Review: How to Marry a Cowboy by Carolyn Brown

Title: How to Marry a Cowboy by Carolyn Brown
Cowboys and Brides Series Book Four
Publisher: Sourcebooks Casablanca
Genre: Contemporary, Romance
Length: 352 pages
Book Rating: B+

Complimentary Review Copy Provided by Publisher Through NetGalley

Summary:

From New York Times and USA Today-bestselling author Carolyn Brown comes a contemporary Western romance filled to the brim with sexy cowboys, gutsy heroines, and genuine down-home Texas twang.

Texas rancher Mason Harper’s daughters want a new mama in the worst way, and when a beautiful woman in a tattered wedding gown appears on their doorstep, the two little girls adopt her-no ifs, ands, or buts about it. Mason isn’t sure about taking in a complete stranger, but Lord knows he needs a nanny, and Annie Rose Boudreau stirs his heart in long-forgotten ways…

Annie Rose is desperate, and when a tall, sexy cowboy offers her a place to stay, she can’t refuse. After all, it’s just for a little while. As she settles in deeper, her heart tells her both Mason and her role as makeshift mama suit her just fine. But will Mason feel the same way once her nightmare past catches up with her?

Fans of Linda Lael Miller and Diana Palmer will thrill to this moving story of a lonely cowboy and his two little girls finding the family of their dreams.

The Review:

How to Marry a Cowboy is another delightfully charming installment in Carolyn Brown’s heartwarming Cowboys and Brides series. In this outing, widower Mason Harper finds love after he hires Annie Rose Boudreaux as his mischievous twins’ nanny.

Annie Rose is a down to earth, no nonsense woman. She has been in hiding from her abusive ex when she winds up on Mason’s front porch and despite a few suspicions on both sides, she agrees to stay on as the girls’ nanny. Although Annie Rose still has a few residual trust issues when it comes to men, her instincts are telling her Mason is a good man. There is an instant connection between Annie Rose, Lily and Gabby and she is a calming influence on the rambunctious little girls.

Mason has been raising Gabby and Lily on his own ever since his wife unexpectedly passed away eight years earlier. Although he has casually dated over the years, no one has really captured his attention, but that changes pretty quickly once Annie Rose enters the picture. He is instantly attracted to her but he has to come to terms with the uncomfortable feeling he is betraying his deceased wife by pursuing a relationship with Annie Rose.

Lily and Gabby are precocious yet lovable young hellions that pretty much steal every scene they are in. They are sometimes not too happy with Annie Rose’s efforts to keep them out of trouble, but they are pretty determined to keep her on the ranch.  They also try their hand at a little matchmaking between their nanny and their father (even though it really isn’t necessary).

Annie Rose and Mason’s friendship slowly turns to love and some of their sweetest scenes are on the front porch swing where they discuss their day with one another. Their relationship is mostly conflict free with only a few a tense moments when unresolved issues from their pasts briefly come between them.

How to Marry a Cowboy is a gentle love story that is humorous, romantic and just plain fun. It is the perfect conclusion to Carolyn Brown’s Cowboys and Brides series and I am very eager to dive into her next series!