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Brides of Beckham #1
Mail Order Mayhem
When Maude is told she must marry a repulsive man, she instead responds to an Iowa farmer who is looking for a mail order bride. After sneaking out of town on a train, she goes to Iowa and marries. She quickly falls for the wonderful man she marries, but does he feel the same? And will she be able to escape her past?
93 pages, Kindle Edition
First published July 27, 2012
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 152 reviews
May 11, 2018
Mail order mayhem was my first book by Kirsten Osbourne. I love Western historical romances, and Mail order bride books but they have to be written well. I don't care if it's clean or dirty as long there is romance in it. Don't get me wrong I enjoy hearing about life in the wild west but I need love and romance too. So many authors, especially in clean romances talk more about boring everyday filler instead of building up the relationship between the h&h. So I have very few authors that I click with in this sub genre. I was so excite to find this book. I felt a connection to both the h&h. There was a little steam in this book but not super detailed. But I felt the romance. I felt the couple falling in love and that is what I need. I am looking forward to reading more books by Kirsten Osbourne.
July 12, 2018
3.25 star!
Sweet read!
Mail Order Mayham is book one of the Beckham series I think I’m off to a good start. I like the h I thought she was brave to have taken a chance on marrying a stranger but her current situation didn’t leave her much choice especially in an era where women didn’t have a voice. It was a quick read so everything happened pretty quickly but it still was a lovely read. ♥️
Sweet read!
Mail Order Mayham is book one of the Beckham series I think I’m off to a good start. I like the h I thought she was brave to have taken a chance on marrying a stranger but her current situation didn’t leave her much choice especially in an era where women didn’t have a voice. It was a quick read so everything happened pretty quickly but it still was a lovely read. ♥️
May 15, 2021
Audiobook Review:
This a first time read by Kirsten Osbourne and a nicely written novella. Narration was performed by Amanda Friday a new narrator to this listener. She did a good job at narrating this short and sweet story.
This a first time read by Kirsten Osbourne and a nicely written novella. Narration was performed by Amanda Friday a new narrator to this listener. She did a good job at narrating this short and sweet story.
July 18, 2013
This book was a charming love story.
A few people who were those seeking "clean" Christian books (one reviewer went so far as to instruct the author to seek the Good Lord's forgiveness - that made me chuckle) did have problems with the wedding night scene. It's not a bodice ripper, no crude scenes, however, there is a marital bedroom scene. It's steamy and sensual rather than explicit.
The characters were enjoyable (not melodramatic, flighty or annoying types). No one dimensional types - just wholesome.
Maude - 19 years old, genteel lady, pretty but not flighty or silly.
John - mid-twenties, farmer, nice guy (not the wealthy, tall, dark and handsome cliche).
There's a good plot and there's a HEA. It is a short story - hence there isn't pages of detail.
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Synopsis/ plot: Maude is a 19 year old genteel lady (private school, piano playing, well dressed and educated) young lady. She's an only child who volunteers at an orphanage (basically very good heroine material). It's at the orphanage that she learns to cook and clean and other such chores (making her domestically self-sufficient to a degree otherwise at home there is a maid).
However, there is an old creepy pervert who's had a nefarious interest in Maude since she turned 14, who also happens to be her fathers boss at the bank. When Maude is coerced by her parents to marry him - she panics until she notices a young genteel woman (Mrs Harriet Long) discuss arranging Mail Order Brides for single men based in the West (where there is a shortage of women).
Maude sees this as an escape route and there begins her journey.
A few people who were those seeking "clean" Christian books (one reviewer went so far as to instruct the author to seek the Good Lord's forgiveness - that made me chuckle) did have problems with the wedding night scene. It's not a bodice ripper, no crude scenes, however, there is a marital bedroom scene. It's steamy and sensual rather than explicit.
The characters were enjoyable (not melodramatic, flighty or annoying types). No one dimensional types - just wholesome.
Maude - 19 years old, genteel lady, pretty but not flighty or silly.
John - mid-twenties, farmer, nice guy (not the wealthy, tall, dark and handsome cliche).
There's a good plot and there's a HEA. It is a short story - hence there isn't pages of detail.
