Promise Me Today [Paperback]

LORI COPELAND (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 1, 1998

When the McDougal sisters were rescued by three strangers on their way to the gallows, each woman was picked up by a different man. Unfortunately for Abigail, she was grabbed by a twit of a shoe salesman, Mr. Hershall Digman. Of course she tried to steal his horse, only to discover the dandy was a Confederate spy! And he came running after her, demanding his papers. With murder in their eyes and lust in their hearts, they embarked on Drake's mission together, knowing that when fire and kerosene mix, the flames may burn out of control....

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

The first romance in "The Sisters of Mercy Flats" trilogy opens in 1864, as the three McDougal sisters lie and swindle their way across Texas dressed as nuns. A Comanche attack forces them to scatter, and Abigail finds herself saddled with Hershall Digman, a shoe salesman and seemingly unpromising specimen. He promptly demonstrates his uselessness by refusing to escort her to Mercy Flats, her family home. After Abigail swipes Hershall's horse (leaving him stranded on the trail), she examines his papers and realizes that the sappy salesman is really Confederate spy Barrett Drake. Barrett catches up with Abigail in spite of himself (this spy is no tracker), but the saucy swindler refuses to relinquish his documents. Finally, they compromise: first she'll help him complete his mission to Shreveport, then he'll take her to Mercy Flats. Their difficult journey is leavened with frequent doses of Copeland's ( Forever, Ashley ) broad humor--delivered without finesse but with boundless enthusiasm. Romance fans who enjoy this kind of comedy can settle in for a few hours of uncomplicated, lightweight entertainment.
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From the Inside Flap

When the McDougal sisters were rescued by three strangers on their way to the gallows, each woman was picked up by a different man. Unfortunately for Abigail, she was grabbed by a twit of a shoe salesman, Mr. Hershall Digman. Of course she tried to steal his horse, only to discover the dandy was a Confederate spy! And he came running after her, demanding his papers. With murder in their eyes and lust in their hearts, they embarked on Drake's mission together, knowing that when fire and kerosene mix, the flames may burn out of control....

Product Details

• Paperback
• Publisher: Ivy Books (June 1, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0449005046
• ISBN-13: 978-0449005040
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #8,829,025 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

My husband and I live in the beautiful Ozarks. Our three sons, Randy, Rick and Russ live nearby so we get to enjoy our five grandchildren on a weekly basis. James, Joe, Josh, Gage and Audrey. Naturally I dote on the grandchildren! We also enjoy our many friends from our church and RV club.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Not bad, but where's the ending?, May 23, 2008

By 

Gemma "bookworm" (Alberta, Canada) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Promise Me Today (Mass Market Paperback)

From the back cover:

The three wily and beautiful McDougal sisters could swindle a man faster than it took to lasso a calf.

But their luck was running out when the wagon hauling the sisters to jail came under attack by Comanches. Then a dumbfounded Abigail watched as Amelia and Anne-Marie were swept off by rugged rescuers--while she got stuck with an impossible twit of a shoe salesman, Mr. Hershall Digman.

Stealing Digman's horse and riding to the nearest town seemed easy as pie--until Abby found top secret papers in the saddlebags. Why, the lying, conniving little sneak was a Confederate spy!

To prove it, the man who came storming after her was no mincing dandy in a bowler had but a devilishly handsome captain in the Confederate Army. Barrett Drake wanted his papers. Well, she wanted a ride back home. With murder in their eyes and growing lust in their hearts, they embarked on Drake's mission together, knowing that when fire and kerosene mix, the flames may burn out of control...

And my review:

This book was written before the author switched to inspirational (Christian) romance. So if you are a fan of her later works, don't read this expected a "clean" romance. While it's not a lust-soaked book, there are sex scenes in it (and not in the context of marriage).

PROMISE ME TODAY is part of a trilogy. It's obvious from the very beginning that Abigail's two sisters, Amelia and Anne-Marie, have their own stories, seperate from this book.

One thing that was irritating was how similar the sister's names were. Abigail, Amelia and Anne-Marie. I felt like I needed a cheat sheet to keep them all straight. I had a hard time remember which one was the heroine of this book until the sisters were seperated, each rescued by a different man.

The interactions between the hero and heroine were lively and funny. I loved watching the sparks fly between these two. Both of them were liars, and I should have hated them, yet for some reason, I didn't. I found myself cheering for both of them, even though they were very flawed. The heroine, especially, has made a life of conning innocent people. I should have hated her, but the author made me want to see her happy. Not many writers can accomplish that, so I applaud the author for a job well done.

My big complaint with this book is that there is no ending! All the plot threads are just left dangling, presumably to be tied up in the other books of the trilogy. No happily ever after, no commitment between hero and heroine (the hero is just starting to think about settling down with her when the book abruptly ends), no "I love you"s spoken! Argh! I read romance for the happily ever after and the "I love you", and it never came! Not only that, but everything else was left as loose ends. What would happen to the baby they'd rescued along the way? Would Abigail be reunited with her sisters? Would Barrett continue working as a Confederate spy? Nothing was answered! While I don't mind series books, I like each book to be able to stand on its own. I felt cheated that I'd read the whole book, but didn't get a whole story. And I wasn't satisfied enough with this book to bother spending my money seeking out the others in the trilogy.

**Warning! Spoilers ahead!**

Near to the end of the book, I felt that the hero's behaviour changed. He started out fine, but got more childish and selfish as the story went on. The way he acted toward the heroine got on my nerves after a while. The woman nurses him through a raging fever, and he never says a word of thanks. He won't offer her a commitment, yet he acts like a spoiled child when any other man even says hello to her. The first time the hero and heroine make love dances very close to the line of rape. It's not quit by force, as the heroine stops resisting from the first kiss, however, it did make me a bit uncomfortable. Some readers would call it "forced seduction". However, if you are sensitive to that sort of thing, I would recommend you pass this one by.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars One of my favorite series of all time!, October 4, 2003

By 

Amanda Weinstein (Palmetto, FL United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Promise Me Today (Mass Market Paperback)

This is my favorite book in this series. A great concept and wonderful writing makes it a fun read.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Good Civil War Story, but disappointing end, January 31, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: Promise Me Today (Mass Market Paperback)

This story holds your interest, but near the end, I was disgusted at the way the Abigail allows herself to be treated by a man. I also didn't understand why Abigail changed her lying ways due to meeting Barrett. He didn't seem to have such a positive influence on her. Interesting, but this 1992 Lori Copeland book is not her best. Her more recent works are much better.