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The Manning Sisters #2
The Sheriff Takes a Wife & The Soldier's Redemption: Two Heartfelt Romance Novels
A people pleaser through and through, Christy Manning takes off work to drive from Seattle to Cougar Point, Montana, for the birth of her sister’s first child. But when the blessed event arrives early, her brother-in-law is M.I.A. and her sister refuses to leave without him. Things are looking hopeless, until Christy calls Sheriff Cody Franklin. Even before he saves the day, sparks are flying between them. There’s just one problem: She’s reluctantly accepted a proposal from another man.
Cody has been burned before, so when he learns that Christy is engaged, he tries to forget about her. But try as he might, the sheriff can’t stay away. Their intense connection is unlike anything Cody has felt before. No matter what choice Christy makes, she’s going to hurt someone. But at the end of the day, if Christy can’t learn to follow her heart, she’s going to lose out on something—and someone—special.
Cody has been burned before, so when he learns that Christy is engaged, he tries to forget about her. But try as he might, the sheriff can’t stay away. Their intense connection is unlike anything Cody has felt before. No matter what choice Christy makes, she’s going to hurt someone. But at the end of the day, if Christy can’t learn to follow her heart, she’s going to lose out on something—and someone—special.
432 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published January 1, 1990
439 people are currently reading
834 people want to read
About the author
Debbie Macomber
908 books20.7k followersDebbie Macomber is a #1 New York Times bestselling author and one of today’s most popular writers with more than 200 million copies of her books in print worldwide. In her novels, Macomber brings to life compelling relationships that embrace family and enduring friendships, uplifting her readers with stories of connection and hope. Macomber’s novels have spent over 1,000 weeks on the New York Times bestseller list. Fifteen of these novels hit the number one spot.
In 2023, Macomber’s all-new hardcover publication includes Must Love Flowers (July). In addition to fiction, Macomber has also published three bestselling cookbooks, three adult coloring books, numerous inspirational and nonfiction works, and two acclaimed children’s books.
Celebrated as “the official storyteller of Christmas”, Macomber’s annual Christmas books are beloved and six have been crafted into original Hallmark Channel movies. Macomber is also the author of the bestselling Cedar Cove Series which the Hallmark Channel chose as the basis for its first dramatic scripted television series. Debuting in 2013, Debbie Macomber’s Cedar Cove was a ratings favorite for three seasons.
She serves on the Guideposts National Advisory Cabinet, is a YFC National Ambassador, and is World Vision’s international spokesperson for their Knit for Kids charity initiative. A devoted grandmother, Debbie and Wayne live in Port Orchard, Washington, the town which inspired the Cedar Cove series.
In 2023, Macomber’s all-new hardcover publication includes Must Love Flowers (July). In addition to fiction, Macomber has also published three bestselling cookbooks, three adult coloring books, numerous inspirational and nonfiction works, and two acclaimed children’s books.
Celebrated as “the official storyteller of Christmas”, Macomber’s annual Christmas books are beloved and six have been crafted into original Hallmark Channel movies. Macomber is also the author of the bestselling Cedar Cove Series which the Hallmark Channel chose as the basis for its first dramatic scripted television series. Debuting in 2013, Debbie Macomber’s Cedar Cove was a ratings favorite for three seasons.
She serves on the Guideposts National Advisory Cabinet, is a YFC National Ambassador, and is World Vision’s international spokesperson for their Knit for Kids charity initiative. A devoted grandmother, Debbie and Wayne live in Port Orchard, Washington, the town which inspired the Cedar Cove series.
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August 15, 2023"The Sheriff Takes a Wife" is the story of Christy and Cody.
Soooo first chapter in and the heroine is cheating on her "fiancé" with the hero and Im not in the mood to read this.
DNF
Soooo first chapter in and the heroine is cheating on her "fiancé" with the hero and Im not in the mood to read this.
