Taming Lady Temperance: A Christian Opposites Attract Frontier Western Historical Romance with Cowboys (The Secret Society of Spinsters)
Twenty-seven-year-old Noreen O’Sullivan has come from hard circumstances. Her alcoholic father often beat her and her mother and ruined the family farm in their small Texas town. His death when Noreen was twelve left mother and daughter without money or useful trades. Noreen’s mother soon married Noreen’s stepfather. He does not beat women physically but tortures them emotionally. This background has made beautiful Noreen strong, feisty, and an avowed spinster. In 1894 she joins the newly formed Secret Society of Spinsters. One of its first projects is to protest the town’s only saloon.
Deputy James Paxton, tall, handsome, thoughtful and smart, strives to maintain justice with calm grace. Soon he and Noreen collide. Her brashness enrages her stepfather and other important men in town. She breaks the law and forces James to jail her until the local judge can hand down a sentence. Judge Lynch saddles her with a hefty fine but lets her out. Soon after her release, the saloon burns down in the night with evidence pointing at Noreen. Despite Noreen’s rebelliousness and refusal to act as ladies are supposed to, she and James cannot stifle their mutual attraction. Their flirting makes the locals question his objectivity and threatens his job.
The main and secondary characters of this Christian romance novel know the Bible, often quote it, and ask for God’s guidance, but never in an overbearing way. The dialogue and settings fit the people, the time and their small town. The plot starts slowly but builds to a clever courtroom drama and rousing finish. This story and its people will appeal to readers looking for an interesting romance built around the temperance movement against unchecked alcohol consumption more than a century ago.
