Review and Giveaway: Four Weddings and a Kiss Novella Collection

Four best-­selling romance novelists bring tales of feisty heroines, stubborn heroes, and unlikely love in the Wild West in Four Weddings and a Kiss. Don't miss the latest from the Western Brides Collection from Margaret Brownley, Robin Lee Hatcher, Mary Connealy, and Debra Clopton.

The authors are celebrating with a "Sweet on Love" iPad Mini Giveaway and rip-roarin' Facebook party.

One winner will receive:

• An iPad Mini
• A Bride for All Seasons and Four Weddings and a Kiss 

Enter today by clicking one of the icons below. But hurry, the giveaway ends on July 8th. Winner will be announced at the Four Weddings and a Kiss Facebook Author Chat Party. Connect with Western Brides Collection authors Margaret Brownley, Robin Lee Hatcher, Mary Connealy, and Debra Clopton for an evening of fun book chat, western-themed trivia, and prizes. The authors will also be answering audience questions and giving an exclusive look at the next book in the collection!

So grab your copy of Four Weddings and a Kiss and join the authors on the evening of July 8th for a chance to connect and make some new friends. (If you haven't read the book, don't let that stop you from coming!)

Don't miss a moment of the fun; RSVP today. Tell your friends via FACEBOOK or TWITTER and increase your chances of winning. Hope to see you on the 8th!

My Review

Four Weddings and a Kiss is a set of four novellas, each written by authors who are well-known for their Christian historical romances, set in the American West during the years after the US Civil War. Each of the wedding stories is a tale told to a young minister who feels compelled to break up with his lady love because she wouldn’t make a suitable minister’s wife. The stories of four weddings, related by four more experienced colleagues, are intended to make him reconsider. (And each of the stories can be purchased as a standalone novella as well, although the set is better value.)

Spitfire Sweetheart by Mary Connealy is the story of eighteen-year-old Maizy MacGregor, raised by her elderly father and lacking in any feminine graces. An act of disobedience results in their neighbour, Rylan Carestens saving her life, but seriously injuring himself in the process. Maizy is prevailed upon to care for him as he recuperates.

I liked and admired Maizy for her spunk and her solid work ethic, but I couldn’t say the same for Rylan. He kept putting his foot in his mouth, and I didn’t find his eventual change of attitude believable. It was just too quick.


I liked Love Letter to the Editor by Robin Lee Hatcher much better. This was the story of thirty-five year old Molly Everton, daughter of the town newspaper owner, who is upset when her father hires a new editor—the job she wanted, despite being a woman. Jack Ludgrove, the new editor, finds himself attracted to Molly, even though it’s plain she doesn’t want him there.


I very much enjoyed this story, because both Molly and Jack were strong and intelligent characters, placed in a situation that was entirely believable for the time, yet it transcended time and place in a way that left me smiling.

A Cowboy for Katie by Debra Clopton might have been my favourite of the four. Katie Pearl’s father, her only relative, died three weeks ago in a tornado that flattened their house and left her trapped for days. Since then, every no-good cowboy in town has been by to propose to her—after all, she’s now the sole owner of their farm. She hires drifter Treb Rayburn to rebuild her house, even though she’s too traumatised to go inside. Treb has his own issues. He’s also an orphan, and feels guilty for the death of his family.


I liked this because Katie and Treb were both broken characters in their own way. Katie was the one with obvious problems—no house, a speech impediment, scared of the dark and afraid of enclosed places. Treb was incredibly kind and patient, growing attached despite his personal vow never to love again, because it hurt too much to lose. Yet Katie, despite her own weaknesses, was able to make Treb reevaluate his past, and his future.


The final novella was Courting Trouble by Margaret Brownley, the story of lawyer Brock Daniels, who is called upon to defend the Black Widow, Grace Davenport, who is about to be tried for the murder of her third husband, with husbands number one and two also having died in mysterious circumstances. Unfortunately, this is the Wild West, and Grace isn’t exactly guaranteed a fair trial.

I liked Brock, and the way he took Jesse, Grace’s son, under his wing. I found Grace a little harder to get to know—this is the one story that would have benefited from being longer. I could see that Grace and Brock would make a good couple, but not in the short time allowed in a novella.

Overall, while I liked some stories more than others, Four Weddings and a Kiss is an enjoyable quartet of romances, perfect for a light read for anyone who likes their Christian romance with a solid dose of cowboys, and plenty of Wild West.

Thanks to Thomas Nelson and Litfuse Publicity for providing a free ebook for review. You can find out more about the book (and authors) at the Litfuse Publicity page, http://litfusegroup.com/campaigns/four-weddings-and-a-kiss.