Reviews for Open Country

The average rating for Open Country based on 2 reviews is 4 stars.

Review # 1 was written on 2011-08-18 00:00:00 William Crane 4.5 Stars Once again Kaki Warner has captivated me with another romance centered around the Old West. The essence of the period is felt as she transports readers back in time with a plot that is executed flawlessly and a slow building romance between two richly drawn characters. Here we get Hank Wilkins and Molly McFarlane's story. Their relationship began from a chance encounter and an act of deceit; a manipulation born of desperation due to Molly's dire need of funds. A deathbed promise to her sister has Molly and her late sister's two children fleeing across the country as they are hunted by a vicious thug. When a train wreck leaves big, sexy Hank Wilkins unconscious and dying, Molly quickly steps in claiming to be his fiancé in order to collect the settlement money. After learning the funds are only disbursed to family, Molly continues her duplicity by marrying this unconscious stranger. Open Country is the second release in Warner's Blood Rose Trilogy and I was hooked from the get-go. Of course, Hank doesn't die and as each layer is revealed, I found him to be delicious. He's strong, sexy, protective and had me laughing one minute while deeply touching my heart strings the next. In classic Warner style, the author gives a heroine who is intelligent, brave, with the perfect balance of vulnerability. I adored Molly. Her medical and surgical skills added greatly to this tale as well as the inclusion of Brady, Jessica and others from the first installment. The children and secondary characters figured prominently while not detracting at all from Hank and Molly's romance. If you enjoy Western Romance with rich characterizations, a dastardly villain and sparkling chemistry, you'll want to grab this series. While the bedroom door is closed, the chemistry is certainly felt. Once again you'll find a heart melting romance where the storyline and character development are front and center. I loved it!

Review # 2 was written on 2010-03-17 00:00:00 Christopher Hart Open Country is book two in Kaki Warner's Blood Roses trilogy and begins in 1871 as nurse Molly McFarlane finds herself between a rock and a hard place. Her father is dead after supposedly committing suicide, her niece and nephew are at the mercy of their dastardly step-father (an evil baddie with nefarious plots), and it appears there's some book he thinks Molly has and he's hot to get it at any cost. Molly flees west with the children where they end up in a horrible train accident. Molly hears that widows will receive $300 for the loss of their husbands, and since Hank Wilkens is as good as dead anyway, she ups and gets herself married to an unconscious groom. Long story short, Hank survives due to Molly's excellent nursing skills (her father was a doctor), but his memory's still a bit off so he believes he married her for love (older brother Brady is in on the deception since he wants a nurse for his pregnant wife Jessica). Molly, Penny and Charlie are brought back to the ranch to join the ever-increasing Wilkens clan at the RosaRoja ranch in New Mexico, where Hank determines to court his *bride* again, and it's beginning to look like everything might just work out... "And if he had to court a wife for the second time he didn't remember from the first time, well . . . he'd do it . . . and hope they got to that taking-off-the-clothes part before he was so old he started losing his memory all over again." That is until Hank's memory comes back (no spoilers, that's in the book description), and let's say he's not exactly amused. But don't forget there's still that evil baddie chasing her (he's a mean one) and if Molly doesn't have the mysterious book he wants so badly, just who does have it? And why are his employers so desperate to get it back? I have to say I am loving this series to bits - especially the kids and the humor. Penny and Charlie are a perfect addition to older brother Brady's expanding household, most especially Penny. Lord love a sticky six-year-old with a constantly dripping nose asking questions that no adult wants to answer :D "Because Aunt Molly's hurt and you said you would keep us safe and now we aren't." She let her hands fall to the bed and glared at him. "But I'm not leaving until I get my kitty. You promised." Like a dog with a bone, Penny never lets go... "The kid must be part Apache the way she snuck up on a person. "Say what?" he asked groggily. "That I puked." He squinted up at her, trying to make sense of her words. Conversations with Penny were always a challenge. "Why not?" "Ladies aren't allowed to say 'puked.' I enjoyed watching the relationship between Hank and Molly, and while I understood his anger at her original deception, I think Hank's anger went a bit too far and it almost evolved into a Big Misunderstanding of the worst kind. The biggest plus for me though was getting to see more of Brady and Jessica from book one. Typically in series like these you're lucky to get a brief cameo appearance here and there, but Warner puts Brady and Jessica front and center - thumbs up for that. My only real quibble is the final twists with the baddie chasing her, and Molly's incredibly dumb stunt to save them all. I wanted to wring her foolish neck. Still, you don't want to miss these and I'm already on the last book, Chasing the Sun. FTC, Kindle edition via library loan.