The Accidental Bride - Denise Hunter

THE BOOK:

Two high-school sweethearts, a wedding reenactment, and one absent-minded preacher. Is it a recipe for disaster or a chance for a new beginning?

 

Shay Brandenberger is a survivor. She's lived through a crazy childhood, a failed marriage, and single parenthood-with her confidence intact.

But not for long. Because when Shay participates in her town's Founder's Day wedding reenactment, she finds herself face-to-face with the one man who takes her breath away and leaves her weak in the knees: Travis McCoy.

Travis is back in town after years way on the rodeo circuit. His one regret in life is breaking Shay's heart when they were high-school sweethearts. He's determined to get it right this time. 

So when their Founder's Day "marriage" is accidentally made official, Travis seizes the day. Can Shay put aside her pride to let Travis help her, or will their accidental marriage be dissolved before it can begin? 

MY REVIEW: 

Star Rating: ****

The Accidental Bride will have you gripping the pages, breathless. And not the kind of suspense 'breathless-ness' us thriller-readers might think. But a romantic kinda suspense that has you cheering—urging—Travis to prove to Shay that he's a changed man. It's definitely a book that, when you read the last page, you close with a content sigh. You go through such turmoil to get to the 'happy ever after', you're just too thrilled to think of anything but, "He did it! They're together! Yay!"

Travis was great. Sure, he was a knucklehead in his youth, but now he’s wiser—gotta love a guy who admits he was wrong and tries so hard to fix it! Shay, personally, was a little harder for me to like. Okay, a lot harder! There were a few times I wanted to knock her upside the head and tell her to open her eyes—to see what an awesome man Travis turned out to be. I do understand some of her hesitation…but after five months?! How could she keep doubting?

In The Accidental Bride, there comes a point where their vows are consummated, and there are several passionate kisses. Kisses are described, but past that, the author doesn't go into too much detail except to mention that it takes place. There’s also mentioning of a "necking" in the hay stall and them taking a shower together. It could have done without some of the more heated, intimate scenes, but Denise Hunter more just toed the line, in my opinion.

The idea of becoming accidentally, and so irreversibly, married to someone without even knowing was kinda far-fetched for me. And the author even says that she stretched a few laws and such to make it work. But it did make for an interesting story. I loved the writing style in this book—so sharp and bold, carrying the thoughts, feelings, and reactions of the character right to the reader. It felt so real, so believable. The Accidental Bride is a book that fans of Denise Hunter are going to love! :-)

I reviewed this book for FIRST Wild Card Blog Tours. Special thanks to Audra Jennings at the B&B  Media Group for sending me a review copy. It was not required that I give a positive review, but solely to express my own thoughts and opinions of this book, which I have done.

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