DNF
November 21, 2021
I read this book as a part of the Manning Sisters bind up and I hated it. Christy goes to be with her sister, Taylor, as she has her first baby. She just got engaged to her long time friend and boyfriend who is a lawyer like she is. He's kind of boring but they're great friends and while she's not uber excited, she knows the wedding will make her family happy. However, immediately when she gets to Montana, she falls in the love with the Sheriff, Cody. They start kissing and acting like they're dating but she doesn't say anything to her fiance AND doesn't tell Cody about him. Eventually it all comes out and he's been burned before so he runs of course. She goes back home and gets RAILROADED by her mom and she literally has no spine. So she goes on with the wedding! WHAT?! Then she gets secretly married to Cody so she can't accidentally marry the other guy. WTF? Just be a grown up and tell your mom to calm down and tell the men whats up. Cody was also super chauvinistic and I really just hated this.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
August 23, 2012
Not in this lifetime. Blah.
July 15, 2013
Reviewed for THC Reviews
The Sheriff Takes a Wife is the second book I've read by Debbie Macomber and the second in The Manning Sisters duet. I liked it quite a bit more than the first book of the series. It is a very sweet story, but it contains some elements that I know won't be very popular with many modern romance readers. Therefore, I know it won't work for everyone, but it worked pretty well for me. In fact, after getting off to a rocky start with this author, The Sheriff Takes a Wife has restored my belief that Debbie Macomber can write the kind of stories that I will enjoy.
Christy was a wonderful sister to come all the way from Seattle to the backwoods of Montana to help her sister, Taylor, who is about to give birth to her first child. That's not too surprising though, because Christy is nice to everyone, perhaps a little too nice. She's the consummate 'good girl' who always did what her parents asked of her and never gave them a moment's trouble or worry. She's newly engaged to James, an attorney in the law firm where she works, but the moment she meets Cody, there's an instant spark of chemistry that makes her realize that she never truly loved James and only accepted his proposal because he was a comfortable choice of whom her parents approved. Unfortunately though, Christy is the ultimate people pleaser who doesn't like to rock the boat and can't bear to do anything that might upset someone else even if it means giving up her own happiness, but in the process, she not only hurt herself but ended up hurting Cody too with her wishy-washy way of handling things. At first, she doesn't want to break-up with James over the phone which was completely understandable. She promised Cody she'd end the engagement and tell her parents about them as soon as she got back to Seattle, but she returns to a surprise engagement party that her mom went to great lengths to plan and her fiancé embroiled in a court case that could make or break his career. A part of me understood why she didn't want to break up with James immediately and tell her parents that the engagement was off, but another part of me felt like she was kind of allowing them to railroad her into it. Of course, the more she allows them to do without telling them the truth, the deeper she buries herself in a horrible mess. There was one point where she decided that she couldn't tell them even if it meant losing Cody, and that really started to call into question in my mind whether she loved Cody enough to make their relationship work. Quite frankly, if Cody hadn't saved the day, I'm not entirely convinced that Christy would have ever broken off her engagement. Like Cody said, if something didn't happen to stop the madness, she'd eventually have ended up married to James and have no idea how she got there, and on some level, I had to agree with him. For that reason, I didn't 100% respect Christy even though I understood how difficult it was for her to disappoint someone else.
Based on the one date Cody had with Taylor in The Cowboy's Lady, I already knew I liked him. Even though he's best friends with Russ, the hero of that story who I could barely stand, Cody is definitely not the pig-headed, chauvinistic man that his friend is, for which I was truly grateful. In fact, Cody is a sweet beta hero, because no alpha would have ever stood for all the stuff that Christy put him through. Cody was badly hurt by an ex-girlfriend who turned out to be nothing but a con-artist, and although he wants to be upset with Christy for not initially telling him the truth about being engaged and then not keeping her promise to break things off, he understands her and sees the good in her. In fact, her sweetness and kindness toward others was part of what drew him to her in the first place. Eventually, Cody found a touch of alpha possessiveness and went after Christy to save her from herself and her well-meaning but overbearing family. Without him doing this, I'm not sure they ever would have succeeded as a couple, because Christy just couldn't seem to say 'no' even though it was tearing her apart to be in love with one man and engaged to another. Cody was a good, honest, honorable man who fell head over heels, madly in love with Christy at first sight and couldn't let her go no matter what lengths he had to go to. As a result, I couldn't help but fall for him.
