Regina Jennings
Historical Romance
“Abigail Stuart Thought She was Jeremiah Calhoun’s Widow.
But Jeremiah Calhoun Is Very Handsome, Very Alive, and Very Perplexed.
Most Inconvenient Indeed.”
I love that not only do I get to begin my new blog with a review of one of author Regina Jennings’ books but this book in particular. A Most Inconvenient Marriage is the first book in Regina’s second trilogy. If you read and liked any of the books from her first trilogy, you’ll love this one. It is, by far, my favorite. I laughed. I cried. I worried. I rejoiced. I cringed. It was a bit of a roller coaster at times but was all the better for it.
Jeremiah Calhoun, a dying soldier, has two requests for nurse Abigail Stuart. Marry him and take care of his ailing sister. Abigail complies, not knowing just how drastically this decision will change her life. Several months after Abigail takes charge of the Calhoun farm and the care of Jeremiah’s mother and sister, Jeremiah shows up looking quite a bit different and a lot more alive than she remembered. How can Jeremiah fix this mess? And where does Abigail fit in all of this?
This book is set in the Ozarks. Regina paints such a lovely word picture of it that it doesn’t require much imagination at all to see it in my mind and long to visit. Unfortunately, this story takes place just after the Civil War which made the area a not very safe place to be. How sad that even though these men made it home from the war, they still had to fight to keep their own property from being taken.
The character descriptions were wonderful as well. It was very easy to understand, and sympathize with, the actions of each of the good guys; even when I would have liked for them to have behaved differently. The bad guys were introduced in such a way that they had no redeeming qualities. One in particular gave me the creeps whenever he was mentioned. Especially after he caused harm to one of the animals. I was more than ready for something bad to befall him. I do like a good bad guy though. I don’t like to be made to think that I should feel sorry for them at some point. Where’s the fun in that? And then there were the children. These were some ornery little rascals who gave as good as they got though their antics did go a bit far at times. I need these kids in my life. Their choice of pets made for good comic relief too.
Abigail is an intelligent, good, kind-hearted individual who doesn’t take any guff off anyone. She was not dealt a good hand in life but she did her best to turn it around and make her world and that of those around her a much better place. Only once did I feel that her decision was not a sound one but since everything seemed to have worked out well, who was I to judge?
Jeremiah is pretty much how you’d picture a man who had just returned from war to find he has a “wife” who’s taken over his farm and household. And done a darn good job of it. As you can imagine, war has left him scarred inside and out, and yet, he was probably fairer than other people would have been as far as Abigail was concerned. It was so much fun watching them get to know each other.
Aside from the two main characters, the person I was most rooting for was Rachel, Jeremiah’s sister. If anyone needed some good in her life it was Rachel. She was a cantankerous ol’ toot who needed to be knocked down a peg or two. I have a feeling that I would be a lot like her if I was constantly sick. Okay, so I am occasionally like her. But, at least she sort of had an excuse. I want to tell you more about her but I don’t want to spoil the fun.
I would love to set aside a paragraph or two for each character, but not only would it take away from the book, I also don’t want my review to get away from me. You’re welcome.
If you haven’t read anything yet from Regina Jennings, this would be a good place to start. She’ll grab hold of you from the very beginning and not let go until the final page is turned. I recommend reading this when you don’t have to be up early for work the next morning. I’m already very much looking forward to the next installment.
For print or e-reader copies of A Most Inconvenient Marriage, please click on one of the following:
Amazon Kindle
Amazon Paperback
Barnes & Noble NOOK
Barnes & Noble Paperback
And if you'd like the e-reader version of Regina's first book, it is currently free for Kindle and NOOK.
Sixty Acres and a Bride - Kindle
Sixty Acres and a Bride - NOOK
