Mail Order Bride

When Phoebe Durbin answers a mail-order bride ad, she doesn't realize the groom-to-be didn't post it. Worse, the day she arrives at her destination, she learns he doesn't even want to get married. Having nowhere else to go, she convinces him to give her a chance to prove having a woman cook and clean for him will be the best thing that ever happened to him. Abe Thomas reluctantly agrees to take Phoebe in, though he doubts they will make a good match. They're much too different. While she sees the best in things, he knows the world is much darker than she can ever imagine. No woman in her right mind would be his convenient wife. He's sure when the stagecoach comes back to town, she'll be the first one on it. After all, two people so completely different can't make a good match, can they?

Available digitally for the first time ever, Duncan’s Bride is a classic novel of romantic suspense from New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Linda Howard It's been seven years since rancher Reese Duncan's first wife left him high and dry, and he's been trying to rebuild his life ever since. What he needs is a dependable mate—someone uncomplicated with whom he can start a family and who will help out around the ranch. At first glance, city girl Madelyn Patterson seems all wrong. But Madelyn isn't after his money or his land. She wants the one thing Reese can't guarantee—his heart. Featuring an excerpt from TROUBLEMAKER, Linda Howard’s new hardcover novel!

When Ellen and her sister, Malinda, are forced out of the only home they've ever known by a local banker after the death of their father, they answer an advertisement placed by Harriett Long for mail order brides. Ellen chooses to marry the sheriff of a small town in Colorado while Malinda agrees to marry his brother, a banker. When they arrive, each sister is immediately drawn to one of the brothers....too bad it's the wrong one! Malinda thinks her life is over after the death of her father and her subsequent eviction from the only home she's ever known. She, along with her sister, answers an advertisement for mail order brides and their lives change. She agrees to marry a banker in a small town in Colorado, because she refuses to be afraid of where her next meal will come from ever again. When she arrives in Colorado, she immediately falls for the handsome gentleman who picks her up at the train station, but he's her sister's fiance, not hers!

There have always been mail-order brides in America—but we haven’t always thought about them in the same ways. In Buying a Bride, Marcia A. Zug starts with the so-called “Tobacco Wives” of the Jamestown colony and moves all the way forward to today’s modern same-sex mail-order grooms to explore the advantages and disadvantages of mail-order marriage. It’s a history of deception, physical abuse, and failed unions. It’s also the story of how mail-order marriage can offer women surprising and empowering opportunities. Drawing on a forgotten trove of colorful mail-order marriage court cases, Zug explores the many troubling legal issues that arise in mail-order marriage: domestic abuse and murder, breach of contract, fraud (especially relating to immigration), and human trafficking and prostitution. She tells the story of how mail-order marriage lost the benign reputation it enjoyed in the Civil War era to become more and more reviled over time, and she argues compellingly that it does not entirely deserve its current reputation. While it is a common misperception that women turn to mail-order marriage as a desperate last resort, most mail-order brides are enticed rather than coerced. Since the first mail-order brides arrived on American shores in 1619, mail-order marriage has enabled women to improve both their marital prospects and their legal, political, and social freedoms. Buying A Bride uncovers this history and shows us how mail-order marriage empowers women and should be protected and even encouraged.

Now available as a print book, books 1- 3 in the Montana Mail Order Bride Westward series ** A clean historical boxed set ** Westward Winds: Tessa O'Connor lives in a world of privilege and excess. Her doting parents want her to make a good match with a worthy gentleman and live a respectable life. She is beautiful and intelligent and she comes with a hefty dowry. There is no reason that she shouldn't be able to find an eligible man and settle down. Tessa gets married to Dean and they struggle to find common ground and make their marriage work. Will they each take the risk and open their hearts to one another? Can their marriage survive and will they find love and contentment in each other? Their future happiness hangs in the balance under the Montana skies. Westward Dance: Madelyn O'Connor is beautiful, popular, and comfortable with her opulent life. That is until she is brutally attacked by the son of one of the wealthiest families in Pittsburgh. Her parents are ready to fight the case out in the courts, but Madelyn doesn't want any publicity about it. She wants to forget that it ever happened, but can't. Her family grows increasingly worried about the depressive state she falls into and they try to come up with ways to help her, but nothing seems to work. Tessa feels that it would be best for Madelyn to get far away from the city and wants her to come to Montana, but Madelyn is resistant to the idea. Seth Samuels, Tessa's brother-in-law, becomes injured when he and his men are attacked by wild dogs on a cattle drive. He's morose and anxious over the prospect of not being able to participate in drives any longer. Tessa sees two people she loves hurting and thinks that maybe they can help each other when no one else can. She appeals to Seth to help convince Madelyn to come west. Seth refuses at first, but then figures that since he can't do much else he might as well try to help. Madelyn and Seth begin a volley of letters in which Seth entices Madelyn to come meet him. As their relationship deepens there are seemingly insurmountable obstacles that threaten to tear them apart. Can each of them compromise in order to have a future together or will their pride keep them from realizing their dreams? Westward Bound: Claire O'Connor is the youngest of the three O'Connor sisters. Unlike her older siblings, Claire doesn't have great skills in social niceties. Even though she tries to fit in, Claire will never be popular in the elite world in which she was born. Claire would much rather be in school or learning business strategy from her father than do anything else. When she travels to Montana for her sister Maddie's wedding to Seth Samuels, she meets the youngest Samuels brother, Marcus. She's attracted to his dark good looks and flashing gray eyes but knows he thinks of her as annoying kid who happens to be extremely intelligent. During the time she spends in Montana, she and Marcus develop an antagonistic relationship, which Claire purposely fosters to hide her crush on him. She dreams of snaring Marcus' heart one day, and begins her secret mission as soon as she arrives back in Pittsburgh. Three years later, their long distant debates continue. Claire has graduated from college and now turns her focus on making a life of her own. Marcus is part of that plan, but he doesn't know that. When Maddie and Seth return to Montana after attending her graduation, Claire goes with them to put her plan into action. Marcus' life is turned upside down by an unforeseen event that threatens to tear his family apart forever. Despite their antagonism, Marcus turns to Claire for help, unwittingly falling into her trap. Together they will face an uncertain future. Can they find the fortitude to withstand the tests that come their way or will they both end up with broken hearts?

