Heroes Needed for Four Damsels in Distress
Despite determination to be strong and independent, four women of bygone days are in need of a hero.
Lady and the Tramps by Jennifer Uhlarik
California, 1874
When outlaws steal a deed from Mattie Welling, her dreams for her eight orphan charges from New York City are dashed. Can Wells Fargo detective Jake Hickens be trusted to pick up the pieces?
Hickens be trusted to pick up the pieces?
The Secondhand Bride of Polecat Creek by Kathleen Y’Barbo
Texas, 1890
When Zeke Wyatt returns home to Polecat Creek intent on making good on his promise to marry his childhood sweetheart, he finds she’s run off in his absence, leaving her kid sister to care for her aging parents and the mercantile. Can Zeke finally settle down, or will he leave another sister with a broken heart?
The Bride of Basswood Hill by Gabrielle Meyer
Minnesota, 1900
When wealthy lumber baron, Charles Alexander, unexpectedly finds himself married to an Italian immigrant, Sofia Bellini, he must do all he can to protect her from the society she’s ill-prepared to navigate. But when he falls in love with his pretty bride, he will have to make a difficult choice: will he go through with the annulment they had planned?
Echoes of the Heart
Irish immigrant Aileen O’Connor is willing to work to survive in the land of opportunity. But when her sister is accosted on the streets, she’s forced to accept the help of policeman Sean Doyle, a widower with a young son. When tragedy engulfs the city, will Sean and Aileen’s newfound love survive the raging flames?
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I’m going to give you one “lump” review because they were all different, yet all wonderfully written. It’s always fun to see the various writing styles of the authors.
These were all clean, historical romance but please don’t take that to mean they are light and fluffy. Each author writes about the struggle of various people or groups of people. The 1800s wasn’t an easy time to live through. It could be rough and heavy with responsibility.
We learn about the social injustices of the early 1900s, when the rich were preferred and often treated others poorly. We see what happens when tragedy strikes due to not caring about the average blue collar workers. And yet through it all God is good and merciful. Each story also gives us hope and joy. And each story left me wanting more, which is the mark of a good novella.
If you enjoy historical fiction I can highly recommend this compilation of novellas.
In Courting Calamity, four authors collaborate on a collection of tales. Except for the fourth story, Echoes of the Heart, each of the stories is satisfying and engaging. The stories are short but well-written and can be read quickly. As a result, when a few hours are available, a person can curl up with a cup of coffee or tea and a blanket and read one or more of the novellas.
The stories are set among different cities and timeframes, allowing for diverse and distinct tales. Each deals with an obstacle to be overcome, a woman who needs or appreciates the support of a man and an adversity to face. The main characters have faith in God and rely on Him for guidance.
I enjoyed each of the stories. However, Echoes of the Heart is an exceedingly difficult, horrific book to read. The subject matter is especially important, dealing with workplace and environmental safety. I had an extremely challenging time reading it. Its depiction of a fire at a shirtwaist factory is graphic and horrifying.
The other three stories, Lady and the Tramps, The Secondhand Bride of Polecat Creek and The Bride of Basswood Hill are less melancholy and more enjoyable.
I received this book from NetGalley. However, my review is voluntary, and all opinions are my own.
The fourth novella may be triggering for some individuals due to its graphic and horrifying depictions.
Courting Calamity is a collection of historical fiction short stories. Each story has it’s own timeframe and location. Each story is a great stand-alone story that draws the reader in. While there are levels of tragedy in each of the stories, there is redemption, too. I recommend this book for anyone who loves a good clean historical story based on an event that actually happened in the past.
Thank you Net Galley for the opportunity to review this book for my honest opinion.
Excellent Historical Fiction Read!
Each individual novella contained within is masterfully written and keeps the reader engaged to the moment.
Some of the stories have hilarious moments and others are heartbreaking at times.
Each individual story deals with a specific time period in the United States of America: taking place between 1874 and 1900’s in the states of California, Texas, Minnesota, and New York.
I very much appreciated the variety of locations and settings for the tales held within this Novella collection.
There was not one badly written story in this collection and it most definitely deserves 5 stars! (I would give it more if it was an option)
One last thing I would like to point out, as the title indicates “Courting Calamity” does have stories that involve peril and tragedy.
Not all of them, but some.
However, I found it rounded everything out into a nice collection and if you like historical fiction –
I would recommend checking out this Novella Collection!
***Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for the digital ARC of this book. All views and opinions expressed in this review are my own.***
3.5stars
“Arresting stowaways isn’t my job.” – Lady and the Tramp by Jennifer Uhlarik
How could it have gotten so complicated? Take eight orphaned children on a train, find her brother’s property, and live happily ever after . . . or . . . . survive a train wreck, meet a handsome Wells Fargo Detective, get kidnapped, and survive to tell the story. Which would Mattie Welling choose?
” . . . . there was no reason he should be soaking wet and shivering. He jumped up and turned around. There stood the reason. And she was stunning. ” – The Secondhand Bride of Polecat Creek by Kathleen Y’Barbo
What an introduction! Or, it was actually a chilly re-introduction to the man that Lizzie Cooper had figured would marry her sister. She had planned on it, as a matter of fact. But the best laid plans . . . Abigail was gone and Lizzie was left gaping at her not-going-to-be brother-in-law. So, that left both of them in a doozy of a conundrum.
“I have prayed God would spare me until I could ask you to marry Sofia and care for her once I am gone.” – The Bride of Basswood Hill by Gabrielle Meyer
What an impossible request . . . or was it? Charles Alexander’s beloved mentor was dying, and his beautiful granddaughter needed the protection of a husband. Was it possible that God had ordained this strange, but seemingly wonderful introduction? If so, Sofia was going to need help navigating her way into one of the most recognized industry names in the country. Can Charles convince her to not only take his name, but to claim his heart?
“What’s love like?” . . . . “It’s not like in the dime novels. . . . all sighs and roses and moonlit walks. It’s hard and scary, because life is. But it’s real. And when it’s real, you know you’ve found someone to journey battles beside, not matter where that journey takes you.” – Echoes of the Heart by Amanda Barratt
Who knew that a simple conversation between sisters would one day mean so much? Against all odds, Meggie and Aileen O’Connor have traveled to America in search of a better life. And they may have found it, having secured employment in a large New York shirtwaist factory. Working long hours with limited breaks and unfair payment policies, they get caught up the formation of unions. Along the way, Aileen meets a handsome, kind, charming young man; Lorenzo Faveros, whose admiration will be tested through the fires of adversity.
Four enjoyable, engaging, and inspiring novellas!
Since life has been busy lately, these 4 novellas were a perfect break. The shorter length allowed me to read and finish an enjoyable story without a huge time investment. I thoroughly enjoyed the children from the orphan train in the opening Western tale by Jennifer Uhlarik. I appreciated the sincere silent everyday prayers of the main characters as they sought wisdom on their journey. Kathleen Y’Barbo added a romantic story with humor that I liked. The unexpected honesty between the two main characters led to something beautifully unexpected. In the story by Gabrielle Meyer, the marriage of two strangers had a few twists and turns. I enjoyed the rich and interesting history based on the author’s home state. The cherry on top was added by Amanda Barratt. Her well written novella was a moving story of young working people in NYC. Although their journey involved tragedy, there was still faith and hope to be found. Overall, all four of these romantic historical fiction novellas were filled with wonderful characters and well worth the read!
I thoroughly enjoyed each novella in this captivating historical romance collection. There is something for everyone from kidnapping and destructive factory fire to a union strike and a train robbery, readers will never lack for adventure and have little reason to put this collection down. I admit I was drawn to Courting Calamity because I love Amanda Barratt’s storytelling. Echoes of the Heart continued to demonstrate the author’s ability to make real-life events come to life on the page as we get an up close look at life for immigrants in an NYC factory. Jennifer Uhlarik’s, Lady & the Tramps, was my first read by this talented author who will now have a place on my must-read list as she captivated me with her emotionally gripping and descriptive story-telling. The Bride of Basswood
Hill is was a lovely rags to riches story but its also about the triumph love over difficult obstacles. The Secondhand Bride of Polecat Creek gets the prize for best title in the collection and had me rooting for Zeke & Lizzie from the start.
I received a free eBook version of Courting Calamity from Net Galley. I was not required to leave a favorable review. All opinions expressed are my own.
his book was amazing. I loved each of the stories presented in the book. Lady and the Tramps pulled me in from the beginning. Such an amazing journey filled with dangers as Mattie goes across the country with several children. The Secondhand Bride of Polecat Creek finds Elizabeth fighting for freedom from the responsibilities she finds herself suddenly in charge of. She makes the decision to take her sister’s place to fulfill a promise that her sister had made to Zeke. Elizabeth finds a freedom that she never thought possible. The Bride of Basswood Hill discovers that love does not respect social classes. Echoes of the Heart was a tender romance that blooms in the heart of NYC where new immigrants struggled to get ahead in life. The life that the immigrants found themselves was at times worse than what they had left behind. I love the tenacity of Aileen as she conquers a new city. This fourth story tugged at my heart and made the unfortunate past very real.