As a couple, Cody and Christy started out by bonding over the birth of her sister's baby. Their attraction to one another is immediate and palpable. Normally, I'm not a big fan of love at first sight, but somehow Ms. Macomber made me really sense Cody and Christy's burgeoning feelings for one another and made me believe they belonged together in spite of her being engaged to another man. They're like a couple of teenagers who can't seem to keep their hands off each other or stop kissing which was really cute. I thought it was very romantic how Cody followed Christy part way out of town when she left Cougar Point, and pulled her over with his sheriff's car to say goodbye one more time before following her the rest of the way to the county line. These two could hardly bear to be apart from one another and that was really sweet. Considering that this is a pretty short book, having them apart for even a short amount of time was difficult, because it didn't leave a lot of time for relationship development. However, the author made excellent use of the time they did have together to show just how crazy in love with each other they are.
The only downside to this story other than Christy's seeming inability to stand up for herself was the whole love triangle aspect. This is something I typically have a hard time with, especially when the third wheel isn't a jerk. Both Christy and Taylor repeatedly talk about how nice James is, although Taylor contends that he's boring and not right for Christy. This is somewhat apparent in the fact that he seems to be a workaholic who lacks the sort of passion and ability to express his feelings that Cody displays, but underneath it all, he was a good man who got left out in the cold which is something I always hate to see. Otherwise, The Sheriff Takes a Wife is a really sweet enjoyable story. The madcap race to get Taylor to the hospital to have the baby was a fun way to start the book, and Taylor and Russ play pretty significant roles. Russ still had a tendency to rub me the wrong way, but I liked that Taylor put him in his place when he needed it.;-) We're also introduced to Taylor and Christy's three brothers, Rich, Paul, and Jason who get their own stories in the spin-off series, Those Manning Men. Rich is up first in the opening book of that series, Marriage of Inconvenience, and now that I've had a much better experience with Debbie Macomber this time, I'm very much looking forward to reading that book soon. The Sheriff Takes a Wife was originally published as a stand-alone novel in the Silhouette Special Edition line, and was later republished in the single-author anthology The Manning Sisters along with it's companion book in the series.
The Sheriff Takes a Wife is the second book I've read by Debbie Macomber and the second in The Manning Sisters duet. I liked it quite a bit more than the first book of the series. It is a very sweet story, but it contains some elements that I know won't be very popular with many modern romance readers. Therefore, I know it won't work for everyone, but it worked pretty well for me. In fact, after getting off to a rocky start with this author, The Sheriff Takes a Wife has restored my belief that Debbie Macomber can write the kind of stories that I will enjoy.
Christy was a wonderful sister to come all the way from Seattle to the backwoods of Montana to help her sister, Taylor, who is about to give birth to her first child. That's not too surprising though, because Christy is nice to everyone, perhaps a little too nice. She's the consummate 'good girl' who always did what her parents asked of her and never gave them a moment's trouble or worry. She's newly engaged to James, an attorney in the law firm where she works, but the moment she meets Cody, there's an instant spark of chemistry that makes her realize that she never truly loved James and only accepted his proposal because he was a comfortable choice of whom her parents approved. Unfortunately though, Christy is the ultimate people pleaser who doesn't like to rock the boat and can't bear to do anything that might upset someone else even if it means giving up her own happiness, but in the process, she not only hurt herself but ended up hurting Cody too with her wishy-washy way of handling things. At first, she doesn't want to break-up with James over the phone which was completely understandable. She promised Cody she'd end the engagement and tell her parents about them as soon as she got back to Seattle, but she returns to a surprise engagement party that her mom went to great lengths to plan and her fiancé embroiled in a court case that could make or break his career. A part of me understood why she didn't want to break up with James immediately and tell her parents that the engagement was off, but another part of me felt like she was kind of allowing them to railroad her into it. Of course, the more she allows them to do without telling them the truth, the deeper she buries herself in a horrible mess. There was one point where she decided that she couldn't tell them even if it meant losing Cody, and that really started to call into question in my mind whether she loved Cody enough to make their relationship work. Quite frankly, if Cody hadn't saved the day, I'm not entirely convinced that Christy would have ever broken off her engagement. Like Cody said, if something didn't happen to stop the madness, she'd eventually have ended up married to James and have no idea how she got there, and on some level, I had to agree with him. For that reason, I didn't 100% respect Christy even though I understood how difficult it was for her to disappoint someone else.
