M

I am Lover of romance, who indulges in the romantic adventures of literature

My name is Renee, and I am the host of this site. I am a 34 year old woman, on the prowl for her mate, searching out the best of books, exploring the wilds of the imagination and delving into the heart of a beautiful love story.

 

Book Review-Left At The Altar by Margaret Brownley

by | Aug 24, 2021 | Audio Book Reviews, Book Reviews | 4 comments

Book Review-Left At The Altar by Margaret Brownley

I received this book for free from Sourcebooks Casablanca in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

Book Review-Left At The Altar by Margaret BrownleyLeft at the Altar by Margaret Brownley
Series: A Match Made In Texas #1
Published by Sourcebooks Casablanca on November 1, 2016
Genres: Historical Romance, American West, Fade to Black/Wholesome
Length: 10 Hours and 1 Min
Pages: 340
Format: Audiobook
Source: Sourcebooks Casablanca
ISBN: 1492608130
Goodreads
AmazonLibrary ThingLibrary ThingLibrary ThingLibrary Thing
three-stars

"A great story by a wonderful author."-#1 New York Times bestselling author Debbie Macomber
Welcome to Two-Time Texas: Where tempers burn hotLove runs deepAnd a single marriage can unite a feuding town...or tear it apart for good In the wild and untamed West, time is set by the local jeweler...but Two-Time Texas has two: two feuding jewelers and two wildly conflicting time zones. Meg Lockwood's marriage was supposed to unite the families and finally bring peace. But when she's left at the altar by her no-good fiance, Meg's dreams of dragging her quarrelsome neighbors into a ceasefire are dashed. No wedding bells? No one-time town. Hired to defend the groom against a breach of promise lawsuit, Grant Garrison quickly realizes that the only thing worse than small-town trouble is falling for the jilted bride. But there's something about Meg's sweet smile and determined grit that draws him in...even as the whole crazy town seems set on keeping them apart. Who knew being Left at the Altar could be such sweet, clean, madcap fun?
A Match Made in Texas Left at the Altar (Book 1)A Match Made in Texas (Book 2)How the West was Wed (Book 3)
"

Left At The Altar is the first book in the “Match Made In Texas” trilogy by this author and this ARC is one of the backlogged books on Netgalley. I am super close to 100%, like 98% so I am trying to get through all fo those forgotten books that I didn’t even download and do a review for them. Thankfully this author’s book are at my library through the Libby app and I was able to find the audiobook for this title. I have been curious about this author’s work, I simple adore western romances especially books set in the wild west. I love the pioneer feel to them, and the sense of crafting something new in a very wild and rugged atmosphere. I will first mention the heat in this book is low….its more on the level of inspirational romance style. So it is more fade to black and/or wholesome level. I do not mind this in books but I didn’t realize this author wrote with this level of heat.

Left At The Altar is a story that literally begins with that setup. Our heroine, Meg Lockwood, is about to be married to the son of her father’s enemy. This wedding will be a way to bridge the gap between the two fathers and mend some bridges and the brutal feud that causes so much splitting loyalties in the town. But then her fiancee breaks it off on the wedding day to pursue his dreams of traveling and admitting his feelings for her aren’t what they should be. But her father is furious over it and files a lawsuit against her ex-fiancee and Meg is torn about it. Because while she feels humiliated by the experience, she also doesn’t want to force him into a marriage he doesn’t want and he is a friend and knows his family couldn’t ever pay the 10,000 dollars demanded in the lawsuit. But what she doesn’t expect is to attract the attention of a lawyer, Grant Garrison, who has been hired to defend the groom in the case. A match between them currently is forbidden and would force another scandal that Meg doesn’t need currently as she is always fighting the current one of being ruined in the eyes of town. But there are secrets that are building this rivalry…..ones that could destroy people Meg care about. Will the secrets that become revealed destroy or unite the town? And will Grant and Meg find a way to be together in ways that will work with her family and the scandal?