========================================================
Synopsis/ plot: Maude is a 19 year old genteel lady (private school, piano playing, well dressed and educated) young lady. She's an only child who volunteers at an orphanage (basically very good heroine material). It's at the orphanage that she learns to cook and clean and other such chores (making her domestically self-sufficient to a degree otherwise at home there is a maid).
However, there is an old creepy pervert who's had a nefarious interest in Maude since she turned 14, who also happens to be her fathers boss at the bank. When Maude is coerced by her parents to marry him - she panics until she notices a young genteel woman (Mrs Harriet Long) discuss arranging Mail Order Brides for single men based in the West (where there is a shortage of women).
Maude sees this as an escape route and there begins her journey.
December 27, 2018
Mail Order Mayhem is book 1 in the Brides of Beckham and my first book by this author. I don't normally read Historical romance and I have definitely never read anything with Mail Order Brides. The only reason I started now was because this author appeared on a GR friends list of favorite finds for 2018 so I decided to give it a try. Mail Order Mayhem was short and sweet. I thought Maude was a lovely young woman in a terrible situation and choose the only one she thought was best. John is a lonely farmer looking for a wife. I loved how thrilled he was with his new bride and I loved watching them make a life together. I look forward to reading more books in this series.
June 2, 2014
I'm not sure where the 'Mayhem' in the title is coming from as this is the usual Mail Order bride scenario where Maude must run away from a repulsive (possibly abusive) future husband in the East. Maude is being forced into a marriage that only her parents want with the local single forty-something banker, who is rich, round and nasty. So Maude with the help of the postmistress, makes a plan to excape by responding to a Mail Order Bride ad to an Iowa farmer. Maude gets on a train and runs from her bad situation in the East to the great possibilities in the West.
The new husband is sweet and good looking so Maude gets lucky with her choice of Mail Order and they get married the same day she hops of the train. This is probably a good idea as Maude's past is going to be finding her soon. The usual obvious bad guy that does the usual bad things (not too bad in this PG style Western romance). I did like that Maude was simple and sweet while adapting her to new environment. This was well written with very little character development, but at least there weren't a ton of spelling or grammar errors to throw me out of the story.
78 pages and kindle freebie
2 stars
The new husband is sweet and good looking so Maude gets lucky with her choice of Mail Order and they get married the same day she hops of the train. This is probably a good idea as Maude's past is going to be finding her soon. The usual obvious bad guy that does the usual bad things (not too bad in this PG style Western romance). I did like that Maude was simple and sweet while adapting her to new environment. This was well written with very little character development, but at least there weren't a ton of spelling or grammar errors to throw me out of the story.
78 pages and kindle freebie
2 stars
November 10, 2013
Maude is nineteen and engaged to marry a repulsive man twenty years older than herself, her parents are pushing this match so she's left with little choice than to run away. She makes friends with Harriett who works at the post office and with her help she becomes a mail order bride, she travels to Iowa to marry to farmer named John. The rest of the book goes as expected but it's a lovely sweet read just wish it would have been a bit longer.
April 4, 2013
Roughly an hours read.
Anything to avoid marrying her father’s creepy but rich boss a desperate Maude responds to a request for a mail order bride traveling secretly to Iowa to marry John, a farmer in need of a wife to help him out. Of course the rich boss Maude calls Horice the Horrible is not going to let her go that easily.
It could have been a very sweet story but there was information that was either unnecessary or just too lengthy in detail for a short novella.
Much promise lost.
Anything to avoid marrying her father’s creepy but rich boss a desperate Maude responds to a request for a mail order bride traveling secretly to Iowa to marry John, a farmer in need of a wife to help him out. Of course the rich boss Maude calls Horice the Horrible is not going to let her go that easily.
It could have been a very sweet story but there was information that was either unnecessary or just too lengthy in detail for a short novella.
Much promise lost.
October 8, 2013
I rated this four stars because I expected it to be a light read, not a novel that provided an in-depth study of mail-order brides in the late 19th century.
If the ability to give 3.5 stars were available, that would be my rating mostly because of her parents. I can't say more without giving away a critical part of the book.
Would I read another book by Kirsten Osbourne? Yes. There are times when a quick, enjoyable read just hits the spot.
If the ability to give 3.5 stars were available, that would be my rating mostly because of her parents. I can't say more without giving away a critical part of the book.
