Though facing eviction, Rosa falls in love with the countryside and the wonderful extended family who want only her best. They welcome her vivacious spirit and try to help her navigate puzzling American customs. She can't help but stand out, though, and her beauty captures attention. 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, Rosa must decide to what lengths she will go to save her future.
Review: I was extremely disappointed with this book. I was expecting a lot more as there are eighty five star reviews on Amazon. And the cover is amazing as well. However, I did not find this book was worth five stars. It was loosely based on the story of Ruth in the Bible, which I was expecting from the beginning. However, it was so loosely based I really began to wonder where the author was going with the plot. The story was told mainly from the two main protagonist’s point of view, Weston and Rosa. However—and this really confused me—it was also told from a minor character’s point of view from time to time. I understand this was in order to give a lead to her next book Love in the Balance. However, it was clumsily done. The point of view that was given to a minor character should have been given to Rosa’s mother-in-law Louise. Because the author did nothing to endear Louise, I found her almost selfish as well as heedless to the wants and needs of her daughter-in-law.
One of the only redeeming qualities about this book was the way that the author did not resolve the issues between Rosa and Weston until the very end. This kept the plot going at a nice pace. Once the two were (spoiler alert) married they kept on finding something to argue about. One thing this author is skilled at is creating a solid, logical argument between the couple time and time again. The characters of Rosa and Weston were also well-developed. I wanted to read Sixty Acres and a Bride because I had read the author's novella in A Match Made in Texas. I was extremely impressed with that novella. I was surprised that this book was not what it promised to be.
I give this book 21/2 out of 5 stars.