What do you think?
Rate this book
Rimfire Bride
On the golden plains of a new frontier, a smart young schoolteacher teaches a single father a lesson—in the power of love.
A scandalous newcomer . . .
Only the boldest of women would set off for the Dakota Territory without a man by her side. But schoolteacher Jana Hartmann is determined to build a new life for herself and her frail sister, Greta. True to her courageous spirit, Jana takes the only job she can find in the town of Bismarck—modeling dresses in a shop window—which has every man staring and every woman gossiping. Adding fuel to the fire, she’s agreed to help raise money in the annual kissing booth, where one handsome cowboy wants to buy every kiss for himself.
A scorching attraction . . .
Drew Malone is a lawyer, rancher, and father of two little boys. Although Jana is immediately attracted to the handsome and helpful Drew, she fights it, torn between a budding romance and her responsibility to Greta. But Drew persists and sweeps her away for a romantic Christmas at Rimfire Ranch in the Badlands, where Jana finds herself having to win over the toughest critics of all— Drew’s young sons. As Greta becomes more independent, Jana lets down her guard and opens her heart to the three Malone men. But when the boys are kidnapped on her watch, Jana blames herself and flees to the frontier. Drew must race against the clock to get back his sons . . . and to make Jana his Rimfire bride.
A scandalous newcomer . . .
Only the boldest of women would set off for the Dakota Territory without a man by her side. But schoolteacher Jana Hartmann is determined to build a new life for herself and her frail sister, Greta. True to her courageous spirit, Jana takes the only job she can find in the town of Bismarck—modeling dresses in a shop window—which has every man staring and every woman gossiping. Adding fuel to the fire, she’s agreed to help raise money in the annual kissing booth, where one handsome cowboy wants to buy every kiss for himself.
A scorching attraction . . .
Drew Malone is a lawyer, rancher, and father of two little boys. Although Jana is immediately attracted to the handsome and helpful Drew, she fights it, torn between a budding romance and her responsibility to Greta. But Drew persists and sweeps her away for a romantic Christmas at Rimfire Ranch in the Badlands, where Jana finds herself having to win over the toughest critics of all— Drew’s young sons. As Greta becomes more independent, Jana lets down her guard and opens her heart to the three Malone men. But when the boys are kidnapped on her watch, Jana blames herself and flees to the frontier. Drew must race against the clock to get back his sons . . . and to make Jana his Rimfire bride.
368 pages, ebook
First published February 26, 2013
83 people want to read
About the author
Sara Luck
9 books13 followersSara Luck has lived the life that other novelists write about. A retired school teacher, Sara taught in Alaska, 200 miles above the Arctic Circle. She has traveled to every state in the United States and has watched Bowhead Whales breaching in the Chukchi Sea, cavorting Dahl Sheep in the Brooks Range, leaping cutthroat trout on Oregon's McKenzie River, roaming grizzly bear and mountain lions in the Absorka Range in Wyoming, and dolphins at play from her beach home at Gulf Shores, Alabama.
Married to NY Times Best Selling novelist, Robert Vaughan, Sara has for over 30 years been Robert's research assistant, editor, librarian, sounding board, and story consultant.
The genesis of Susanna's Choice came from one of those research projects. Sara discovered The Journals of Alfred Doten – 1849-1903, a remarkably detailed account of life in Virginia City and Gold Hill, Nevada, during the heyday of silver mining in such mines as the Comstock Lode, Consolidated Virginia, Belcher, and Ophir. When Robert didn't get as excited about the story prospects of this find as Sara did, he told her to write the book herself. She did just that, and Susanna's Choice is her debut effort, but she promises there will be many more to come.
Married to NY Times Best Selling novelist, Robert Vaughan, Sara has for over 30 years been Robert's research assistant, editor, librarian, sounding board, and story consultant.
