Lassoed by Marriage

Nine novellas about arranged marriages, marriages of convenience or expediency, and marriages that happen first and love grows later--this describes the contents of Lassoed by Marriage. While the lasso gives a decidedly Western idea of the book, some of the stories are not Western in nature or geography. The first marriage takes place in London and has a biblical feel to it, when Gwen's parents substitute her for her sister in the wedding to Elliott (think Jacob and Leah/Rachel). One marriage takes place in a small Colorado town (which could be Western) and the rest of the story is about fitting into Denver society. There is a "Hatfields-McCoys" type feud, a "witness protection" type wedding, and most interesting of all--a "save the man from the gallows" wedding.

One thing I noticed about the book is that the stories are arranged in alphabetical order by author's last name. It has no significance on the quality of the writings, or how interesting the plot lines are; the only significance is that I did notice it.

This olio is much like any other collection, there will be tales that appeal to some readers while other stories are less appealing. The quality of writing is pretty even among the nine novellas. The plots and characters are fairly equally developed without a standout story among them. The only reason one tale is more liked than another is a matter of taste of the reader. Four strong stars for likable stories to entertain on snowy afternoons.

My thanks to Barbour Publishing for allowing me to read and review this book.