Beth Williamson
The
Education of Madeline
Author Beth
Williamson
ISBN:
978-0758234698
Genre:
Description:
Plum Creek, Colorado 1872
The Right Man Comes Along
Madeline Brewster practically owns
Plum City, Colorado. But at thirty-two, she knows she has missed any chance for
happiness. Until she finds a tall, strong, handsome Irishman on the wrong end
of the hangman's noose. Suddenly this unconventional woman comes up with an
outrageous idea.
Teague O'Neal has rugged cheekbones,
tousled black curls, and eyes as blue as the sky, even if he is caked in
Colorado mud. The men insist they caught him horse-thieving, and there's
something desperate about him that says he'd do anything for a buck.
Maybe it
was pure chance, or maybe it was something more that brought Madeline and
Teague together. But one thing's clear, between a woman who has just about
everything she could ever want, and a man who's lost that and more, they might
find something in between worth living for.
About the
Author from her Website:
You can't say cowboys without
thinking of Beth Williamson. Her love for all things western shines through in
her writing. A true Scorpio, she once described her "word" as
passion. Read her work and discover for yourself how hot and enticing a cowboy
can be.
Beth is the author many novels and
novellas with Samhain Publishing, Loose Id, and Kensington Publishing, with
many more in the works for the coming years.
Born and
raised in New York, she holds a B.F.A. in writing from New York University.
Currently, Beth lives just outside of Raleigh, North Carolina, with her husband
and two sons.
My View:
Not
generally one to like period pieces or westerns, I was pleasantly surprised
after reading The Education of Madeline. I loved the authors writing style and
the plot behind the story. The fact that women were so mistreated in those days
is well documented and the author incorporates the issues well in her book. I
liked both the heroine's strength and the hero's weakness for her. Both
tortured souls Madeline and Teague make a perfect match.
Madeline is
living in the shadow of her dead father, a man who owned half the town
including the bank. He was not well liked by the people in town and when he
dies the hatred for him transfers to Madeline. The town calls her the
"Black Widow". Looking for revenge the town sheriff and judge decide
to go after her assets and frame Madeline for the crime.
The sheriff
catches Teague in the act of doing something stupid and he is pushed into
helping the sheriff and the judge spy on Madeline. It isn't until Teague gets
to know Madeline that he realizes that he wants to switch sides and help her
instead.
When
Madeline meets Teague at the end of the wrong end of a rope, she decides he is
perfect to help her with a little education she feels she is lacking. At 32
Madeline has never been with a man before. Without any likely prospects in the
small town she's from, she decides that this man might just be desperate enough
to take her up on a business proposition. She saves him from a noose and he
gives her a few lessons in lovemaking. Teague can't help but take the bait. The
attraction between the couple sizzles off the pages. This book has the perfect
ending.