THE ACCIDENTAL BRIDE by Denise Hunter

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 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