The Gate to Eden

by Cathy McDavid

Young widow and mother Maddie Campbell steals from the rich and gives to the poor members of a mining community who have nothing, but when a former lawman arrives to investigate the robberies, Maddie fears not only for her life, but for her heart when she succumbs to temptation. Original.

Genres: Historical Romance, Romance, Westerns, Historical, Historical Fiction, Ebooks, Crime

326 pages, Paperback

First published April 4, 2006

About the author

New York Times bestselling author Cathy McDavid has written over 55 titles, many for Harlequin. She spends her days penning stories about handsome cowboys riding the range, busting broncs, and sweeping gals off their feet — oops, no. Make that winning the hearts of feisty, independent women who give them a run for their money.

Reviews

[Hallie (Hallie Reads) · Rating 3 out of 5]

Take a trip to the Old West with Cathy McDavid’s new audiobook The Gate to Eden. With a female Robin-Hood-like character falling for the man trying to put her behind bars, it’s a story full of drama, danger, and excitement.

After a mining accident leaves her family, friends, and community destitute, Maddie Campbell helps in the only way she can—leading a group of women to thieve, rob, and steal from the wealthy. The crimes catch attention, and former lawman Scott McSween arrives in town to investigate. Of course, complications ensue as Maddie and Scott get to know one another—could the pair, being on opposite sides of the law, possibly get to a happily ever after?

Now, there are plenty of parts of The Gate to Eden I enjoyed, but I didn’t quite believe the romance. The love is a little too instant for my tastes, and given the opposing roles Maddie and Scott play, I would have liked to see more depth, beyond their attraction. Add in some obvious repetition, and it just wasn’t my favorite.

Still, The Gate to Eden is a fun story, and the audiobook is well done. If the story has piqued your interest, it could be worth checking out—it has received plenty of reviews more raving than mine. (Plus, my library has the audiobook available on hoopla, so why not give it a try?)

This review is also posted on Hallie Reads.

Thanks to Prism Book Tours, I received a complimentary copy of The Gate to Eden and the opportunity to provide an honest review. I was not required to write a positive review, and all the opinions I have expressed are my own.

[Babs · Rating 4 out of 5]

Maddie rob's and gives to the women & children of dead miners. They need clothes and food like everyone else. The mining company was horrible to the women and children which at that time was not uncommon. Scott arrives in town to search what is going on and when he finds out it is Maddie what will happen to her and her child?

A nice story of helping with some hot scenes to go along with it. I would read from this author again. I like the plot of the story and the characters were not bad to read about.

[Amy · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Gate of Eden is my first introduction to Cathy McDavid’s writing. After reading this one, it will not be the last. I was given the chance to listen to the audio book version of this story and I enjoyed it so much that I listened to the whole book in one day.
The Gate of Eden tells the story of Maddie Campbell, a scamming, single, widowed mother, who does whatever it takes to take care of herself and others in need – anything. That is, until a lawman, Scott, comes to town investigating crimes happening in her town. I thought Maddie and Scott had great chemistry right from the start. It was delightful how different they were and being on the opposite sides of the law.

I give The Gate of Eden a well deserved five stars. I recommend to readers who enjoy fun and romantic historical fiction. I look forward to reading more by this author in the future.

I received this book from the publisher. This review is 100% my own honest opinion.

[Kara · Rating 3 out of 5]

I could only muster up three stars on this one, not because the story was bad. On the contrary, the story was well thought out, and had all the elements of good writing. Where it fell flat for me was the sex scenes, and there are only two in the book, both relatively chaste. I get the feeling the author isn't comfortable writing sex scenes or just not good at it. The first one was fine, but then you start to read the second one and I'm like hold on didn't this already happen? The second scene was nearly word for word the same as the first with only one change at the end. It was as though the author recycled those few pages. It was about this point that the grammar, spelling, transpositions and other errors in editing became glaring as well. Send the book to a professional proofreader if not an editor and rewrite the second sex scene and this book would have been 4 to 4.5 stars for me.

[Becky · Rating 4 out of 5]

Reviewed on my blog, Becky on Books, on 3/18/19.

I loved the premise of this book--a group of down-on-their-luck widows who have turned to a life of crime in order to survive, and the lawman-turned-PI who always gets his man who's hired to stop them. Of course the leader of the robbery gang is going to fall for the PI, and vice versa! What could possibly go wrong? ;)

Ms. McDavid, a new-to-me author, did a great job of ratcheting up the tension and conflict in this story. Maddie and Scott are both very sympathetic characters, and though they have some solid chemistry, it's hard to imagine for much of the book that they could really end up together in the end. Though of course I knew what I wanted to happen (and what should happen, in a just world, because the women of Eden weren't destitute because of anything that was within their control!) there were honestly times that I wasn't sure that things could convincingly lead to an HEA for Maddie and Scott. Fortunately Ms. McDavid succeeded, giving us an ending that put a smile on my face.

I enjoyed the narrator--he had a great voice that really helped to transport the reader to the old west setting. Unlike some male narrators, his female voices weren't at all grating, which was refreshing. I'd definitely listen to another book narrated by him in the future.

Rating: 4 stars / B+

I voluntarily listened to an audio copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

[Sandy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Please note this is a review for the box set the includes this story and The Gate to Eden. I was unable to find the set un Ms. McDavid name.

