Review ~ Sixty Acres and a Bride by Regina Jennings

With nothing to their names, young widow Rosa Garner and her mother-in-law return to Texas and the family ranch. Only now the county is demanding back taxes and the women have only three months to pay.

Though facing eviction, Rosa can’t keep herself from falling in love with the countryside and the wonderful extended family who want only her best. Learning the American customs is not easy, however, and this beautiful young widow can’t help but catch wandering eyes. Where some offer help with dangerous strings attached, only one man seems honorable. But when Weston Garner, still grieving his own lost love, is unprepared to give his heart, to what lengths will Rosa go to save her future?

Author website:  Regina Jennings

Buy at Barnes & Noble

Buy at Christianbook.com

Buy at Amazon

Reviewed by Rebecca Maney

Along came Rosa; an unexpected pleasure to everyone around her.

Beautiful, sensual, vulnerable, and loyal; she bedazzles an upstanding widower upon meeting Westin Garner. And what a meeting it was! How many people could catch the eye of an eligible bachelor while wrestling an errant ewe to the ground? Rosa did.

As a recent widow, Rosa and her also recently widowed mother-in-law, Louise Garner, travel back to Texas from Rosa’s homeland of Mexico; both women determining to put sadness behind them and establish a new beginning on Garner family property; property that was left behind when Louise’s family followed the mining boom to Mexico. Unfortunately upon arrival, they discover that their renters have vanished and property taxes have mounted. The two Mrs. Garners have three short months to generate enough income to save their only means of livelihood.

Extended family comes to the aid of the two widows; giving them manpower and resources, but in spite of Rosa’s hard work and good business sense, the deadline arrives without the money being properly secured. In a moment very reminiscent of “Ruth and Boaz”, Louise sends her daughter-in-law to Westin Garner for help. The ensuing midnight encounter in a hay-filled barn has misconstrued results; sending a reluctant bride and determined groom to the altar. In spite of their growing friendship and obvious physical attraction to each other, the result is nearly disastrous. It takes a case of mistaken identity and Rosa’s near drowning for the new Mr. and Mrs. Westin Garner to acknowledge that their relationship is more than just “sixty acres and a bride”. It is a miraculous gift from God.

This is a well written book with many memorable scenes. The prologue in and of itself is fabulous. Those few, short paragraphs alone sent me spinning with curiosity. I was drawn into the story by page two. Rosa’s “la mariposa” dance in front of the Garner farm hands is both humorous and insightful. The sultry, teasing movements incite Westin’s embedded amorous feelings and his emotional eruption nearly brings them to “blows“. There are also tender moments which will bring a reader to tears; quiet, honest conversations by the river bank, soft declarations of desires, and Westin’s renewed vows to his wife, are all masterfully woven into the fabric of this understated romance.

Factor in unwanted advances from a neighbor, incessant jealousy from a would-be suitor, cruel discrimination towards Louise’s “dark-skinned” daughter-in-law, constant reminders of a loveless marriage, deep grief over the death of a spouse and an equally clever ending to a well-written beginning and . . . . . . . . . “Sixty Acres and a Bride” adds up to be quite an impressive debut novel.

Additional Comment: Congratulations Regina! I’ve also just read, “Love in the Balance”; what started as a “lightweight read” quickly turned into a “heavyweight story” and the ending will have me in tears just thinking about it, for months to come!  

Have you read this book? If so, what did you think?