. With so much going on in the world it would have been nice to have a little bit more calm to the story. Still I loved reading it. Getting to see all the other couples and the kids. I think this was the last book in the series and that’s sad because I would love to see the kids get married. If you are looking for a good read with a wild west flavor this is the book for you. Also I recommend you read the whole series because they are all good.
I loved returning to Hope’s Crossing for Ridge and Addie’s story. While the story is fictional, Linda Broday has created characters who have taken up residence in my heart. As Once Upon A Mail Order Bride is the final installment in the Outlaw Bride’s series, I will miss these characters who have dared to dream regardless of the odds against them and fought for the love and hope we all seek. Thank you Linda for creating a bright spot on the trail for weary travellers to stop and rest for a while. I plan to revisit these awesome folks again and know all who seek refuge are welcome.
Once Upon a Mail Order Bride is the 4th and final book in Linda Broday’s exciting Outlaw Mail Order Brides series. I hate to see it end, as I’ve enjoyed it immensely. And it certainly ended with quite a bang! I’m going to miss the outlaw Texas town of Hope’s Crossing and its unusual residents.
Ridge Steele, a former preacher, was accused of a crime he didn’t commit. (Is it just me, or does that name sound like one of an adult film actor?) He makes his home in Hope’s Crossing as mayor and runs a land office. Lonely, he corresponds with mail order bride Adeline Jancy, and they agree to wed when she is released from jail. When the beautiful young woman arrives, Ridge discovers that she cannot speak due to trauma and communicates by writing. As they draw closer, Addie gets her voice back and they begin to build a lovely life together. But danger lurks – there’s a bounty on Ridge’s head, and Addie’s psycho preacher father is looking for her to exact revenge. Will they survive, or will burgeoning love be cut short?
Both Ridge and Addie were fascinating characters and made an awesome couple. When Ridge was accused of the crime he did not commit, he lost his faith and would no longer preach. He was as stubborn as a mule, especially when he was trying to protect Addie; however, he was putty in her hands. Addie was thrown in jail because she helped hide a little boy her father wanted in his clutches. She was basically in solitary for 3 years and lost her voice. But when Ridge was in danger, she found it. She was such a sweet woman but had a spine of steel. There was a lot of action in this book and it moved at a quick pace. I loved seeing the couples from the previous books and catching up with their lives. My favorite supporting character was Bodie, a 15-year-old boy whose life Ridge saved. The most heartwarming sections of the story dealt with Ridge, Addie and Bodie making their own loving family in the midst of chaos. The perfect book to end the series!
I received an ARC of this book courtesy of the publisher and NetGalley. I received no compensation for my review, and all thoughts and opinions expressed are entirely my own.
What a charming – roller coaster of a book this has been!
This is the story of Addie and Ridge as they find, learn and understand each other and built their own perfect life after being outlaws, each in its own way.
There is a lot happening in this book and I loved how the action has been paced with the quiet times, the book is very well written and portioned. The writing flows easily, there is no dull moment and you are swept away by all the new events happening.
I also loved how the community was so strong and understanding, there was so much goodness from people who suffered greatly. Not a book I would usually read, this has a been a great surprise!
I received a free copy of this book in exchange for my honest opinion.
Once Upon A Mail Order Bride by Linda Broday is a new take on an old trope. Ridge Steele is in the market for a bride. He has been writing to a woman in prison, now she is out and scheduled to arrive today. He was an outlaw with a price on his head. He had used a broker, a man and wife who had obtained brides for other men in town, very successfully. She arrived and she was beautiful but she couldn’t, or wouldn’t talk. Other than that she was perfect and they were married the next day. She was afraid. He had to be patient. She fell into being the perfect wife, except she slept in her hidey-hole under the steps, and she didn’t talk. She was making his house in to a home. One day, Ridge and Addie were riding when they came upon a couple of bounty hunters and a young boy who had been severely beaten. Ridge shot and killed on of them but was only able to get the second in the leg. The problem was, he recognized Ridge and there was a $3,000 bounty on his head. He took off, but Ridge knew he would be back. The time had come to tell Addie why he was running from the law.
This was a terrific book with twists and turns aplenty. Their marriage began slowly but grew into the most important thing in either of their lives. If they could only stay alive long enough to enjoy it, with both of them having people chasing them. The town could only provide so much protection. There’s was a growing community, full of other mail order brides and men who were running from the law, or had been. It is a charming tale of forgiveness, deceit, false religion, hate, and family. The characters were almost too good to be true, with just enough faults to make them real. The story is an original telling of a tried-and-true plot. Then I discover it is the fourth book in the series, so there are three more I can read. I recommend it!