Would I read another book by Kirsten Osbourne? Yes. There are times when a quick, enjoyable read just hits the spot.
September 6, 2020
I was excited to start this new series and it was all I had hoped for with the wonderful writing of Kirsten Osbourne and narration of Amanda Friday.
Escaping being married to an older disgusting man that her father worked for, our heroine answers a mail order bride add after visiting the matchmaker. Not knowing what to expect, she is surprised at her attraction.
Great first in the series and cannot wait for more!
Escaping being married to an older disgusting man that her father worked for, our heroine answers a mail order bride add after visiting the matchmaker. Not knowing what to expect, she is surprised at her attraction.
Great first in the series and cannot wait for more!
May 10, 2014
Goody goody and naive, although the atmosphere is endearing. I was a little worried that Maude had no safety net, as in matchmaker did not offer to cover the brides ticket back if things went wrong, but the guy was so perfect in every way such real life worries clearly weren't necessary. I was surprised at detailed sex descriptions since the novel had a Christian feel.
July 7, 2013
wonderful short story. I read it if a few hours. I loved the characters, and the interesting wist at the end of the book, which I wasn't expecting. I'd given it 4 stars but the marriage night was a little too descriptive for me.
February 16, 2013
An ok novella....just wish there would have been a little more depth to the characters and plot. The conflict was resolved as quickly as it happened.
March 21, 2019
Some words and features provided doesn't match the era
March 9, 2020
Reviewed at Historically Romantic
Mail Order Mayhem is a short, novella-length story that begins the Brides of Beckham series where we get our first glimpse of Harriet, and how her mail order bride business began. This series is still going strong today, several years after this story was first published. What I find fascinating about Kirsten Osbourne’s work is the slight family or character connections she keeps from one series to another, from Western Historical to Contemporary Romance. It might be a single line, or an entire family history retold, but that connection is a woven thread that grabbed my imagination. I first discovered her work through the modern-day multi-author series River’s End Ranch, and I’m slowly working my way through her backlist and enjoying myself very much.
It’s sad to think that there was a time in our history (and for some women even today) where a woman could actually be forced into an unwanted marriage by family or circumstance. This is what Maude is facing as her parents have announced that she is to marry an odious, lecherous man who frankly makes her skin crawl… and with good reason. They will not listen to her objections and she is at wit’s end trying to find a way out of this situation. Maude happens to overhear a conversation at the post office that will change her life, and send her on an adventure she could have never imagined. Marriage to an unknown man, across the country, should be just as bad as the arranged, forced marriage she is facing – but it’s not, it’s a bid for freedom and a last-ditch chance to escape one man’s cruelty.
John and Maude made an interesting couple. I had a few good chuckles at Maude’s discovery of her husband’s really bad housekeeping habits. They each came into this marriage with hopes and a willingness to work at making a friendship as well as a marriage. Their story is peppered with interesting secondary characters that will easily win your heart over in their devotion to this couple. There are some twists and turns, some danger and a lot of really feel-good moments of a budding romance between two wedded strangers. I enjoyed this first glimpse into the Brides of Beckham series and I’m looking forward to diving into the rest of the series.
I own a Kindle copy of this story.
Mail Order Mayhem is a short, novella-length story that begins the Brides of Beckham series where we get our first glimpse of Harriet, and how her mail order bride business began. This series is still going strong today, several years after this story was first published. What I find fascinating about Kirsten Osbourne’s work is the slight family or character connections she keeps from one series to another, from Western Historical to Contemporary Romance. It might be a single line, or an entire family history retold, but that connection is a woven thread that grabbed my imagination. I first discovered her work through the modern-day multi-author series River’s End Ranch, and I’m slowly working my way through her backlist and enjoying myself very much.
It’s sad to think that there was a time in our history (and for some women even today) where a woman could actually be forced into an unwanted marriage by family or circumstance. This is what Maude is facing as her parents have announced that she is to marry an odious, lecherous man who frankly makes her skin crawl… and with good reason. They will not listen to her objections and she is at wit’s end trying to find a way out of this situation. Maude happens to overhear a conversation at the post office that will change her life, and send her on an adventure she could have never imagined. Marriage to an unknown man, across the country, should be just as bad as the arranged, forced marriage she is facing – but it’s not, it’s a bid for freedom and a last-ditch chance to escape one man’s cruelty.
