Customer Reviews

The Bridegroom (Stone Creek)

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(5)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I have waited for this installment of the Stone Creek series because I was intrigued by the promise young Gideon made to little Lydia Fairmont in A Wanted Man. The excerpt was promising. The story started off well ... but went nowhere in a hurry.

I liked the premise of Gideon rescuing Lydia from a horrible fiancee and bringing her (and her elderly aunts and housekeeper) to Stone Creek where he is to start an undercover job at the mine. Mining is a dangerous job, but Lydia never questions his safety or why such an educated man takes a job such as that. The lack of communication between Gideon and Lydia was depressing and made it hard to believe they fell in love throughout the course of the story. They were so lively as children that it was hard to believe the lackluster adults they had become.

It was nice to see many characters from earlier books but it almost seemed they appeared to fill a quota of book length, because several of them seemed to have no purpose. Actually, much of the book seemed to have no purpose. The plot promises suspense which never quite happens and several scenes in the book greatly resemble Ms. Miller's earlier stories. I had to force myself to finish reading the book, so this will be the last LLM purchase for me. Thanks for the good stories over the years, but I think it's time for me to move on.

I have been waiting for this book for a long time. I knew when Gideon gave Lydia the letter to send to him if she was ever in trouble when they were children that a good book could be made when they were adults. I love the characters in the Stone Creek series, but I was disappointed in the length. There could have been more discussions between Gideon and his brothers about the mine and his conscience changing as he got to know the miners and their families. Lydia also needed to ask more questions about why he was working in a mine when he had a college education and two brothers in town who could give him a better job.

The book was too short. I did enjoy the talk about the missing twin brothers and hope and expect a new Stone Creek novel about them. I hope it is much longer and that the plot and characters are developed with more care. Linda is writing too many books too fast and her books are suffering. What could have been a 5 will get only 3 or 4.

I would still recommend this book because it continues the story of Rowdy and Wyatt. Sam O'Ballivan is also in the book, but doesn't say much. I liked the relationship between Lydia, Lark, and Sarah. I already wanted Gideon and Lydia to have a HEA after reading "A Wanted Man". I believe to really enjoy this book you would have to have read all of the Stone Creek series. It really doesn't stand alone.

When Lydia Fairmont finds herself in trouble, there's only one person she can turn to for help. Unfortunately, Lydia hasn't seen Gideon Yarbro in years. Lydia sends her letter anyway, and at the very last minute, Gideon arrives. The hasty decision Gideon makes to get Lydia out of trouble changes their lives, and not all for the better. Gideon may be married to sweet Lydia now, but he has an angry fiancé to deal with, and a dangerous job waiting for him back home in Stone Creek. Lydia loves Gideon, but she doesn't want to be wife in name only and Gideon doesn't think he can stay and keep Lydia out of danger. Will Gideon and Lydia have the chance to make their marriage a real one?

The Bridegroom's rich sensuality and authentic Old West storyline is classic Linda Lael Miller. While Gideon struggles with his decisions, his brothers Rowdy and Wyatt try to steer him in the right direction, reminding him that the love of a good woman is worth fighting for. Lydia is full of sweet fire and Gideon's sexy grin could melt any woman's heart. The Bridegroom is page after page of angst, excitement, and sizzling passion.


Nannette
Reviewed for Joyfully Reviewed

I love Linda Lael Miller. She is one of my favorite authors. Now, The Bridegroom, was not my favorite book by her (by a long shot), but I still thoroughly enjoyed reading it. She has great heroes and heroines, and her books just have great charm to them. They are usually light, but there is a lot of warmth to them.

This book is Gideon's story, younger brother to Wyatt in The Rustler. In this story, Lydia Fairmont, a childhood friend of Gideon's, must marry a despicable banker if she wants to keep her family home. Seeing as her two widowed aunts live with her, she knows that she must go through with the marriage for their sake. But she is secretly hoping that Gideon will come rescue her before the marriage. Gideon made her promise to mail him a letter asking for help if she ever needed him for anything. So she does mail the letter, but it is down to the wire. The day before her wedding, Gideon shows up.

Lydia feels like it is too late though so Gideon has to kidnap her and take her to Stone Creek where his brothers live. He has just taken a job as a miner in Stone Creek, but is really doing some undercover work for the owners of the mine. But when they get to Stone Creek, his brother convinces him to marry Lydia for her sake and reputation, and so has to prevent him from going to jail for kidnapping Lydia. What starts out as a marriage of convenience for both of them, soon turns into a love match. Gideon can't stop thinking about his virgin bride, especially with both of them sharing a bed at night. But Gideon knows that once is job is complete, he will be leaving town. Or maybe he won't if Lydia can make him fall in love with her. I really enjoyed this story! 5 stars!

I was so excited to read this book, because I finally got to read Gideons story. I was not let down by this book!!!

The book is a good read. It goes by pretty fast, as all of LLM's books do. I always enjoy her books. One thing I did notice that was way off was that in A Wanted Man, Nell Baker (the aunt) was referred to as Lydia's maternal aunt, but in The Bridegroom, she becomes the paternal aunt. Maybe LLM forgot what she wrote in the previous book. I only know this because I read A Wanted Man right before The Bridegroom so I caught the mistake. I think something went wrong there! Regardless, I always like reading LLM's books, the good ones and not so good ones.

Of all Linda's books, I think this one shows her true talent the best. I fell in love with Gideon. He grew from a shy but brave teenage boy in the first Stone Creek books, into a sexy, loving, noble man. Total steamy romance in this book. I loved the dialogue so much, and I thought Lily's aunts were so funny. Linda captured each character's emotions brilliantly. You could feel the passion being stoked between the two. This is a definite must-read!

I liked the other Stone Creek books and hoped this one would fare as well. No. The book had absolutely no substance to it. Gideon doesn't want to be treated like Rowdy and Wyatt's little brother, but he acts like one. Lydia just wants to cry and mope to the other Yarbro brides. The mining story was beyond predictable, the old man Lydia didn't want to marry. Throwing in of two little old lady aunts for some comic relief didn't work; they seemed more like weirdos: still sleeping together? Hello.

And, what is up with these stories where the man will not consummate the marriage because he wants to be honorable, but yet he will do everything else? Ridiculous, since you know it will ultimately happen.

I can't recommend this book; it just didn't have much to recommend.

I knew when I read A Wanted Man that Lydia and Gideon would wind up together, and was quite anxious to see how LLM would do it. It seemed a lot of people didn't care for this book, but I thought it was a pretty good read. I liked the way Gideon went to Lydia's rescue, and I liked the way he looked after the aunts and Helga, but I do agree that there wasn't much of a plot or storyline. However, I think it's worth a read. Much better than The Rustler.

If you enjoy Linda Lael Miller's books, you will probably like this one. It continues the story of the Yarbro brothers and finishes some of the odds and ends left from the first two Yarbro books. It moves quickly and is an easy read.