The Accidental Bride (A Big Sky Romance)

Shay Brandenberger is too busy trying to make ends meet so she can keep her family ranch to even think about getting involved with another man. Particularly not Travis McCoy who left her at altar when they were both young to go on the rodeo circuit. But when they accidentally end up legally married during a historical reenactment, Travis makes an offer Shay can't refuse. He'll help her get the ranch in order, if she'll just give him a second chance. While Shay doesn't want to risk her heart again, maybe this is God's plan for her life after all.

I don't generally read a lot of Christian fiction but I'm trying to expand my own horizons and the plot of this one was too adorable to turn down. While there is some suspension of disbelief show more required to believe that the accidental marriage could be legal in any way, the narrative itself is charming. Only one religious object lesson seemed a bit heavy handed to me and more like something I'd expect in a book for a younger audience, the only major fault with the book. I also found some of the farm-related similes a bit over the top but I let it go as part of selling the story as being set in Montana. If you enjoy contemporary Christian romances, this is definitely one I can recommend to try. show less

This book drove me mad. I had to DNF at 75% and skip to the end to find out what happens. Frankly, the main character was the problem. Her bitterness, her refusal to communicate and her refusal to turn to God and seek His will in her circumstances drove me to distraction. To be honest, I think the main male lead deserved so much better. On top of that, all of the problems were resolved in the very last chapter, which felt far too rushed and unrealistic (as if everything can be fixed in one conversation with all that hurt involved). The concept for this book is good but it just failed to deliver.

Shay feels acutely the judging eyes of her small town neighbors who witnessed her humiliation over being jilted at the altar and then abandoned by her husband after 14 years of marriage. Add to that a failing farm and a broken foot and Shay is not having a good life. And then the boyfriend who left her at the altar comes back into her life and they accidentally get married and things get complicated. I liked the aspect of Shay's development where she comes to terms with her pride and her need to fear God more than man. It allowed her to open herself up to love.

What a fun and memorable story! I loved the chemistry between the two main characters, Shay and Travis. Travis was so open about his true feelings for Shay and I loved how he didn't mind telling and showing Shay how much he loved her. I had a hard time putting this story down until I finished the book. This is book 2 in the "Big Sky Romance" series and they just keep getting better with each story so far. There are many of the same people from "A Cowboy's Touch" (book one) in this story so I highly recommend you read them in the order they were written.

Shay Brandenberger is raising her daughter in Moose Creek, Montana and trying to keep her ranch from being foreclosed. She agrees to play the bride in the Founders' Day wedding show more reenactment and finds herself walking down the isle to be met by Travis McCoy. Travis was her childhood sweetheart and the man she left town with years ago to get married to; only to be left standing at the courthouse steps while Travis took off for fame and fortune on the Texas rodeo circuit. It is now 14 years later and Travis suddenly appears back in town. Then the two discover that by a very unlikely accident the make-believe vows resulted in a legal marriage. Before Shay can get an annulment Travis comes up with a crazy proposal. Stay married for 6 months and let him prove to her she can trust him now to love her and never leave her and he will help her meet her financial obligation so she won't lose her ranch. As the back of the book says, "If she refuses his offer, she may lose her home. If she accepts, she may lose her heart".

I can understand Shay's reluctance to trust Travis with her heart again and her resistance to him. But Travis knows her so well and knows how to handle her and he is not shy about letting her know his feelings. It was a great love story and I can't wait to get started on the next book in this series, "The Trouble with Cowboys". show less

Shay Brandenberger is raising her daughter, Olivia, on her own on the ranch she grew up on in Moose Creek, Montana. Try as she might, the bills keep piling up and now the bank is ready to foreclose on her land. She prays for an answer but the answer is not what she expects or wants...or does she? Travis McCoy has always loved Shay but made a really bad decision when he left Shay at the courthouse waiting for him to come and marry her. Now he's returned to look after his parents ranch while they're on a mission trip. He returns to apologize to Shay and maybe find a second chance at the love he never got over. Shay is asked to play the bride in the Founders Day reenactment and is shocked to find Travis is playing the groom. Then they find show more out that because of an absent-minded preacher and a match-making friend, the marriage is real. Shay wants an immediate annulment but Travis offers her a crazy proposal that she really can't refuse. If she does, she'll loose her childhood home. But if she agrees to his proposal, she just might loose her heart, again! Can the Founders Day wedding reenactment be the worst thing that ever happened to Shay or will it be the best mistake that ever happened her?