Based on the one date Cody had with Taylor in The Cowboy's Lady, I already knew I liked him. Even though he's best friends with Russ, the hero of that story who I could barely stand, Cody is definitely not the pig-headed, chauvinistic man that his friend is, for which I was truly grateful. In fact, Cody is a sweet beta hero, because no alpha would have ever stood for all the stuff that Christy put him through. Cody was badly hurt by an ex-girlfriend who turned out to be nothing but a con-artist, and although he wants to be upset with Christy for not initially telling him the truth about being engaged and then not keeping her promise to break things off, he understands her and sees the good in her. In fact, her sweetness and kindness toward others was part of what drew him to her in the first place. Eventually, Cody found a touch of alpha possessiveness and went after Christy to save her from herself and her well-meaning but overbearing family. Without him doing this, I'm not sure they ever would have succeeded as a couple, because Christy just couldn't seem to say 'no' even though it was tearing her apart to be in love with one man and engaged to another. Cody was a good, honest, honorable man who fell head over heels, madly in love with Christy at first sight and couldn't let her go no matter what lengths he had to go to. As a result, I couldn't help but fall for him.
As a couple, Cody and Christy started out by bonding over the birth of her sister's baby. Their attraction to one another is immediate and palpable. Normally, I'm not a big fan of love at first sight, but somehow Ms. Macomber made me really sense Cody and Christy's burgeoning feelings for one another and made me believe they belonged together in spite of her being engaged to another man. They're like a couple of teenagers who can't seem to keep their hands off each other or stop kissing which was really cute. I thought it was very romantic how Cody followed Christy part way out of town when she left Cougar Point, and pulled her over with his sheriff's car to say goodbye one more time before following her the rest of the way to the county line. These two could hardly bear to be apart from one another and that was really sweet. Considering that this is a pretty short book, having them apart for even a short amount of time was difficult, because it didn't leave a lot of time for relationship development. However, the author made excellent use of the time they did have together to show just how crazy in love with each other they are.
The only downside to this story other than Christy's seeming inability to stand up for herself was the whole love triangle aspect. This is something I typically have a hard time with, especially when the third wheel isn't a jerk. Both Christy and Taylor repeatedly talk about how nice James is, although Taylor contends that he's boring and not right for Christy. This is somewhat apparent in the fact that he seems to be a workaholic who lacks the sort of passion and ability to express his feelings that Cody displays, but underneath it all, he was a good man who got left out in the cold which is something I always hate to see. Otherwise, The Sheriff Takes a Wife is a really sweet enjoyable story. The madcap race to get Taylor to the hospital to have the baby was a fun way to start the book, and Taylor and Russ play pretty significant roles. Russ still had a tendency to rub me the wrong way, but I liked that Taylor put him in his place when he needed it.;-) We're also introduced to Taylor and Christy's three brothers, Rich, Paul, and Jason who get their own stories in the spin-off series, Those Manning Men. Rich is up first in the opening book of that series, Marriage of Inconvenience, and now that I've had a much better experience with Debbie Macomber this time, I'm very much looking forward to reading that book soon. The Sheriff Takes a Wife was originally published as a stand-alone novel in the Silhouette Special Edition line, and was later republished in the single-author anthology The Manning Sisters along with it's companion book in the series.
