When a Texan Gambles

November 1, 2003
In 1880, three young women are expelled from a wagon train in the middle of wild-and women-starved-Texas: young widow Sarah Andrews, volunteer nurse Lacy Dillavou and spunky Bailee Moore. All three become murder suspects when a no-goodnik attempts to steal both their wagon and Lacy, but in the absence of a dead body, a pragmatic sheriff raffles them off to marriage-minded locals-hence Thomas's Wife Lottery Series. This book, which is second in the series after The Texan's Wager, follows the relationship between Sarah and legendary bounty hunter Sam Gatlin as they evade criminals, sleep under the stars and sort out their feelings for each other. While Sam keeps them safe, Sarah tries to come to terms with her tumultuous past and the realization that she may be in love with her new husband. The Texas setting is familiar territory to Thomas's fans, as is the book's lively dialogue and endearing homespun characters. What may confuse some readers, however, are the occasional references to characters and incidents from the previous installment. Despite Thomas's sloppy plotting-she drops plot threads and characters at whim and then works them back in when it's convenient-this bright, character-centered tale should entertain fans of the Old West.

Starred review from October 15, 2003
Sarah Andrews, first introduced in " The Texan's Wager" (2002), is cast off the wagon train as an "undesirable" with her friends Bailee and Lacey and then conned by the local sheriff into being part of a wedding lottery in order to stay out of prison. The man who "wins" Sarah, Sam Gatlin, is a universally hated bounty hunter, feared by everyone he meets except Sarah. Sam has terrible luck as a new groom. He gets shot, stabbed, and otherwise hunted down for his role in putting bad guys behind bars. To top everything off, Sarah has made him promise not to consummate their union until she's ready. Undaunted by Sam's reputation and gruff mannerisms, Sarah sticks by him during the attempts on his life, even acting as his protector when the situation warrants. Beauty and the Beast meet the Old West as the feisty Sarah refuses to fear the man whose reputation makes sane men tremble. Thomas' second Texas title is even better than the first, which is terrific.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2003, American Library Association.)