I was invited to read a free ARC of Once Upon A Mail Order Bride by Netgalley. All opinions and interpretations contained herein are solely my own. #netgalley #onceuponamailorderbride
Once Upon a Mail Order Bride
Outlaw Mail Order Brides Series #4
Linda Broday
https://www.facebook.com/lindabrodayauthor/
Release date 11/24/2020
Publisher Sourcebooks Casablanca
An outlaw falls for his mysterious mail order bride in this sweeping western epic by beloved author Linda Broday.
Accused of crimes he didn’t commit, ex-preacher Ridge Steele is forced to give up everything he knew and make his home with outlaws. Desperate for someone to confide in, he strikes up correspondence with mail-order bride Adeline Jancy, finding in her the open heart he’s been searching for. Upon her arrival, Ridge discovers Addie only communicates through the written word, but he knows a little of what trauma can do to a person and vows to stand by her side.
Addie is eager to start a new life with the kind ex-preacher and the little boy she’s stolen away from her father—a zealot priest of a terrorized flock. As her small family settles into life at Hope’s Crossing, she even begins to find the voice, and confidence, she’d lost so long ago.
But danger is not far behind, and her father will not be denied. While Addie desperately fights the man who destroyed her childhood, a determined Ridge races to the rescue. The star-crossed lovers will need more than prayers to survive this final challenge…and find their way back to each other again.
Will a new meaning of life heal her wounded soul …
It is my first read by the author and I hope not my last, I really loved her talent at narrating this tale of two broken people creating a new family and a future together.
Addie is a damaged nestling, so much she shuttled herself from the outside world, retiring in her head. But now freedom has come, she is also frustrated her impediment.
When she agreed to wed Ridge, she knew she took a great leap in faith, and while he appears kind, she struggles to believe he has not his own agenda.
Her past has destroyed her belief in the others. She is on her guard, unable at first to let go.
So it is small victory when each passing day sees her less tense, smiling more.
Ridge has seen the hangman’s noose from the inside, and lives with this hanging over his head like a Damocles sword.
It destroyed his faith in God as he has to change to survive but the good man in him is still there with his dreams, awaiting a glimmer of hope, Addie.
She is not whom he expected, because none of their communicating letters prepared them. Yet he has decided she will be the right woman for him, and he is determined to prove it to her.
He is such a gentle soul who had to stomp his convictions to survive.
Their tale is one of recovery, trusting then healing. They move step by step, each new progress is a victory on fate. Their journey is not a smooth one, it is leaving them bruised by the end but in the meanwhile they would have gained more than they lost. A new family and an everlasting love.
5 stars
I was granted an advance copy by the publisher, here is my true and unbiased opinion.
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I am very sad to see this amazing historical western romance series end. It is definitely one of my favorites in this subgenre and I have come to really love all the characters in it. Once Upon a Mail Order Bride tells the story of ex-preacher Ridge Steele, who now serves as the mayor of the outlaw town of Hope’s Crossing. He is the last of the town’s founders to meet his mail order bride Adeline Jancy. Addie has spent the last three years in solitary confinement below the prison, and has lost her voice because of the trauma she has been through. Ridge is very patient and just a great man in general, and he does his best to make sure that Addie’s safe and can take all the time she needs to open up.
These two were an amazing couple and I really enjoyed seeing them grow closer together. They both have been through things in the past and I loved seeing them finally opening up to each other. Besides that I also loved seeing the individual growth of these characters. Especially Addie had a lot of trauma to deal with. She was very strong and determined and also loyal and protective. She will do anything in her power to protect and fight for the people she cares about. Ridge is the same and I thought they made such a beautiful couple.
I absolutely love Linda Broday’s writing style and story-telling abilities. She really knows how to suck a reader in and have them connect and care about the story and characters. It was so much fun to see what all the main characters from the previous books were up to and I enjoyed being reunited with them. The transformation of this beautiful and wild outlaw town was phenomenal, I loved going on this journey with the characters. This series was funny, romantic, action-packed, and emotional. This series is a must-read for historical western romance readers. Also I want to encourage historical romance lovers to give this subgenre a chance, I think you’ll enjoy the simple, exciting but very dangerous way of living in the wild west. I think this subgenre is underrated nowadays and I hope more new readers will give it a try.
