Review: Finally a Bride

by Vickie McDonough

Jack's back!

Having read the first two offerings in this author's Texas Boardinghouse Brides series, I had already fallen in love with young Jacqueline Davis (aka Jack Hamilton). The tomboyish child is all grown up in Finally a Bride, and dreams of snagging a job as a reporter in Dallas and shaking the dust of Lookout, Texas off her feet.

Then Noah Jeffers comes to town to fill in for the minister. He's young. He's handsome. And he's hiding a secret that could destroy any chance of a relationship with Jack. Those same secrets have the young preacher making covert amends all over town. His offers to chop wood for the town's busybody sisters and paint the walls of the general mercantile aren't made strictly out of the goodness of his heart…

Even as Jack and Noah sort through their feelings for each other and try to find their paths in life, one of the original Lookout brides returns to town. Carly Payton is an ex-convict, and not at all the kind of wife Garrett Corbett thought he wanted. But Garret's about to learn a surprising lesson about how love works…and about the amazing grace of God.

I loved this entire series, but Finally a Bride is far and away my favorite of the three books. Jack (Jackie, Jacqueline) is the perfect heroine—she's likeable, has tremendous personality, and possesses a penchant for getting herself into trouble. Noah is the ultimate flawed hero, with his inability to stomach pork, an amusing inclination to mispronounce words during his sermons, and a touching devotion to a certain young lady. And, as always, encountering well-loved characters from previous books is a special treat.

Texas Boardinghouse Brides is, in this reader's opinion, a top-notch series. Each book is better than the last…which says a lot for the author's writing and storytelling skills. Kudos to Vickie McDonough, and "both thumbs up" to Finally a Bride!