The genesis of Susanna's Choice came from one of those research projects. Sara discovered The Journals of Alfred Doten – 1849-1903, a remarkably detailed account of life in Virginia City and Gold Hill, Nevada, during the heyday of silver mining in such mines as the Comstock Lode, Consolidated Virginia, Belcher, and Ophir. When Robert didn't get as excited about the story prospects of this find as Sara did, he told her to write the book herself. She did just that, and Susanna's Choice is her debut effort, but she promises there will be many more to come.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
February 15, 2013
RIMFIRE BRIDE by Sara Luck is an exciting western historical romance set in 1882 Bismarck, Dakota Territory. Fast paced story of two immigrant German sisters, Jana and Greta Hartmann, who travel to Bismarck,Dakota Territory to escape their ungrateful tyrant of a father/step father. What they find is an adventure of trust,passion,a kidnapping,peace and love. Drew Malone, a widower of two years,who is raising two small sons, is an attorney and attracted to Jana from the moment he lays eyes on her. Together, Drew and Jana embark on a journey of passion,and love. With a bold and independent desire to build her and sister's life,Jana will capture your heart. Drew,has decided to make Jana his "Rimfire Bride",but first he must mend some broken fences. A must read. This author is truly a talented storyteller of the Western Historical Romance. She brings not only her characters to life on every page,but the countryside with her vivid descriptions you feel as of you are there in 1882.
RATING: 4.5
HEAT RATING: MILD
REVIEWED BY: AprilR, My Book Addiction and More/My Book Addiction Reviews
RATING: 4.5
HEAT RATING: MILD
REVIEWED BY: AprilR, My Book Addiction and More/My Book Addiction Reviews
January 2, 2014
Ms. Luck writes an enjoyable romance set back in Dakota territory in the 1800’s. There’s substance to her writing. Although this is my first time reading a book by this author, it will not be my last.
I closed this book with a satisfied sigh. Now I admit this may not be everyone’s cup of tea, but I had a splendid time tearing through this book and falling in love with the characters. Even the secondary characters are memorable. The two boys that are throughout this book are adorable and funny. They will grab at your heartstrings and not let go!
The hero and heroine are an absolute delight. Ms. Luck patiently guides us through a clever maze of characters and will have you emotionally invested in them. Best of all, there's no nasty cruelness that so often manifests itself in most stories of this tone.
Drew is a wonderful hero. Tall, dark, and handsome. What’s not to love, ladies? He’s a gentleman to an extent but he is, after all, human. He has his weaknesses. *wink*
Jana is a fabulous heroine. She’s independent (which I love all my heroines to be) and she takes care of her sister. She is appealing and likable. AND she doesn’t cry much! Yay! I’m so tired of heroine’s who cry all the time.
Overall, it’s warm, witty, and loving... and human. Sara Luck is an author not to be missed!
August 14, 2018
The writing style was repetitive and simplistic, the characters were one-dimensional, the ending was rushed and, after all the drama and angst of the last third of the book, it was wrapped up as though the author simply checked off everyone who needed to be happy, made everything sunshine and roses and completely forgot to deal with the fate of the villain. The two side stories about the religious settlement and the aristocrat who needed so much attention were illogical and served only as filler since, once again, there was no resolution.
May 24, 2013
Also posted at my blog, TBR Mountain Range, with a question.
An entertaining western historical about two German immigrant sisters who escape their father's control by starting a new life in the Dakota Territory.
In the year of 1882, Jana Hartman, who emigrated from Germany when she was a child, is a teacher in Illinois and works at her parents' farm after class. Her younger sister, Greta, works all day at their farm which concerns Jana because her sister isn't well. It becomes too much when their father won't listen to reason about her sister's health, so with their mother's help the two sisters run away. After a brief time in Chicago, they end up in Bismarck, within the Dakota Territory where they plan to farm their own land eventually.
