Mail Order Bride Series by Susan Leigh Carlton, Joyce Blackmon

She came to Laramie as a mail order bride for Will Hastings. As she stepped from the stagecoach, she was grabbed by a drunken cowboy. Her husband-to-be tried to intervene and was gunned down in front of her. Left with $73 and her husband-to-be face down, and lifeless in the dirt street of Laramie, she was now faced with a choice of returning to Philadelphia and a hopeless life there or that of a whore working above the saloon in Laramie, when a third choice presented itself... moreShe came to Laramie as a mail order bride for Will Hastings. As she stepped from the stagecoach, she was grabbed by a drunken cowboy. Her husband-to-be tried to intervene and was gunned down in front of her. Left with $73 and her husband-to-be face down, and lifeless in the dirt street of Laramie, she was now faced with a choice of returning to Philadelphia and a hopeless life there or that of a whore working above the saloon in Laramie, when a third choice presented itself. The twin brother of her intended offered to take her as his bride. Did she dare take the chance with this stranger? Reluctant to marry the twin brother of her dead fiance, she assessed her choices. With no money and no prospects, there was no other choice, so she accepted his proposal, married and went home with Luke Hastings. less

Mail Order Brides came into being after The War Between The States saw thousands of young men killed, leaving the eastern part of the United States with a severe shortage of eligible young bachelors. At the same time, there was a shortage of unmarried women on the western frontier. The Matrimonial News was a newspaper specializing in ads placed by both men and women looking for mates. This is the story of a young man and woman placing ads in newspaper... moreMail Order Brides came into being after The War Between The States saw thousands of young men killed, leaving the eastern part of the United States with a severe shortage of eligible young bachelors. At the same time, there was a shortage of unmarried women on the western frontier. The Matrimonial News was a newspaper specializing in ads placed by both men and women looking for mates. This is the story of a young man and woman placing ads in newspaper. In the 1870's and 1880's, the Lakota Sioux land was encroached upon by ranchers and miners. The Sioux fought back, raiding ranches, and attacking wagon Trains. Cassie Jennings is a survivor of an attack on her wagon train and Rance Underwood is a young rancher whose parents were killed by an Indian raiding party. Through ads placed in The Matrimonial News, they corresponded and met. Cassie becomes Rance's mail order bride, after a harrowing adventure and subsequent rescue. less

The Civil War raged from 1861 to 1865. It decimated an entire American generation of young men. An estimated 750,000 casualties from both sides, with the majority of those from the more populous North. The rural South fatalities are put between 250,000 and 260,000. An inordinate number of widows were created, in addition to reducing the number of marriageable males. This is the story of a widow from the rural town of York, South Carolina... moreThe Civil War raged from 1861 to 1865. It decimated an entire American generation of young men. An estimated 750,000 casualties from both sides, with the majority of those from the more populous North. The rural South fatalities are put between 250,000 and 260,000. An inordinate number of widows were created, in addition to reducing the number of marriageable males. This is the story of a widow from the rural town of York, South Carolina. York County had the highest death rate of any county in South Carolina, 805 out of an adult white male population of 4,379, or 183.8 per 1000. Widowed at the age of 30 and left with a ten year old daughter, Sarah Hutchison had few places to turn for support. Her husband’s family had lost all three sons in the conflict. At the war’s end, Sarah took note of her eligible prospects, and decided they were virtually non-existent. Desperate times called for desperate measures, and Sarah was determined to find something that would enable herself and her daughter to survive. Her answer presented itself when she was attending a meeting being conducted by a missionary. He told her of a newspaper that carried ads for men and women in search of mates. Getting the details, she decided to explore the opportunities. Read about Sarah and her venture into a world where people advertised for wives… and husbands. less