John and Maude made an interesting couple. I had a few good chuckles at Maude’s discovery of her husband’s really bad housekeeping habits. They each came into this marriage with hopes and a willingness to work at making a friendship as well as a marriage. Their story is peppered with interesting secondary characters that will easily win your heart over in their devotion to this couple. There are some twists and turns, some danger and a lot of really feel-good moments of a budding romance between two wedded strangers. I enjoyed this first glimpse into the Brides of Beckham series and I’m looking forward to diving into the rest of the series.
I own a Kindle copy of this story.
February 11, 2018
Honestly, I would have given this one a 5 star, but I knocked one off because the ending seemed rushed. Good story over all, good character development, and good writing, it's just that ending that left me wanting a little something more.
January 11, 2013
This is a short novella, free on Kindle. Its a rather cliche and formulaic story, but a quick and cute read.
September 28, 2015
This was okay. It was not nearly as good as the second one in the series.
August 19, 2018
Great series
A great series by one of my favorite authors. I love her Brides of Beckham series. I have read a lot of her books and look forward to more.
A great series by one of my favorite authors. I love her Brides of Beckham series. I have read a lot of her books and look forward to more.
March 5, 2019
Elementary
This could be a good story but the writing is very elementary and the content is too explicit. This is not a book I would recommend.
This could be a good story but the writing is very elementary and the content is too explicit. This is not a book I would recommend.
September 17, 2023
A short sweet mail order romance
July 26, 2021
Maude and John
Maude can't believe her parents want her to take Mr. Horace Templeton to the parlor? He is twice her age and horrible! He makes her skin crawl! When he asks her to marry him, she tells him no! Only he informs her that her father has already given his permission, what! Then he proceeds to kiss her and the whole time she is trying not to vomit. When she shows him to the door he again takes liberties. She informs her parents that she will NOT marry him and her father informs her she will! So she takes matters into her own hands and becomes a mail order bride with the help of Harriett whom she meets at the post office a few days later. She chooses John Powers in Iowa and is soon on her way to be his wife! When she gets to Iowa she marries John the afternoon she arrives. Her new sister-in-law Anne, who is just months away from giving birth to her and Al's first child, becomes her best friend! Only a few weeks later trouble comes to her doorstep in the form of Horace and he is demanding she go with him. Thankfully John is around and with his shotgun orders him off his property! What happens next? Will Horrible Horace leave? What did he tell Maude that frightens her? What about her parents? Read this great story by Kristen Osbourne to find out.
Maude can't believe her parents want her to take Mr. Horace Templeton to the parlor? He is twice her age and horrible! He makes her skin crawl! When he asks her to marry him, she tells him no! Only he informs her that her father has already given his permission, what! Then he proceeds to kiss her and the whole time she is trying not to vomit. When she shows him to the door he again takes liberties. She informs her parents that she will NOT marry him and her father informs her she will! So she takes matters into her own hands and becomes a mail order bride with the help of Harriett whom she meets at the post office a few days later. She chooses John Powers in Iowa and is soon on her way to be his wife! When she gets to Iowa she marries John the afternoon she arrives. Her new sister-in-law Anne, who is just months away from giving birth to her and Al's first child, becomes her best friend! Only a few weeks later trouble comes to her doorstep in the form of Horace and he is demanding she go with him. Thankfully John is around and with his shotgun orders him off his property! What happens next? Will Horrible Horace leave? What did he tell Maude that frightens her? What about her parents? Read this great story by Kristen Osbourne to find out.
August 23, 2023
fast read
I enjoyed Maude's story. This was an easy after kids went to bed read that I had done before my bedtime. John is a such a nice guy and the two have a desire to make their marriage work. ❤️🔥* This is a mostly sweet romance story with some mildly/ mild-moderate descriptive married encounters of wedding night/and next day. I appreciated the realistic way it described first encounter, pointing out some discomfort... that improves with each encounter of married connection. I'd rate it by movie standards a tasteful PG13
I enjoyed Maude's story. This was an easy after kids went to bed read that I had done before my bedtime. John is a such a nice guy and the two have a desire to make their marriage work. ❤️🔥* This is a mostly sweet romance story with some mildly/ mild-moderate descriptive married encounters of wedding night/and next day. I appreciated the realistic way it described first encounter, pointing out some discomfort... that improves with each encounter of married connection. I'd rate it by movie standards a tasteful PG13
May 1, 2024
Maude is in a desperate situation. Her parents were forcing her to marry her father’s boss. Horace was in his 40’s, overweight, smelly, and crazy. At the post office, Maude overheard the conversation of a woman receiving 13 letters of men looking for a mail-order bride. Maude needed to escape now and this is it.