After two years of taking care of his two boys without a wife or nanny, Attorney Drew Malone is forced to hire someone, or face the consequences with his mother-in-law. His wife's tragic death has been hard on all of them but hardest on his six-year-old son, Sam, who witnessed her murder. His youngest son, Benji, doesn't remember enough to be traumatized like Sam because he was only two when it happened. All the single women in Bismarck are interested in Drew, but he's indifferent to marrying again. Hiring the strong and opinionated Elfrieda as a nanny and housekeeper will help buffer that unwanted attention.
Jana and Greta aren't sure how they'll make a living while waiting for the group that they'll travel with to their promised land, but they're excited for their future. Jana's spirited nature comes through when she meets Drew the first day in Bismarck while fending off a political figure willing to pay for votes. Drew is intrigued by the young woman who isn't swayed by monetary bribes, so he offers to help her find a job.
Jana becomes a window dresser in a dress shop, often wearing the dresses in the window instead of dressing a mannequin. Greta creates her own job by convincing the hotel owner to offer free food, which she'll cook, to draw customers to his saloon. These unconventional jobs for two single women start the tongues a wagging over their impropriety, but the men who frequent the hotel become their protectors, looking out for them in every way. Can Jana and Greta earn everyone's respect in this western town?
This is just the beginning of Jana and Greta's adventures as they get to know the town and those who live there. Jana and Drew are cute together but there were times that I wanted to shake Drew for being so slow to figure out if Jana was the one for him. Drew's oldest son, Sam, was a heartbreaker and added an emotional thread to this family's story.
RIMFIRE BRIDE isn't an action packed western but there is still a lot going on that was captivating. The sisters' day-to-day activities were filled with uncertainties as they built their self confidences after living such a sheltered life on the farm. Jana is multi-talented so she was a thought-provoking heroine. I haven't read a historical novel where the political sensibilities of the times were explored so I really enjoyed that part. I also enjoyed the train travel and seeing the Dakota Territory, including the badlands, through Jana and Drew's thoughts. RIMFIRE BRIDE is filled with great descriptions, engaging characters and a light-hearted romance to enjoy.
Book and Review courtesy of Romance Junkies.
An entertaining western historical about two German immigrant sisters who escape their father's control by starting a new life in the Dakota Territory.
In the year of 1882, Jana Hartman, who emigrated from Germany when she was a child, is a teacher in Illinois and works at her parents' farm after class. Her younger sister, Greta, works all day at their farm which concerns Jana because her sister isn't well. It becomes too much when their father won't listen to reason about her sister's health, so with their mother's help the two sisters run away. After a brief time in Chicago, they end up in Bismarck, within the Dakota Territory where they plan to farm their own land eventually.
After two years of taking care of his two boys without a wife or nanny, Attorney Drew Malone is forced to hire someone, or face the consequences with his mother-in-law. His wife's tragic death has been hard on all of them but hardest on his six-year-old son, Sam, who witnessed her murder. His youngest son, Benji, doesn't remember enough to be traumatized like Sam because he was only two when it happened. All the single women in Bismarck are interested in Drew, but he's indifferent to marrying again. Hiring the strong and opinionated Elfrieda as a nanny and housekeeper will help buffer that unwanted attention.
Jana and Greta aren't sure how they'll make a living while waiting for the group that they'll travel with to their promised land, but they're excited for their future. Jana's spirited nature comes through when she meets Drew the first day in Bismarck while fending off a political figure willing to pay for votes. Drew is intrigued by the young woman who isn't swayed by monetary bribes, so he offers to help her find a job.
Jana becomes a window dresser in a dress shop, often wearing the dresses in the window instead of dressing a mannequin. Greta creates her own job by convincing the hotel owner to offer free food, which she'll cook, to draw customers to his saloon. These unconventional jobs for two single women start the tongues a wagging over their impropriety, but the men who frequent the hotel become their protectors, looking out for them in every way. Can Jana and Greta earn everyone's respect in this western town?