I thoroughly enjoyed this story and returning once again to Moose Creek! Although something like the Founders Day mistake would probably never happen, the whole premise for it was fun. I truly LOVED all the interaction between Shay and Travis. I must say though, that Shay kinda grated on me a little. You could truly understand why she behaved the way she did. I mean the man did leave her at the altar, but the fact that she knew him her whole life it seems she would have been able to see that he had truly changed and that he was really trying. Travis was a swoon-worthy hero. Oh my! I loved the way he handled Shay and Olivia. He was strong yet patient even in the face of Shay's prickliness. There was enough sizzle between Travis and Shay to light the lamp I was reading next to. It was also really fun to see Abigail and Wade again. It made me want to go back and re-read A Cowboy's Touch. I also thoroughly enjoyed Miss Lucy. She and "her girls" are a hoot. I think one very important lesson in the story was that our self-worth or value should not come from what people think about us but what God thinks about us. Also, the way in which we behave affects, not only us, but those that are around us so we need to be careful. I always enjoy Denise Hunter's books and The Accidental Bride is no exception. It's Book 2 in A Big Sky Romance Series. A thank you goes to Thomas Nelson who provided me with the complimentary copy through Netgalley for my review.
Paperback: 304 pages
Publisher: Thomas Nelson (January 3, 2012)
ISBN-10: 1595548025
ISBN-13: 978-1595548023 show less

When Shay Brandenberger wanted to marry Travis McCoy, he left her alone on the courthouse steps to pursue his own dreams. Years later, Shay struggles to raise her daughter and keep her childhood home financially afloat following the death of her husband, Garrett Brandenberger. When Travis McCoy shows up in town, he is the last person Shay wants to spend time with. But when she finds herself accidentally, yet legitimately, married to him, Shay must decide which is riskier: To keep trying to save her home as she has been or to accept Travis' ridiculous proposal to stay married to him for a few months and receive the financial assistance she needs. Could this accidental marriage actually be God's will or just a crazy twist of fate? Is Shay show more even willing to find out? Read for yourself in The Accidental Bride by Denise Hunter.

The Accidental Bride by Denise Hunter is the second book in the Big Sky Romance series. I enjoyed revisiting some of the characters of the first book, A Cowboy's Touch. However, The Accidental Bride works well as a stand-alone book if you have not read the first one. While the premise of Shay and Travis' accidental marriage seems highly unlikely to ever happen in real life, the story was so good that I was happy to suspend a little bit of reality in favor of just enjoying the book. Hunter touched on an important theme about trying to win favor with people or God. Though I think this theme could have been brought out a little stronger earlier in the book, it is a challenging and encouraging message for the reader to ponder. Overall, I highly recommend The Accidental Bride by Denise Hunter to anyone looking for a sweet romance with a good message.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received an advanced reading copy of this book free from the publisher as part of FIRST Wild Card Tours. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising." show less

A woman's gotta do what a woman's gotta do--even if that means starting over again, all over again! Sometimes the surest path to true happiness is the one strewn with the most emotional obstacles. It's not an easy path to follow, but the reward at the end of the journey makes it all worthwhile. After having her young heart broken being left on the courthouse steps waiting for her groom-to-be, Shay Brandenberger eventually seeks fulfillment in a different relationship. Setting aside her hurt at her cruel abandonment by Travis McCoy, Shay later marries another man. After the hurtful end of the marriage, Shay must secure the future for herself and her young daughter, Olivia. Ranch life is hard enough for a man and woman with plentiful show more resources. For a single woman with a child, it is incredibly difficult. A busybody, well-meaning angel with a tilted halo seeks to reunite Shay and Travis. Participating as the bride in a Founder's Day wedding reenactment in order to please others, Shay is shocked when the groom turns out to be Travis, now returned from a life on the rodeo circuit. This time, their "wedding ceremony" not only goes through, the mock marriage turns out to be legal and binding. Complications ensue when Shay finds herself agreeing to stay married to Travis for six months in exchange for his help at her ranch. The life that Travis chose on the rodeo circuit was empty without Shay, and his regrets have followed him through the years. Will his prayers finally be answered and allow him to once again win Shay's love? Denise Hunter's "The Accidental Bride" offers great characters who make human errors and learn life lessons in ways that are sometimes quite painful. A lovely book from a talented storyteller who never leaves her readers hearts untouched.

Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.(Proverbs 3:5,6)

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