McKettrick's Choice (The McKettrick Series #4) (Hardcover)

by Linda Lael Miller (Author) "HOLT MCKETTRICK hooked a finger under his fancy collar in a vain effort to loosen it a little..." (more)
Key Phrases: San Antonio, John Cavanagh, Miss Fellows (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly
The highly enjoyable latest volume of Miller's popular McKettrick series stars older half-brother Holt McKettrick. Learning that his former Ranger partner, Gabe Navarro, is on the way to the gallows on trumped-up charges and that his foster father, Buffalo Soldier John Cavanagh, is about to lose his land, Holt ditches his mail-order bride at their Arizona Territories altar and rides off to Texas. In San Antonio, he meets a lively lady named Lorelei Fellows, who has just called off her own wedding and burned her bridal gown in the center of town. Thrown out of her father's house, she's hoping to pick up some cattle and start a small ranch of her own. Holt thinks she's out of her mind, but he revises his opinion after watching Lorelei learn to ride a mule named Seesaw, play a cutthroat game of poker, and all in all start to look mighty delectable. Cavanagh's land will be fine and Navarro won't hang—but is Lorelei out of the frying pan into the fire? Her father dies vastly indebted to the landowner who had framed Navarro. Strong characterization and a vivid western setting make for a fine historical romance.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist
*Starred Review* Holt McKettrick leaves his mail-order bride at the altar when a rider appears at the Triple M Ranch in the Arizona Territory with the news that John Cavanagh, the buffalo soldier who raised him, is being forced off his land and that his friend Gabe is about to be hanged. Riding hard, Holt reaches San Antonio just as Lorelei Fellows torches her wedding dress. The daughter of the judge who sentenced Gabe to hang, Lorelei refuses to marry a sleazy lawyer and takes refuge on the tiny dilapidated ranch left to her by her mother. Holt has to head to Mexico to bring back the evidence to free Gabe and the cattle needed to keep John Cavanagh's ranch from being taken over by a greedy schemer. And what a posse Holt assembles: Cavanagh's sweet, mentally challenged daughter; Gabe's very pregnant lover; and Lorelei. Intrigue, danger, and greed are up against integrity, kindness, and love in this engrossing western romance. Miller has created unforgettable characters and woven a many-faceted yet coherent and lovingly told tale. Patty Engelmann
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 416 pages
• Publisher: Harlequin Books; No Additional Listings Printed edition (June 1, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0373770294
• ISBN-13: 978-0373770298
• Product Dimensions: 9.4 x 6.2 x 1.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars See all reviews (32 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #268,810 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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• This is item 4 in The McKettrick Series.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A FUN HISTORICAL ROMANCE, July 6, 2006

By	Yvette Mignerey Atkin (Salt Lake City, UT) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: McKettrick's Choice (McKettrick Men Series #3) (Mass Market Paperback)

This is a book that sweeps you off your feet from the first page. Lorelei Fellows is a strong willed, defiant, stubborn woman and Holt McKettrick happens to have very similar qualities. The hero and heroine are a perfect match for one another and because there is so much tension between them, it makes those softer moments even more tender.

The story in itself is very interesting from cattle drive to the Comanches attacks to the way women live on the trail. All the characters are intriguing and very likeable (except for the bad guys, of course!).

It's a great story to read all on its own. Happy Reading.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Originally Posted on Romance Junkies in 2005, May 12, 2007

By	Jennifer Wardrip (Central Illinois, USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: McKettrick's Choice (McKettrick Men Series #3) (Mass Market Paperback)

Linda Lael Miller is known for writing heart-tugging, emotional Western romances, and with MCKETTRICK'S CHOICE, she delivers yet again. The MCKETTRICK BROTHERS TRILOGY began in 2002 with High Country Bride (McKettrick Cowboys Trilogy), followed in 2003 with Shotgun Bride (McKettrick Cowboys Trilogy), and finished in 2004 with Secondhand Bride (McKettrick Cowboys Trilogy). The saga now takes a surprising turn in 2005 with MCKETTRICK'S CHOICE, the story of the oldest McKettrick brother, Holt, who was raised away from the iron fist of family patriarch, Angus, and the three brothers from the trilogy-Rafe, Kade, and Jeb.

Holt McKettrick spent a large part of his life as Holt Cavanagh, adopted son of John Cavanagh, a rancher with a spread outside of San Antonio, Texas. Now back in the McKettrick fold-with the tensions and egos that four competing males are bound to bring-Holt is in the process of marrying Miss Margaret Tarquin when a letter from Texas changes his plans.

The short note advises Holt that his adoptive father, John, is about to be driven from his land, and former Ranger buddy, Gabe Navarro, is to be hanged for murder and thievery. Holt, as a McKettrick and a Cavanagh, has no choice but to leave the Arizona Territory and return to Texas to set matters straight.

But upon arrival, mayhem awaits. People have been killed, lands have been burned, and one Miss Lorelie Fellows, who happens to own the land next to John Cavanagh's, is attempting to drive Holt insane.

MCKETTRICK'S CHOICE is Western historical romance at its best-lively characters, a wonderful story line, attention to historic detail, and Ms. Miller's personal brand of story-telling make this book a very enjoyable read. Mystery, suspense, passion, and family duty don't disappoint in this hardcover release from one of the best of the genre.

8 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars terrific western romance , June 1, 2005

By	Harriet Klausner - See all my reviews (#1 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

In 1888 on the ranch of his biological father in the Arizona Territory, Holt McKettrick is waiting for the preacher to arrive to marry him to Margaret when a visitor from his home state of Texas arrives with a note that he carried from friend Frank Corrales. Apparently the man who raised him John Cavanaugh is being dispossessed from his land and his best friend Gabe is going to be hung as a murdering horse thief. He informs his bride to be that they will not marry at least that day, leaves his daughter with her grandfather, and rushes back to Texas to try to save the day.

In San Antonio, Judge Fellows is exasperated with his daughter Lorelei who refuses to wed her fiancé Creighton Banning. Instead as Holt arrives in town, she burns her wedding dress and flees to the dilapidated ranch she inherited from her late mother. Her neighbor Holt helps her and soon they fall in love though her father convicted Gabe and her influential former fiancé has made the bid for John's land.

The follow up to the McKettrick bride trilogy is filled with suspense and action, but belongs to a pair of rowdies who do not believe in love until the emotion slaps each of them in the heart. The story line is fast-paced, but also provides a deep look at late nineteenth century Texas through the colorful cast. Linda Lael Miller provides a terrific western romance that embellishes why this is one of the sub-genre's better miniseries in the last few years.

Harriet Klausner