Welcome to the blog tour for Over the Edge by Mary Connealy. Read on for contest information!
Let's begin with the summary of this third book in The Kincaid Brides series:
Seth Kincaid survived a fire in a cave, but he's never been the same. He
was always a reckless youth, but now he's gone over the edge. He ran
off to the Civil War and came back crazier than ever.
After the war, nearly dead from his injuries, it appears Seth got married. Oh, he's got a lot of excuses, but his wife isn't happy to find out Seth doesn't remember her. Callie has searched, prayed, and worried. Now she's come to the Kincaid family's ranch in Colorado to find her lost husband.
Callie isn't a long-suffering woman. Once she knows her husband is alive, she wants to kill him. She's not even close to forgiving him for abandoning her.
After the war, nearly dead from his injuries, it appears Seth got married. Oh, he's got a lot of excuses, but his wife isn't happy to find out Seth doesn't remember her. Callie has searched, prayed, and worried. Now she's come to the Kincaid family's ranch in Colorado to find her lost husband.
Callie isn't a long-suffering woman. Once she knows her husband is alive, she wants to kill him. She's not even close to forgiving him for abandoning her.
And now, my review:
I haven’t read the earlier books in The Kindcaid Bride
series, and though this story definitely zeroes in on Seth Kincaid and his
wife, I still felt lost at times. There were lots of characters from earlier books, and
we spent time in their POVs. There were references to locations we hadn’t been
to in this story, but we were supposed to know what they were (for example, the cavern).
Confusing for readers who haven’t read the earlier books.
The voice was new to me, too, and that probably contributed
to the confusion. The genre is considered “cowboy comedy,” but I didn’t see the
humor in the tormented hero’s situation. And I especially missed the humor in
the Texas-native heroine who was incredibly prideful and disrespectful and mean
to the hero, her husband. Her inner thoughts called him brainless, an idiot,
and a lunatic on several occasions. And she often thought of kicking, hitting,
or shooting him. Of course that last one was probably meant as an exaggeration,
except that she did shoot at him near the beginning of the story.
Unfortunately, what was probably supposed to be funny, didn’t translate that
way for me. She never repents
of her rude, disrespectful attitude, and that felt like a breach of contract
with the reader. We’d like to see some transformation, but she remained
prideful of her strengths and her Texas heritage, and judgmental of her husband,
throughout the story. Even during any sort of reconciliation scenes, she never
repented or apologized. Yes, the hero abandoned her, but he was now trying to
make things right. And her hostility seemed completely out of balance (i.e.
unbelievable) with the situation. It makes sense she would feel angry and even vengeful, especially at first, but she carries it too long and takes it too far.
The book's summary hints at the heroine's faith, but I read the entire book, and I don't recall (forgive me if I missed it) the heroine's faith or convictions playing a big part in the story. That's an aspect I'd have rather seen displayed and explored more obviously.
What I did appreciate was that the hero was warm and humble.
He knew he had some limitations, and some failures to make up for, but he was
caring and protective of his wife (who was caustic in return) and his infant son. Overall,
his character journey was more fulfilling.
I think readers who’ve enjoyed this series will get the most
out of this book. There are some “series loose ends” tied up here, so I wouldn’t
miss it. And in as much as this wasn’t the typical cowboy story (a hero who has
his act together and barely has any weakness), this story is original. I’m
still trying to decide if my funny bone was on vacation or if comedy doesn’t
translate well with historicals, or what… Undecided. Whether you’ve read the entire
series or not, this one’s heroine requires some grace.
~~~~~
CONTEST: Win a Nook Color from Mary Connealy in the Over the Edge Giveaway. RSVP for 8/28 Facebook Party.
Celebrate with Mary by entering to win a Nook Color with GlowLight!
See what folks are saying about Over the Edge!
- A Nook Color with GlowLight
- The entire set of Mary Connealy's The Kincaid Brides series
So grab your copy of Over the Edge and join Mary on the evening of the August 29th for a chance to connect with her and make some new friends. (If you haven't read the book - don't let that stop you from coming!)
Don't miss a moment of the RSVP today. Tell your friends via FACEBOOK or TWITTER and increase your chances of winning. Hope to see you on the 29th!
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