What kind of woman would answer an advertisement and marry a stranger? Escape into the history of the American West along with nine couples whose relationships begin with advertisements for mail-order brides. Placing their dreams for new beginnings in the hands of a stranger, will each bride be disappointed, or will some find true love? Perfect for the Preacher by Megan Besing 1897, Indiana Fresh from seminary, Amos Lowry believes marriage will prove to his skeptical congregation that he’s mature. If only his mail-order bride wasn’t an ex-saloon girl, and worse, pregnant. The Outlaw’s Inconvenient Bride by Noelle Marchand 1881, Wyoming After a gang of outlaws uses a mail-order bride advertisement to trick an innocent woman into servitude, an undercover lawman must claim the bride—even if it puts his mission in jeopardy. Train Ride to Heartbreak by Donna Schlachter 1895, Train to California John Stewart needs a wife. Mary Johannson needs a home. On her way west, Mary falls in love with another. Now both must choose between commitment and true love. Mail-Order Proxy by Sherri Shackelford 1885, Montana A mail-order marriage by proxy goes wrong when a clerical error leads to the proxies actually being married instead of the siblings they were standing in for. In their quest to correct the mistake, the two discover outlaws, adventure, and even love. To Heal Thy Heart by Michelle Shocklee 1866, New Mexico When Phoebe Wagner answers a mail-order bride ad that states Confederate widows need not apply, she worries what Dr. Luke Preston will do when he learns her fiancé died wearing gray. Miss-Delivered Mail by Ann Shorey 1884, Washington Helena Erickson impulsively decides to take advantage of her brother’s deception and travels to Washington Territory in response to a proposal of marriage intended for someone else. How will Daniel McNabb respond when Helena is nothing like he expected? A Fairy-Tale Bride by Liz Tolsma 1867, Texas Nora Green doesn’t feel much like Cinderella when her mail-order groom stands her up. But could the mysterious jester from the town’s play be her Prince Charming? The Brigand and the Bride by Jennifer Uhlarik 1876, Arizona Jolie Hilliard weds a stranger to flee her outlaw family but discovers her groom is an escaped prisoner. Will she ever find happiness on the right side of the law? The Mail-Order Mistake by Kathleen Y’Barbo 1855, Texas Pinkerton detective Jeremiah Bingham is investigating a mail-order bride scam bankrupting potential grooms. When unsuspecting orphan May Conrad answers his false ad, she becomes the prime suspect in the case.

Carl Richie’s wife took delight in making him miserable, often reminding him she wished she’d married someone much more deserving. So when she dies, it's no great loss. His problems, however, are far from over. His father left him twenty acres and a stream that most likely has gold in it, but in order for him to keep the property, he must have a child. The last thing Carl wants to do is marry again, but he has no choice. So, with reluctance, he posts a mail-order bride ad. Juliet Gilbert needs to marry someone—and fast. On a whim, she answers the first mail-order bride ad that will take her to a place where her past won’t catch up with her. From the beginning, Carl makes it clear he’s not interested in love. He only wants a child, and then he’ll give her a portion of any gold he finds on his land and leave her alone to do as she wishes. Since love is the least of her concerns, she agrees as long as he never asks about her past. The two strike the bargain, and she comes out to marry him. What neither expects, however, is that bargains are far easier to make than they are to keep.