You won’t believe the work required to run a peach and horse ranch, or the types of diagnoses that could get you committed to an asylum in the early 1900s.
To write this historical romance the author drew from her experiences growing up in Fruita, Colo., near Palisade’s peach country, and from her years as a journalist covering the Colorado Mental Health Institute at Pueblo, a former asylum.
In this Historical Romance, a handsome young man inherits a ranch in ruin and hopes to marry a beautiful young widow who is an attorney. But she takes up the case of a brilliant doctor committed to an asylum because of one seizure. Will the rancher, the attorney, and the asylum patient achieve their dreams?
Suspense, romance, humor, murder, insanity, hope, fun, wrapped in a Western you won’t forget.
You’ll enjoy this book. Read the first chapter free. http://amzn.to/2arRVgG
Excerpt
John took his knife out of his pocket and began grooming his fingernails. “She was doing a lot of praying when we found her, and she wanted me and Abe to leave her alone. Soon as I understood a baby was on the way, I went for Polly.”
Edwina wrinkled her little turned-up nose. “What’s that terrible odor?”
John stepped to the fence. “Might be coming from my prize pigs. See the big one over there I call Gertie?”
Gertie trotted close and rubbed her prickly mud-covered back on the hog wire.
“I expect to make big money from pork while I rebuild the horse herd and work in the peach orchards. You ought to try a few pigs. You get a quicker turnover with your money than with horses. Your papa used to raise them. Besides, it’s always nice to have smoked ham and bacon available.”
Edwina leaned over the fence. The pigs grappled with each other over the slop, snorting and grunting. “I might get some. The little ones are cute. Since my papa is in the wheelchair, I’m running everything. How is the pork market doing?”
“It sounded great to me. It …”
Gertie stuck her snout through the fence and sucked Edwina’s lacy pink dress. Edwina jerked the skirt out of the slimy jaws and then, stringy pig saliva slid down her pretty legs.
“Eeeeewwww!” she squealed, holding her dress out away from her. “I didn’t know pigs would eat clothing.”
Laughter almost escaped John’s lips. He pressed his fist over his mouth until his insides quit quaking in case she was mad enough to use the gun strapped on her slim middle. “Gertie probably smelled the cornstarch you used to starch your dress. I’d guess for her it was quite tasty. I’ll get you a towel.”
“Don’t bother.” She grabbed a big blue handkerchief from the buggy, wiped at her legs and jumped in the driver’s seat. “You probably wanted me to stand over by the fence so that would happen. You are incorrigible, John Parks. Get someone else to go to the church picnic with you!”
As the dust rose from her departure, she almost ran into the mailman.
John meandered to the mailbox. Strange. He hadn’t asked her to the picnic. He never intended to.
Professional Reviews
Excellent
Wonderful book. I enjoyed it immensely - the story lines were so good. Kept me guessing what would happen next. I highly recommend it as an inspirational and encouraging book.
Peachy Read
Ada Brownell’s “Peach Blossom Rancher” is a well-crafted story made all the more interesting and alive by the inclusion of a mini-narrative revolving around the mistreatment and misdiagnosis of mental patients in the early 20th century.
With strong female characters, interwoven Christian faith, and tense drama and action, “Peach Blossom Rancher” is an intriguing read. Throw in believable love stories packed with surprise and romance, and the story grows as sweet as its title.
Historical Christian Fiction
John Lincoln Parks has a lot of things to sort out…his ranch, his horses, his peach orchard…and then there are the women – Valerie, Edwina and Bellea. What is a fellow to do? Set in 1909, Ada Brownell’s novel has a lot going on with settings from the western ranch to an eastern asylum. There is mystery and social injustice and there are characters who deal with adversity with strong Christian faith. I thoroughly enjoyed this book and recommend it to those who like historical Christian fiction. It does stand alone but there are a few places where it seems like there is something missing in the background. To fill in the story about John’s sister Jenny and earlier events, read the first book in the series The Lady Fugitive. I received Peach Blossom Rancher from the author by way of The Book Club Network (bookfun.org) in exchange for an honest review.
Book 3 continues the Commander and the Chief's adventures in political intrigue, superstition, old feuds, and the search of Nikola Tesla's missing papers in this Close Encounter of the Weird Kind.
