Book Review: "Love Finds You in Tombstone, Arizona" by Miralee Ferrell

Summary from BN.com: Love and second chances aren't easy to come by in a town named Tombstone. When Christy Grey receives an urgent summons to Tombstone, Arizona, she reluctantly leaves her new life in California. The trip goes from bad to worse when three masked men hold up Christy's stage. She finally arrives in Tombstone to find her mother ill and her brother trapped in a life of gambling. Desperate for money to support her family, will Christy bow to pressure from the local saloon owners and return to the life she thought she'd given up for good?

Nevada Keene has problems of his own. He's been dodging bullets for years and wants nothing more than to settle down and get married. But he's on the run from outlaws bent on revenge, and the one woman who captures his interest recognizes him from the stagecoach holdup. Will Christy turn Nevada in to the authorities, or will the outlaws on his trail catch him first?

I have really enjoyed Miralee Ferrell's contributions to the Love Finds You series. I think she has found a great niche in writing historical romances based in actual historic cities. I have found her historical books to be well written, full of engaging characters and a nice blend of fact and fiction mixed together. This one is another nice mix to her growing collection.

Christy and Nevada randomly meet during a stage coach robbery where she gets shot. Even though he's not an outlaw, Nevada happens to be with them during the robbery and aids Christy. They end up meeting again in Tombstone, where Christy has returned home to help her mother and brother. While there, they both find themselves aiding a saloon girl and dealing with life in the American west. It's an interesting look at the going-ons of a mining town, saloons and cowboys. The romance between the two is done well as there is good chemistry between the pair.

I really enjoyed the author's note at the end of the book that told of how Ferrell traveled to the actual town of Tombstone when doing research for the book. She went to many of the locations that she wrote about and was able to give good detail of how the town really was. I appreciated the historical research that she did. I was pleasantly surprised to learn that some of the characters that appeared in the book were actual people and that the story of how Christy and Nevada met was based on a true story. It's always wonderful to find out these things and I'm glad that Ferrell shared with readers what she had learned.

The only thing that I wasn't a big fan of was how Christy's family treated her. She herself was fine. I was not a big fan of her mother and brother however. Her mother seemed to be going through depression or having bipolar episodes or something that was causing all these mood swings. She's also quite loathing to Christy for no apparent reason. Her brother has a gambling addiction that magically clears up by the end of the book. It was just too tidy of a wrap up for me.

If you haven't read the first book that features Christy (LFY in Last Chance, CA) don't worry because this book can be read as a standalone. To be honest, even though I read the other book, I honestly cannot remember her character. That shouldn't deter you though from reading because in this book you will remember Christy for what she does. I'll be looking forward to more of these books from Ferrell in the future.

Love Finds You in Tombstone, Arizona by Miralee Ferrell is published by Summerside Press (2011)

This review copy was provided by the publisher