Left At The Altar was actually a story I liked, and while I didn’t love it like I was expecting to, it was a nice distraction. It didn’t have the powerful sexual heat or chemistry I have become used to in westerns, so I had to re-adjust to it since its been a while since I have read a fade to black. But I did enjoy seeing their connection. I will say that there wasn’t that much focus on their romance as I would have liked, so it’s a mix of historical fiction and historical romance. I did quite enjoy the setup of the story, and there are many other factors that come into play other than the romance itself, there is such a quirky drama plot going about involving the feud and I found it so intriguing and I didn’t expect the reason revealed to be the EXACT reason that is revealed. It was so low in my expectations but sometimes I guess we humans blow little things out of proportions but I did enjoy seeing the build-up to the reveal and see the after-effects of it. The romance itself was intriguing, soft and gentle, and not too much conflict despite it being a forbidden theme to their relationship. The angst felt low even though on the surface its not. Not sure if this is a product of the author’s intention or just by happenstance, but it made it easy to cruise through this book without getting too involved emotionally.

Overall I found Left At The Altar to be a low steam, sweet romance with quirky moments, laughter, a town feud, and some unique surprises along the way to keep you invested….. A WARM SOLID ROMANCE TO BE ENDEARED TO.

About Margaret Brownley

BEST-SELLING AUTHOR MARGARET BROWNLEY has penned nearly forty novels and novellas. Her books have won numerous awards, including Readers' Choice and Award of Excellence. She's was a two-time Romance Writers of American RITA® finalist and has written for a TV soap. She is currently working on a new series. Not bad for someone who flunked eighth grade English. Just don't ask her to diagram a sentence.

You May Also Like…

ARC Book Review-My Season of Scandal by Julie Anne Long

ARC Book Review-My Season of Scandal by Julie Anne Long

About The Book In USA Today bestselling author Julie Anne Long’s latest installment in the Palace of Rogues series, a notorious rake meets his match in a doe-eyed girl from the country, changing the course of both of their futures… A London season is the chance of a...

Book Review-Wilde for You by Jennifer Ryan

Book Review-Wilde for You by Jennifer Ryan

About The Book New York Times bestselling author Jennifer Ryan’s page-turning Dark Horse Dive Bar series continues with this story of love lost...and found…as a widow seeking to heal her heart crosses paths with a rancher/bartender who offers her a taste of...

Book Review-Leopard’s Hunt by Christine Feehan

Book Review-Leopard’s Hunt by Christine Feehan

About The Book The next exhilarating Leopard novel from #1 New York Times bestselling author Christine Feehan. In this pulse-pounding novel in the #1 New York Times bestselling Leopard series, animal instinct unites two elite shifters whose heads are at war...

4 Comments

  1. Rachel

    Nice that you enjoyed it even if it wasn’t a good as you hoped. I’ve been trying to get to old Netgalleys with the use of audiobooks from the library as well! My feedback ratio is 96% but I’d like get rid of the super old ones. We’re talking one from 2012 gasp!

    Reply
    • Lover of Romance

      Oh yay for another buddy who is trying to get through their NG backlisted books. I have a couple from 2012 too. Boy we are old if we have been with NG for that long. Hope you get to 100% soon.

      Reply
  2. Sophia Rose

    I’ve read a few novellas by her when Sourcebooks did their Christmas Western Historical Romance anthologies so I’ve experienced her writing style. I found it wholesome and sweet, but not as riveting as some others. I do want to read more of her stuff at some point.

    Yay for getting an older Net Galley off the pile. I’m at 99% and I like that position because it means that I’ve got a good stack to read, but not behind- or, at least not by much. I don’t think I could ever be at 100% because I always see ones that tempt me. 🙂

    Reply
    • Lover of Romance

      Yes her writing is wholesome and sweet I completely agree. But not really a page-turning author like Bittner or Broday. But her recent books I have really seen good reviews for so I want to explore more of her books. Oh that is the perfect standing of percentage. I am at 98% and just working at getting my backlisted books I never even downloaded a review for. (not sure why those count haha) And keeping my current ARC list request at 5.

      Reply

Leave a Reply to Lover of RomanceCancel reply