This is just the beginning of Jana and Greta's adventures as they get to know the town and those who live there. Jana and Drew are cute together but there were times that I wanted to shake Drew for being so slow to figure out if Jana was the one for him. Drew's oldest son, Sam, was a heartbreaker and added an emotional thread to this family's story.
RIMFIRE BRIDE isn't an action packed western but there is still a lot going on that was captivating. The sisters' day-to-day activities were filled with uncertainties as they built their self confidences after living such a sheltered life on the farm. Jana is multi-talented so she was a thought-provoking heroine. I haven't read a historical novel where the political sensibilities of the times were explored so I really enjoyed that part. I also enjoyed the train travel and seeing the Dakota Territory, including the badlands, through Jana and Drew's thoughts. RIMFIRE BRIDE is filled with great descriptions, engaging characters and a light-hearted romance to enjoy.
Book and Review courtesy of Romance Junkies.
July 21, 2014
Jana's life from the start is sad and boring. It goes with the time error but seriously her stepfather is a tool. I love what her mother does for her and Greta, and like that this is how the story starts. Drew's introduction was interesting. That's all I have to say about him for now.
I enjoy how close Jana and Greta are and their interaction is so believable it makes me smile.
When Jana and Drew met I liked it. Very casual and quaint. I liked how nice Drew was and helpful. It was very neighborly which worked in the situation. Their really are multiple POV's in the book and sometimes it jumped between characters without notice and that is something that somewhat annoyed me. I also enjoyed when Drew was filtering with Jana but seriously he's a lawyer jumping to conclusions because he saw her talking to a prostitute I a crowd so hummm so what does he do ignore her. Weird! Then running off to Rimfire was sort of corny. With his kids he should've left them with his house keeper. The already traumatized children became even more traumatized as soon as they got off the train and gunfire took place I mean really. Sometimes the story got of track or jumped from one scene randomly to the next not really making clear what just happened. I don't know if that makes sense but that's how it happened. We are in one place then the next paragraph jumps to the end of the week, strange. Also they go from hardly any interaction between Drew and Jana to let's go away for Christmas. To her randomly being naked. Then I want to spend our lives together. To hay see ya in a few weeks going to work on something, her saying oooohh ok. Just very rushed or random, then other parts were so drawn out and pointless. How many times are we going to describe Jana sitting in the window. And the stupid teacher I think her name was Della putting things in Sam's head and being rude to Jana right in front of Drew and basically calling his son a weeney. Then at the party after the play, she's childish and caty and yet no one addresses it what a bunch of losers. Seriously did no one else catch how stupid and untouched all of that went????? Ahhhhhhh.... It really was a good book but sometimes I watched to just shake the author.
I am soooooooo upset...
Disappointed...
Annoyed...
I don't even know!
Drew was a dick!
Didn't grovel.... W/E!
OMG 3, 4, or 5 months later who know yay I found you sched the wedding. Ooooo no biggy you jerk so Eff'd up just say sorry!
Ummmmmmmmm NO!
And NOTHING HAPPENED TO DELLA!!!!!
What?
This book was seriously wanting to be a 4-5 star but somewhere in the middle the author totally lost me. Totally. Forever!
I enjoy how close Jana and Greta are and their interaction is so believable it makes me smile.
When Jana and Drew met I liked it. Very casual and quaint. I liked how nice Drew was and helpful. It was very neighborly which worked in the situation. Their really are multiple POV's in the book and sometimes it jumped between characters without notice and that is something that somewhat annoyed me. I also enjoyed when Drew was filtering with Jana but seriously he's a lawyer jumping to conclusions because he saw her talking to a prostitute I a crowd so hummm so what does he do ignore her. Weird! Then running off to Rimfire was sort of corny. With his kids he should've left them with his house keeper. The already traumatized children became even more traumatized as soon as they got off the train and gunfire took place I mean really. Sometimes the story got of track or jumped from one scene randomly to the next not really making clear what just happened. I don't know if that makes sense but that's how it happened. We are in one place then the next paragraph jumps to the end of the week, strange. Also they go from hardly any interaction between Drew and Jana to let's go away for Christmas. To her randomly being naked. Then I want to spend our lives together. To hay see ya in a few weeks going to work on something, her saying oooohh ok. Just very rushed or random, then other parts were so drawn out and pointless. How many times are we going to describe Jana sitting in the window. And the stupid teacher I think her name was Della putting things in Sam's head and being rude to Jana right in front of Drew and basically calling his son a weeney. Then at the party after the play, she's childish and caty and yet no one addresses it what a bunch of losers. Seriously did no one else catch how stupid and untouched all of that went????? Ahhhhhhh.... It really was a good book but sometimes I watched to just shake the author.