Maude marries a farmer in Iowa. He arranges a big wedding for her at the church. He is good and kind, though he brings her home to a dirty house. Both are virgins, but love sees them through.
A sweet novella.
Maude marries a farmer in Iowa. He arranges a big wedding for her at the church. He is good and kind, though he brings her home to a dirty house. Both are virgins, but love sees them through.
A sweet novella.
October 18, 2017
I've read this story several times. It's a good quick read, but the tropes are pretty tired. It's almost the same situation throughout the first three books. The author does a decent job shaping out the characters, but there are some spots that are lacking. That could have been fixed with a longer book.
This book was free for Kindle when I got it. It would be worth a couple of bucks, but not much more.
This book was free for Kindle when I got it. It would be worth a couple of bucks, but not much more.
March 9, 2020
Een schattige romance, niet zo diepgaand aangezien het een novella is. Het verhaal was niet heel denderend en leek erg om de huwelijksnacht te draaien.
Waarom ik echt maar 1 ster geef is het willekeurig gebruik van perspectiefwisselingen. Meestal lezen we vanuit het perspectief van Maude maar dan ineens, geheel onverwacht, zitten we 1 alinea in het hoofd van John. En dan weer terug bij Maude. Daar stoor ik me aan.
Waarom ik echt maar 1 ster geef is het willekeurig gebruik van perspectiefwisselingen. Meestal lezen we vanuit het perspectief van Maude maar dan ineens, geheel onverwacht, zitten we 1 alinea in het hoofd van John. En dan weer terug bij Maude. Daar stoor ik me aan.
May 10, 2020
Run-away Bride Finds True Love
Maude was desperate when she learned that her parents had arranged marriage with a much older man when she was a young girl. She met with a marriage broker about becoming a mail order bride. After reading his letter she began making plans to marry a farmer. His letter was so sweet as opposed to the demanding nature of the much older man her parents had arranged for her to marry.
Read this book to see if the marriage Maude chose was good match.
Maude was desperate when she learned that her parents had arranged marriage with a much older man when she was a young girl. She met with a marriage broker about becoming a mail order bride. After reading his letter she began making plans to marry a farmer. His letter was so sweet as opposed to the demanding nature of the much older man her parents had arranged for her to marry.
Read this book to see if the marriage Maude chose was good match.
June 3, 2017
Mail order brides, hmm
You know if you think about it mail order brides of old is like our modern day dating sites. Of course with today you get to see, hear and for the most part meet the person. This a good living story about two individuals whom take the chance on each other and find love and companionship.
You know if you think about it mail order brides of old is like our modern day dating sites. Of course with today you get to see, hear and for the most part meet the person. This a good living story about two individuals whom take the chance on each other and find love and companionship.
March 17, 2018
Not bad
So the book was short so the story moves very quickly. I did find a couple of parts that did not match like the color of the main characters eyes she went from gray to blue. So moving on she is running from an unwanted marriage and finds John who she falls for. The ending is happy for them in the end
So the book was short so the story moves very quickly. I did find a couple of parts that did not match like the color of the main characters eyes she went from gray to blue. So moving on she is running from an unwanted marriage and finds John who she falls for. The ending is happy for them in the end
August 3, 2020
Slow and boring
One good thing is that the hero was a Virgin. I found it endearing that he wasn’t a widow or sleeping around or paying for hookers as so many of these western historical romance are prone to give us as heroes. It just was so slow and boring. There were more details about what they were doing and not much about them growing together.
One good thing is that the hero was a Virgin. I found it endearing that he wasn’t a widow or sleeping around or paying for hookers as so many of these western historical romance are prone to give us as heroes. It just was so slow and boring. There were more details about what they were doing and not much about them growing together.
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