I’ve anticipated this amazing book, Once Upon A Mail-Order Bride by Linda Broday for years.
When Ridge Steele was introduced into this phenomenal series, he intrigued me in more ways than one, especially his mysterious past.
Often when a book is over anticipated by a reader, once they finally get to read it, it often can be a letdown, but OH CONTRAIRE, this book delivered beyond my wildest expectations.
Our Queen of Texas Historical Romance, never lets her readers down.
Once Upon A Mail-Order Bride started off strong and never looked back.
Ridge Steele and Adeline Jancy were the perfect fit for one another.
Running from their past and trying to keep a low profile, has become their survival.
Ridge and Addie’s union was what both had been needing and longing to find, a true soulmate.
“Like plants needed sun to grow, true friendship required laughter and sharing to nurture one’s soul.”
Ridge and Addie have the most beautiful love-story and have stolen my heart.
Bodie was such an amazing young man, charming, protective, and just wanted to be loved.
Linda Broday has written the perfect book (I know, I say everyone hers is my favorite), but this truly shot to the top.
She writes with so much compassion, I’ve never read an author that can put so many feelings in her books, as she incorporates.
I highly recommend this phenomenal book to everyone, it will forever remain in your heart.
One of the most profound statements in the book truly sums up this wonderful storyline.
“Ridge had always thought that a person’s past was what determined their future, but he could see now that it didn’t have to be that way. Strong desire to change could override all else, determine a new outcome of a life. He’d dreamed of being out from under the stain of his past, and maybe now he had a real shot.”
Oh what a read and awesome addition to the Outlaw Mail Order Bride series. I have to admit when I read the Author’s remarks at the end of the book I teared up because Linda Broday let it be known that this was the last book in the series. I want more is all I can say. I have fallen in love with all the characters in this series that had forged their own way. Outlaws and many people that have come together to form a town in what used to be an Outlaw’s Hideaway. This series could go on and on with the men in the town finding love, with the children growing up and I just don’t want to leave these characters behind.
In Once Upon a Mail Order Bride, Ridge Steele, former preacher turned outlaw when wrongfully charge with a crime is a wanted man that agrees to take on a mail-order-bride. Not only is he getting a mail-order-bride but she is a woman that is coming to him after being released from prison. Ridge has been corresponding with Adeline Jancy, although he has no idea why she is in prison and knows very little of her past he decides that she is what he has been searching for.
Addie, as she is called, has no idea what to expect when she arrives at Hope’s Crossing but she is looking forward to starting a new life with her proposed husband, Ridge. She is hoping to be able to have the little boy in her life that she risked it all for and the reason that she ended up in prison. She is a woman wanted by her evil father that will do anything to find her and get her to tell him where that little boy is. Ridge’s first surprise when Addie arrives at Hope’s Crossing is that Addie can’t speak. She communicates by writing what she has to say with pencil and paper that she always keeps at hand.
This is a beautifully written Historical Western Romance about a couple that is in danger from the beginning because they are both hunted but they’re both determined to survive and find their happily-ever-after together. An excellent read as all Linda Broday books always are.
A nonstop adventure that pulls you into the story from the very first. My heart was pounding and I was as anxious as the heroine trying to get away!
Two wounded souls that need redemption and to find love, so much it just tied my heart up in a knot!
Ridge has been accused of a crime he did not commit and forced to take refuge in not the best place. But to find a way out he corresponds with Addie, to become his mail order bride.
Addie, bless her heart, has been in prison and in traumatized and cannot even speak when she gets out (oh that is a story of it’s own). Ridge is so good with her and they really help each other.
But of course nothing goes smoothly as their journey to happiness is fraught with danger and evil men. There is so much to this story, that I could only give a heavy sigh of happiness as I turned the last page. Wow what a series and will miss these wonderful characters!
This is an action packed Western novel with a slow burn, low angst romance. Pretty well everything happens to test the pioneer spirt of the main characters – from dastardly criminals to a natural disaster. But Addie and Ridge stick together and support each other through each event. There were a couple incidents where I had to not question too much – how did the matchmaker find Addie? How did Ridge’s accuser find him? Addie’s mother’s recovery was astonishingly quick – and I found the last third of the story dragged a bit, but it was an interesting read.
I received a free copy from Netgalley. This is my unbiased review.