I am soooooooo upset...
Disappointed...
Annoyed...
I don't even know!
Drew was a dick!
Didn't grovel.... W/E!
OMG 3, 4, or 5 months later who know yay I found you sched the wedding. Ooooo no biggy you jerk so Eff'd up just say sorry!
Ummmmmmmmm NO!
And NOTHING HAPPENED TO DELLA!!!!!
What?
This book was seriously wanting to be a 4-5 star but somewhere in the middle the author totally lost me. Totally. Forever!
June 15, 2019
From what I’ve read in non-fiction about the immigrant experience, Sara Luck accurately portrays life for folks new to this country. Jana and Greta Hartmann are afraid, but keep trying. When they get to their mother’s cousin’s house near the stockyards of Chicago, they realize they are not much better off than on their family’s farm. Even though Greta is in poor health, she encourages Jana to go further. They wind up in Bismarck, North Dakota.
Drew Malone is a hero one can admire; he’s dedicated to his two sons and making a better life for them. His wife died 2 years before the story begins. His sensitive son, Sam, is not doing well emotionally and Drew thinks that perhaps he should marry again.
The career the author came up with for Jana was a hoot. Both girls are hard-working and thankful for the kindness of strangers. This is one of those stories a reader can feel good about; my only complaint is that the story’s pacing stumbled in the middle.
This book mimics the American experience in the 1880’s; if you work hard and stay with it, you can succeed.
Drew Malone is a hero one can admire; he’s dedicated to his two sons and making a better life for them. His wife died 2 years before the story begins. His sensitive son, Sam, is not doing well emotionally and Drew thinks that perhaps he should marry again.
The career the author came up with for Jana was a hoot. Both girls are hard-working and thankful for the kindness of strangers. This is one of those stories a reader can feel good about; my only complaint is that the story’s pacing stumbled in the middle.
This book mimics the American experience in the 1880’s; if you work hard and stay with it, you can succeed.
March 11, 2014
Every once in a while I have to read a historical romance set in the early days of America. My favorite author in this genre is Rosanne Bittner, but I like to try others at times as well. Rimfire Bride was a pretty good story. It kept my attention and I thought most of the main characters were well drawn. The romance was believable. Basically, it is about two sisters, Jana and Greta, escaping a cruel stepfather when their mother, concerned about their health and safety, tells them to flee to a cousin in Chicago. There, life is hard for the sisters and they decide to head west together, to Bismarck. There, they find satisfying work and Jana falls in love with a handsome widower with two young sons. Several challenges must be overcome and eventually all ends well. A fine lazy-day read.
December 22, 2013
The overall story gets a 4... I love the characters' personalities and how the plot was developed. I hope she writes another book set in Bismarck to tell Greta's story! Writing style only gets 2-3... I found it difficult to enjoy when I became distracted by too simple phrasing and it was repetitive at times.
July 30, 2016
Historical romance set in Bismarck, ND, in 1880s. A few passages made me cringe, the way Drew treated his children was sweet but totally anachronistic, the final drama was just too over the top but overall not a bad book. 2.5 stars
April 28, 2013
Meh. Not what I expected...predictable. I won't be choosing another book by this author.
February 23, 2015
3.5 stars!!!
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews