Customer Reviews

Promised to a Stranger

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I thought it was a really great story once I got into it. The characters were wonderful, the dialogue excellent, and I felt as though I were in Indiana in 1880! It was the most amazing book I have read, and I hope that Linda O'Brien keeps writing such fascinating stories!

In 1880 Philadelphia, a desperate Madeline Beecher flees for her life after witnessing a murder. Upon boarding the west bound train, Madeline meets New Yorker Amelia Baker, a woman heading to Indiana to marry her fiancé, a man she never met. In Indiana, disaster strikes and a train wreck occurs, leaving Amelia dead. Madeline decides to fulfill her deceased companion's destiny by masquerading as Amelia as the safest course for her future. When she leaves the hospital, she plans to continue on to see "her fiancé," Jeremy Knight, an extremely shy person who could only court a gal by mail.

Jeremy's brother Blaine wants to leave the family farm. He figures his best chance is with Amelia. However, he is stunned with her beauty and her vivacious personality, which is nothing like her letters. He knows that he is falling in love with his brother's girl and must leave the farm soon. Worse yet, a guilt-laden Madeline returns Blaine's feelings. Then there remains a killer, who plans to eradicate the only individual who can identify him.

On the surface, PROMISED TO A STRANGER seems like a trite plot centered on a love triangle starring two brothers and their woman (think Elvis in LOVE ME TENDER). However, far from being banal, the Americana romance story line is crisp, exciting, and charming. The triangular protagonists are all warm with personal needs and motives that freshen up the novel. The elements of intrigue add suspense to an already complex, well designed tale. Linda O'Brien displays much writing ability with this wonderful historical romance.

Harriet Klausner