It is a bit early for me to be reading books with Christmas in the title, but I loved the cover and the author is new to me so had to give it a try. It is such a good read. Maddie is one strong woman widow with a daughter. Maddie is faced not only with horrible events, but also the sheriff is looking into thefts. What will happen to Maddie? The first book is a powerful story you will be happy that you took the time to read. The second story is much shorter and is a lovely romance. You will meet Millie and William. I do not want to say much about the story it may take the pleasure of reading it away, but it was a pleasure to read and the true meaning of Christmas shine through it. I did receive a free copy of this book and voluntarily chose to review it.

[Mary Monks · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thoroughly enjoyed this story. I read it on my Kindle so this is the first time I've seen the photo on the cover .... don't let that put you off!!!!
The women in Eden have been left starving and destitute by the ruthless mine owners after an accident killed many husbands thereby forcing them into a desperate fight to stay alive. They were forced from their houses and now live in a shanty town outside Eden.
Maddie leads a group of women who rob some of the mine owners..... they do it differently though .... they dress up as men! In the process, they leave the men in an embarrassing (naked) state to be discovered by the authorities!
All is going well until a private investigator arrives!
Maddie is drawn to him and is powerless to refuse his advances. Will he discover her secret?
How can they keep food in their stores and keep themselves and their children alive?

[Frances Shelton · Rating 5 out of 5]

Unscrupulous greedy Thaddeus Newlin caused his miners to rush their work and 167 men to die in a mine collapse. He refused to take care of the widows and destroyed their food supply, so they had to take care of themselves through robberies. He hires private investigator Scott McSween to find out who is behind the robberies. Scott develops feelings for one of the widows Maddie Campbell and when he discovers that she and some of the other widows are behind the robberies to feed the starving families of Eden he has to determine whether or not he can be with someone who broke the law even if it was for good reasons. When Maddie and her cohorts are arrested and she testifies about what Newlin did to the miners and their families, Newlin tries repeatedly to take the law into his own hands. Will Scott be able to save her before it’s too late?

[Anna · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great Western Romance

The only complaint I had about this book is that whispersync didn't work and that might could have been fixed. This book kept me up latte a couple of nights. Well,written and fast paced. It didn't even try to get boring. I enjoyed stretchy minute off the story. It has an HEA ending without the lead in to the next story.

[Joanie · Rating 5 out of 5]

While reading this story, you will become wrapped up in the characters (nicely developed). You will wonder how could this series of misfortunate events possibly end well. But they have to! You are rooting for our heroine and hero to find long term happiness, just as they are discovering something about themselves. Caution: somewhat hot. Enjoy the ride!

[Debbie West · Rating 4 out of 5]

plot was great! conflict in both Scott & Maddie's hearts was at the heart of this story. She committed robbery only to feed & clothe the women & children of dead miners. Scott',s sense of honor immediately raised the question of what he would do when he discovered Maddie's part in the robberies. Sseveral erotic scenes kept me from giving this a 5 star rating. What if my granddaughters opened it & read the pornography? It's bad enough that I have to suffer through it. Other than that, I enjoyed the story. The author isn't the BEST writer by any means, however. Several sentences were messed up, but I read as an eBook. some errors were definitely due to bad translation. Author also reviewed same thoughts too much, frustrating to read same things again and again. Still an enjoyable read.

[Gabby (What's Beyond Forks?) · Rating 3 out of 5]

Read Full Review at: What's Beyond Forks?

The Gate to Eden by Cathy McDavid was like a Western reverse Robin Hood. Maddie steals from the rich and gives to her poor community. They've had tragedy and are close to starving. Scott is sent in to find the criminals. The romance was pretty instant. It seemed more lusty than any true feelings, but they did have some good chemistry. The characters and their world were well built. I could envision it easily. This was an entertaining story.

[Bev Walkling · Rating 4 out of 5]

On the whole I really enjoyed this book which had the unusual premise of a group of women living in their own town (no garden of Eden despite the name) and resorting to armed robbery to survive. The plot was good if occasionally predictable. The sex scenes were relatively modest (which is fine by me) but almost word for word alike in the two descriptions. There were some glaring errors which may have been by the formatter. Regardless they shouldn't't have made it through. I would read more by this author.

[Lynn Schafer · Rating 3 out of 5]

Unbelievable

While everyone feels sorry for helpless women being taken advantage of, and while the bad guys ended up getting their just due, the idea of the hero, a former honest lawman, marrying someone who was truly guilty was beyond believable. There were also some glaring typographical errors in the book that would have been noticed by a good proofreader. The characters were quite well developed, nonetheless.

[Janelle · Rating 1 out of 5]

The story was decent but the only two love scenes were exactly the same. I mean exactly as in word for word. Really? I was so irritated at that it ruined the story for me. Don't even have them if you are going to do that.

[kim rich · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very easy read

Very easy read

a very enjoyable book. great characters and plot I look forward to more. I would highly recommend reading it .

[Jill]

really enjoyed this book - loved maddie and admired her and all she stood for and how all the windows looked out for each other - brilliantly written

[Coffeerequired · Rating 4 out of 5]

Up all night!

Got this free on Amazon and read it in one sitting. Very good book. Anyone who enjoys history, strong characters and a good storyline will definitely enjoy this book.

[Mary · Rating 4 out of 5]

To the rescue!

I love a good country story and this one is no exception. The plot is different, the characters realistic! I recommend to anyone who wants a clean read.

[Victoria · Rating 5 out of 5]

Is a great book to read