Grass Valley Brides

 by Shanna Hatfield

I'm excited and honored to be part of a new historical collection of romances called Regional Romance Series written by Kari Trumbo, Kit Morgan, Peggy L. Henderson, and me. 

There are four books in the series and they all release September 14!

What's really neat about the series is that each book is a collection of three stories. So, if you buy all four books, you actually get twelve stories. 

My contribution to the series is Grass Valley Brides. The idea for this book came from a contemporary series I've written called Grass Valley Cowboys.  The stories are about the Thompson family and their friends in modern day Grass Valley, Oregon. As I wrote those books, I pondered what life might have been like when the town first started.

So, when the opportunity to participate in the Regional Romance Series  popped up, it seemed like a great time to dive into the town's history and write this story.

The town was established in 1878, and all three of my stories take place in 1884. By then, the town was starting to grow and there was daily stagecoach service through the area. 

Here's a little about Grass Valley Brides.

What’s a matchmaker to do when the husband-to-be rejects the bride?

Again . . .

Widowed as a young wife, Cara Cargill turned her head for business and love of romance into a successful mail-order bride enterprise. She’s never had a problem matching couples until one mule-headed man continues to refuse to wed the women she sends to meet him in Grass Valley, Oregon. In an effort to make a match he’ll keep and uphold her sterling reputation, Cara is desperate to find the perfect bride.

Daisy – When her fiancé leaves her at the altar, Daisy Bancroft knows it is far past time for a change. Her dearest friend, Cara, offers to send her to a newly established town in Oregon, where possibilities abound and the grass is rumored to be as tall as a man’s head. Daisy arrives with plans to wed Tagg Thompson, only to find the obstinate rancher has foisted her off on his best friend.

Birdie – Tired of waiting for her Mister Right to magically appear and whisk her away to a happily-ever-after, Bridget “Birdie” Byrne convinces her sister, a renowned matchmaker, to send her as the bride to Tagg Thompson. The man who greets her upon her arrival isn’t Tagg, but Birdie is certain she’s finally discovered the man she is meant to marry.

Cara – Fed up with Tagg Thompson and his refusals of every bride she’s sent to Grass Valley for him to wed, Cara decides to meet the exasperating man in person. Her feet are barely on the ground in the rustic town before she’s nearly bowled over by a herd of stampeding cattle and swept into the brawny arms of a cowboy with the bluest eyes she’s ever seen.

Will true love find its home in the hearts of these Grass Valley Brides?

Here's an excerpt:

My dear Mrs. Cargill,

Happy spring greetings to you. Are the flowers blooming there now? We don’t have a lot of flowers here, beyond the ones that grow wild, but they are starting to bloom. In fact, there’s quite a field of them behind the church and another a few miles north of town.

I’ve got a hundred and three new calves and a few left to arrive, but it’s a good healthy crop of them this year. We’ve also got little baby chicks, and several colts. There are piglets, and, because I had a hankering for lamb stew, there are now a dozen sheep on the place, too. I’ve recently acquired the piece of land that borders mine to the east, giving me another section of ground. I’m not going to do a thing with it this year because the grass is perfect for my cattle to graze.

I’ve been talking to a fellow up north of us who wants to move to a warmer winter climate. He’s got thirty good head of cattle I’m thinking about buying, but we’ll see if he really does decide to move. Poor man lost his wife and daughter two years ago, and just hasn’t had his heart in the place since then.

Speaking of hearts, I still find myself in need of a bride. Maybe you should just send half a dozen at a time and I can start weeding them out faster. I’m not getting any younger, you know. I still plan on having youngsters someday, but I’d sure prefer to do it before I’m too old to pick them up or to chase after them on arthritic-plagued knees.

If you still haven’t sent a proper bride by the time the snow flies, I think I’ll come to Philadelphia and help you out. What would you think of that?

Until next time, your devoted and yet-to-be-satisfied client,

T. Thompson

Available on Amazon for only $2.99

USA Today bestselling author Shanna Hatfield is a farm girl who loves to write. Her sweet historical and contemporary romances are filled with sarcasm, humor, hope, and hunky heroes. When Shanna isn’t dreaming up unforgettable characters, twisting plots, or covertly seeking dark, decadent chocolate, she hangs out with her beloved husband, Captain Cavedweller.


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