August 14, 2019
Christy (Taylor's sister - from the first book) arrives in Cougar Point, Montana to be with her sister Taylor when she delivers her baby since their Mother couldn’t travel. Christy had just become engaged to James Wilkens, just to pease her parents.
As soon as she arrives in Cougar Point Taylors water breaks. Christy wants to clear the air about being engaged but every time she gets up the nerve to tell anyone, something else interrupts her.
Thr only thing i wished was this series should have become the Manning Family series instead of separating them between brothers and sisters.
As soon as she arrives in Cougar Point Taylors water breaks. Christy wants to clear the air about being engaged but every time she gets up the nerve to tell anyone, something else interrupts her.
Thr only thing i wished was this series should have become the Manning Family series instead of separating them between brothers and sisters.
September 6, 2018
Ridiculous!
This is one of the worst books I have read in a long time. I rarely write reviews but was so annoyed by how ridiculous this story is that I felt compelled. Don’t waste your time. Both main characters make me sick especially given how much the author tries to convince us that they are amazing people stuck in a bad situation. Nope. Not buying it....and you shouldn’t buy this book.
This is one of the worst books I have read in a long time. I rarely write reviews but was so annoyed by how ridiculous this story is that I felt compelled. Don’t waste your time. Both main characters make me sick especially given how much the author tries to convince us that they are amazing people stuck in a bad situation. Nope. Not buying it....and you shouldn’t buy this book.
October 28, 2020
Christy was not my favourite romantic heroine. There was nothing overly wrong with her. But I have never understood people pleasers. And she is the epitome of a people pleaser. Particularly as throughout the development of this story, she manages to constantly jeopardise her own happiness just to keep other people happy… not my favourite thing in a heroine at all.
Having said that, Cody is an absolute sweetheart. Again, not my favourite romantic hero… but definitely a lot more understandable and less frustrating than Christy. Particularly when it’s her actions that are constantly putting their relationship into jeopardy. And it takes a while for things to settle. But, once they do… well, I really didn’t mind this at all.
I picked this book up when I was at home sick. I was in that really irritating point where you feel well enough to want to do things. But you’re not actually well enough to do anything. This is the perfect book for that kind of feeling. It’s not exactly got heaps going on and it’s a pretty easy read. But it’s also got just enough going on that at the end of it, you feel like you might have accomplished something in the reading…
Towards the end of this novel, the Manning brothers most definitely steal the show. It’ll be interesting reading their romances and finding out more about these three men when I next pick up a Debbie Macomber novel…
Having said that, Cody is an absolute sweetheart. Again, not my favourite romantic hero… but definitely a lot more understandable and less frustrating than Christy. Particularly when it’s her actions that are constantly putting their relationship into jeopardy. And it takes a while for things to settle. But, once they do… well, I really didn’t mind this at all.
I picked this book up when I was at home sick. I was in that really irritating point where you feel well enough to want to do things. But you’re not actually well enough to do anything. This is the perfect book for that kind of feeling. It’s not exactly got heaps going on and it’s a pretty easy read. But it’s also got just enough going on that at the end of it, you feel like you might have accomplished something in the reading…
Towards the end of this novel, the Manning brothers most definitely steal the show. It’ll be interesting reading their romances and finding out more about these three men when I next pick up a Debbie Macomber novel…
February 16, 2022
Christy Manning has spent her life being the "good" girl. But when she goes to Montana to help her sister, who is pregnant, she never imagines that when the local sheriff arrives to help get Taylor to the hospital, Christy will have a good reason to stop trying to make everyone else happy. Too bad, she is already engaged to one of the attorneys in the Seattle firm where she works as a paralegal. Too bad her parents think that James is the perfect son-in-law-to-be. Too bad that a surprise engagement party and then the setting of the wedding date conspire to prevent Christy from coming clean.
What does push her into truth-telling? When Cody arrives and they end up flying to Idaho to get married and then have to confront all the people she's kept in the dark about what she really wants, who she really wants.