Each story had its own qualities that made them all very enjoyable to read. I highly recommend this book to anyone that loves short, sweet, clean romance with strong women characters.
I received a copy of this book from Barbour books through NetGalley. This is my honest and voluntary review.
A wonderful collection of novellas! Each story is well written and has just the right amount of drama and romance to keep you turning the pages to see what happens next. If you like clean historical fiction you will love this book. I highly recommend this book. Thank you Barbour Publishing via NetGalley for the ARC copy of this book. All opinions expressed are my own.
Courting Calamity is a novella collection with four stories about four independent women who need a bit of help. Overall, it’s a nice collection. Some stories were better than others, but they’re nice stories to read when you don’t have much time for a full novel.
I’ve included my thoughts on each individual story below.
Lady and the Tramps by Jennifer Uhlarik
This was a good story, although I felt like it could’ve been developed a bit more. I liked the characters, not only Mattie and Jake but also the children. The plot was interesting, but the romance could’ve been developed more. The ending wrapped up really quickly and seemed a bit rushed. But overall, this was a good story and I was sad to leave the characters. Would’ve made a great novel
The Secondhand Bride of Polecat Creek by Kathleen Y’Barbo
The premise here was interesting, but I wish Zeke and Lizzie’s relationship had been developed more. I found the ending to be a bit cheesy, but I did appreciate the fact that all loose ends were tied up.
The Bride of Basswood Hill by Gabrielle Meyer
I wish this story had been longer. I enjoyed Alex and Sofia and wanted to stay with them a bit longer.
Echoes of the Heart by Amanda Barratt
This story was graphic and puts more emphasis on the plight of workers at the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory than the romance. I would’ve like to see this as a novel so the characters could be more fleshed out and to accommodate the timeline. I understood that she wanted the reader to understand the experiences of those involved in the strikes and the fire, but the ending had a lot of description of death and destruction I was not prepared for. However, I did like that she tried to accurately portray the plight of factory workers and the reason we’ve seen many labor laws go into affect to protect people.
Note: I received a free copy via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. I was not required to give a positive review.
Courting Calamity is a collection of four captivating, easy-to-read stories penned by four talented writers. These stories set in various locations from California and Texas in the late 1800s to Minnesota and New York City in the early 1900s effectively capture the culture of the times. The characters in each story are engaging and believable.
A train robbery and a kidnapping, a marriage of convenience, a dying man’s request, a union strike and a ravaging factory fire combine with drama, romance, humor, and faith to produce an entertaining, inspiring read. Amanda Barratt’s story about the plight of immigrant factory workers in New York City is especially touching. This collection is exactly the quality I expect from these four gifted storytellers! I thoroughly enjoyed this book and highly recommend it.
I received a copy of this book in e-book form from the publisher via netgalley but am under no obligation to write a positive review. All opinions are my own.
Lady and the Tramps by Jennifer Uhlarik
I was impressed by Uhlarik’s ability to give each of the eight children a personality so effortlessly, while still making the story the focus. However, the romance felt forced and was skimmed over. This may have worked better as a longer story, just so each aspect of the plot could be given the attention it needed. 2.5/5 stars
The Secondhand Bride of Polecat Creek by Kathleen Y’Barbo
A short and sweet romance! This story has a very interesting premise, and I absolutely loved Zeke. My only complaint is that it wasn’t longer! I wanted more of the characters and the story, but readers will still enjoy Y’Barbo’s writing. 4/5 stars
The Bride of Basswood Hill by Gabrielle Meyer
I loved this story! Alex and Sofia were a wonderful couple, and I would have loved this to be a full novel. 4.5/5 stars
Echoes of the Heart by Amanda Barratt
Amanda Barratt has such a beautiful way of telling heart-wrenching stories, and this is one of her best. Awful events, primarily the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire as well as workers’ strikes, are described in raw detail, but in an incredible manner that grips the reader. With rich historical detail and astounding emotion, Barratt does a wonderful job of highlighting important events and issues we all face in some way while still telling a compelling, beautiful story. 5/5 stars
I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.