We think of young people leaving small communities in search of better opportunities as a recent problem. However, it has been going on for a long time. One wealthy widow in Tarnation, Texas, took it upon herself to bring brides to her small town so the men would not all leave. The Bride Brigade series is the story of that quest.
Angeline was wooed hard by a man who was her fiance. When she is talked into having sex with him, she gets pregnant. Her fiance dumps her saying she isn't virtuous enough to be his wife. Her family casts her out. Desperate, she is about to step in front of a train when Lydia, the rich widow, intervenes and asks her to come to Tarnation with the other women. Will anyone want to marry a woman carrying another man's child?
Cassandra has a cast-off wardrobe that lets her pretend to be a lady. Her priority is to marry a wealthy man who will take care of her younger brother. She is attracted to someone she thinks is a cowboy. He is really a wealthy rancher. Will she choose happiness over wealth?
Ophelia was beaten almost to death by her father, who felt he had to beat the devil out of her for any small infraction. She wants to marry a respectable man who is kind and gentle. Can she overlook the differences she has with a man to find love?
Rachel has a shameful secret. She is cautious about trusting but likes Tarnation. She is attracted to a man who used to be a Pinkerton detective. Will he still want her when he finds out about her secret?
Lorraine doesn't want to marry an odious man. She flees and goes to Tarnation with Lydia. Lorraine writes articles and stories under a pseudonym. She longs to write under her own name. Her luck, she is attracted to the newspaper owner. Unfortunately, although he has published some of her stories under her pseudonym, he refuses to publish a woman. Sparks fly. Will he give in?
Prudence learned to be a folk healer and a midwife from her beloved grandmother. When her grandmother dies, Prudence is forced to flee. She goes to Tarnation, where she meets the town doctor. They start courting until he finds out she is a folk healer. He thinks she is not only misguided but dangerous. Sparks fly again, both are very stubborn. Who wins here?
While all seven books in the Bride Brigade series are stand-alone books, you will enjoy them more if you read them in order.
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