Book Review: Emer (Clover Springs Mail Order Brides #4) - Rachel Wesson
Synopsis:
Life isn't easy for a young woman alone in 19th Century Colorado, but when Emer Matthews needs to escape an untenable situation, she only has herself to depend on. She has no time for men having seen first-hand the high price women pay for love, so she seeks solace with the sister she's never met, Sorcha. But when Emer gets to Boston, she discovers her sister has moved to Clover Springs and she's left alone with no money and no means to go back to Colorado.
Lawrence Shipley is bored. He’s fed up of his match making domineering mother. He wants to gain independence by heading up the Shipley Banking Dynasty in Denver. But his mother has other ideas. She decides to go to Denver too, reluctantly agreeing to take Father Molloy’s latest protégée, Emer. Emer is nothing like any woman Lawrence has met. She intrigues him and excites him but it seems she won’t have anything to do with him. Can he destroy the wall she’s built around her heart? Or will her past catch up with her and destroy them both?
My Thoughts:
Emer had a hard life living with her mother, who was never a mother in the true sense, and a ruthless gang. After overhearing a conversation her mother had, Emer knew she had to leave as her mom was ready to sell her off. Emer was determined to make her way without accepting any type of charity and find her sister and finally have a family like she always wanted.
Lawrence Shipley lived a life under wealth and the shadows of the Shipley name. Wanting to prove that he could run his own branch, Lawrence heads up to Denver to the new branch they are opening. However, he didn’t expect his domineering mom and her lapdog, his cousin, to join him. Making the best of the situation, Lawrence tries to get to know Emer better who is traveling with them.
My heart just breaks for all the heartaches Emer had to go through as a child. No matter their age, no child should have to live with the knowledge their mother never wanted them. Sometimes Emer’s stubbornness and thoughtfulness stands in the way of her getting to know her sister, Sorcha, and Lawrence better. I think that the past and the way that she is helps to create the person that Emer is. Even when down on her luck and feeling low, Emer can definitely hold her own when it comes to Lawrence’s prudish mother. I had to laugh at the way Emer and Lawrence mocked and made fun at his mother’s expense.
You feel such happiness at Emer and Lawrence finally admitting what they feel for each other however you never expected anything to happen to come between that. I just wanted to smack Mitchell, the cousin, for being so rude and hateful. I am not sure how to feel about the surprise that Lawrence brought to Clover Springs to help get Emer released from jail. I feel that she lied and spun a fairytale to Sorcha. But I like how it pulled the ending together and put a finale to Sorcha and Emer’s mother.
The writing is smooth and the story does not feel rushed like some mail order bride stories do. The book captivated me from the beginning and kept my attention all the way to the end. It was a sweet romantic read with a lot of emotions mixed in. I can’t wait to read more by this author as she definitely takes the mail order bride books to the right level.