Texas has a longstanding reputation as a rough and tumble state. Texans have more pride in their heritage than any place I have ever been and I have visited forty-seven of the fifty states. The state fought for and won their independence from Mexico, then joined the union as a republic, with the privilege of being able to divide into as many as five other states. Nowhere is their reputation better illustrated than in the Texas Rangers. (The law enforcement agency, not the baseball team... moreTexas has a longstanding reputation as a rough and tumble state. Texans have more pride in their heritage than any place I have ever been and I have visited forty-seven of the fifty states. The state fought for and won their independence from Mexico, then joined the union as a republic, with the privilege of being able to divide into as many as five other states. Nowhere is their reputation better illustrated than in the Texas Rangers. (The law enforcement agency, not the baseball team.) The true story is told of a mayor of a Texas town asking the Rangers for assistance in quelling a riot. The mayor was aghast when the aid arrived in the person of a single Ranger. “They only sent one Ranger?” he asked. The Ranger replied, “One Ranger, One Riot”. It is said Texas floats on a sea of oil. One of the most famous oil discoveries was Spindletop, January 10, 1901, at a depth of 1,139 ft (347 m), what is known as the Lucas Gusher or the Lucas Geyser blew oil over 150 feet (50 m) in the air at a rate of 100,000 barrels per day (16,000 m3/d) (4,200,000 gallons). It took nine days before the well was brought under control. Spindletop was the largest gusher the world had seen and catapulted Beaumont into an oil-fueled boomtown. This story is set in Marshall and Beaumont, Texas. Marshall is slightly less than 200 miles from Beaumont. Oil was discovered in the area in 1930. For my story, I took the liberty of changing the date to 1901, in order to offer a sequel to my ebook, “The Widow Finds Love.” This is the story of the Thomas family, originally cotton farmers, and how their life changed when oil is discovered. It is primarily based on Jonathon, Rebecca and Cassie Thomas, the children of the “yours, mine, and ours” blended family of Clint and Sarah Thomas. In the story, Jonathon is the youngest of the siblings. He is a brilliant engineer, but is a loner. He doesn’t want to collaborate with anyone. He is upset when a new employee, Laura Ingram is assigned to work in Beaumont, with Jonathon as her mentor. Jonathon takes a desperate step to avoid working with her. His actions come back to haunt him when he falls in love with Laura, possibly destroying the budding love they have for each other. Read on, to see how they resolve their differences… less

A western romance novella of about 28,000 words It is set in the 1876 time frame. In Elmira, New York, Amanda Taylor catches the man who has courted her for over five years, cheating on her. As a thirty year old school teacher, she is about to resign herself to the life of a spinster school teacher, when she chances upon a copy of The Matrimonial News, She decides to place an ad, but tears up the letter.  She confronts her desperation, she places the ad... moreA western romance novella of about 28,000 words It is set in the 1876 time frame. In Elmira, New York, Amanda Taylor catches the man who has courted her for over five years, cheating on her. As a thirty year old school teacher, she is about to resign herself to the life of a spinster school teacher, when she chances upon a copy of The Matrimonial News, She decides to place an ad, but tears up the letter.  She confronts her desperation, she places the ad. She faces the disapproval of her family when she decides to be a mail order bride. Rance Kendall is a successful ranch owner in the Cheyenne, Wyoming Territory, After he finds a two year old girl whose family is massacred by the Oglala Sioux, he has to face the fact he is thirty-two years old, unmarried, and has no prospects for marriage, he needs the love and companionship of a wife, and the two year old he has taken in needs a mother. He decides to advertise for a wife in The Matrimonial News, a paper dedicated to mail order brides. Is this Amanda's last chance at a normal life? Does she dare take the step? She decides the fear of the unknown beyond Elmira is too much to overcome and declines an invitation to meet, even after several letters are exchanged.. What will Rance do? He has several other replies to his ad, but has held off because he like's Amanda's letters. He is stunned when she turns him down. Why did she decline his invitation to meet? How can he convince her to change her mind? This is a nice western romance about a reluctant mail order bride from Susan Leigh Carlton.. less