The West has never been so much fun! Outlaws and in-laws face off on the Texas frontier. Isn’t the cover fun!

I can’t say I’ve been a fan of westerns in the past, but if Mary Connealy writes them, my opinion has changed. Mary is from Nebraska, so I’ve felt a connection to her even before we met at ACFW a couple years ago.

A few weeks ago I received a copy of Petticoat Ranch as a birthday present from my editor. I’d heard buzz about this book, but hadn’t picked it up yet. Let me tell you it is fantastic! RUN out and buy this book if you’re looking for a fun yet intense read.

Sophie Edwards is doing fine carving out an existence in West Texas for herself and her four girls. It’s a HARD life, but they’re making it. Then a cowboy goes flying past their hidden house and hurtling over a cliff into a creek. Sophie and her daughters rush to save him, and their lives are turned upside-down.

Before Sophie has a chance to sit down and think, she’s married to her dead husband’s twin brother and moving back to the ranch she had to abandon after her first husband’s death. Then the fun really begins. Clay McClellan has never been around women. Now his life is overflowing with women and girls. And a band of vigilantes are determined to take the ranch.

The sense of humor that overflows in this book is fantastic. I laughed so much that the ladies around me at Chick-Fil-A kept asking what book I had. The humor was finally tuned, never falling into slapstick. And the interactions between Sophie and Clay rang a bit too true to life occasionally. Mary nailed the differences between the male and female points of view while shining a bright light on marriage and what makes it work.

I loved many of the themes in this book, but particularly liked the way she showed God does hear even our desperate, bursts of prayer. And He is active in the details of our lives, even when we don’t necessarily see Him.

This is a keeper — and I’m giving away an autographed copy! So be sure to leave your comments on this one.