What does push her into truth-telling? When Cody arrives and they end up flying to Idaho to get married and then have to confront all the people she's kept in the dark about what she really wants, who she really wants.
July 28, 2018
Christy successfully managed to lie to every single person in the entire cast. She got two parties thrown for her to celebrate an event she knew she was going to cancel (and accepted the gifts too). She cheated on her fiance but let him continue to believe they were going to get married, even after she married another man. No wonder her parents, fiance, and husband didn't let her speak or act on her own. Every time she did, it was pure foolishness.
May 4, 2020
I like a strong leading lady, so this one didn’t quite fit the bill for me.
Christy was so concerned about doing what other people expected of her, and not wanting to hurt other people, that she came off as a doormat.
In the end, her problem became evident. Her parents were too controlling. So, instead of recruiting help from husband, she put her marriage in jeopardy by trying to handle everything by herself.
Christy was so concerned about doing what other people expected of her, and not wanting to hurt other people, that she came off as a doormat.
In the end, her problem became evident. Her parents were too controlling. So, instead of recruiting help from husband, she put her marriage in jeopardy by trying to handle everything by herself.
February 1, 2024
1/31/24 - 2/1/24 The Manning Sisters Book #2 - continues with the Manning Family Saga. Much to the chagrin of their parents both daughters seem to have a mind of their own and are going to do as they please regardless what their parents want and their three brothers are enjoying every minute of it! There was more angst and heartache in this book compared to the first book it all worked out in the end with some yelling and hollering!
October 20, 2018
This novel was written in 1990 and has been reissued for Kindle. It is the second in the Manning Sisters books, but the story is too convoluted. The heroine is an undecisive wimp who can't bring herself to hurt anyone's feelings but her love interest's and her own. I usually like Debbie Macomber's books but felt that she could have done much better with this one.
October 23, 2019
I have always liked Debbie Macomber's books. They are clean, fun, romantic fictions. This one was the same. I would recommend any of her books and especially her series to anyone. I have just found a bunch of her older books which this includes. I do think with them you can tell she isn't quite as polished as her newer books but still fun to read.
February 3, 2021
I like Debbie's writing and although I did enjoy this story, it wasn't the same "can't put it down" story that I've often experienced in her other storytelling. Having said that, it was fun to meet Taylor's sister and get a bit more info about Russ's friend, Cody. The Manning family was just a bit "too much".
July 1, 2023
Compl!cated
A story of making choices to please others then realize how wrong that is. We can get trapped in circumstances beyond our control, not realizing the best way to move forward. Debbie Maximize does it once again and entertains us with true love. Love that is patient and understanding of others circumstances.
A story of making choices to please others then realize how wrong that is. We can get trapped in circumstances beyond our control, not realizing the best way to move forward. Debbie Maximize does it once again and entertains us with true love. Love that is patient and understanding of others circumstances.
May 14, 2018
Blessed by True Love
For most of us True love doesn't happen quite that fast, but it surely did this time. It's good to know that Macomber was an excellent author early in her career as well as today. Thank you for leaving some of the love scenes to our own imagination.
For most of us True love doesn't happen quite that fast, but it surely did this time. It's good to know that Macomber was an excellent author early in her career as well as today. Thank you for leaving some of the love scenes to our own imagination.
June 24, 2020
I love this author
She drove 3 days to be there to help her sister having a baby. When she meets the sheriff, Cody Franklin, it's love at first sight. Makes it kinda difficult because she's engaged to another.
This is an awesome romance. Happy and sweet romance.
She drove 3 days to be there to help her sister having a baby. When she meets the sheriff, Cody Franklin, it's love at first sight. Makes it kinda difficult because she's engaged to another.
This is an awesome romance. Happy and sweet romance.
September 24, 2020
Ummm... This chick is obviously the villain in every other romance book. She is horrible. Constantly cheating and horrendously selfish. I cannot believe that Cody stayed with her. I was actively rooting for them to not end up together. She was horrible to Cody and to James and to her family.
January 30, 2022
This was such a sweet and whimsical romance. This relationship definitely had its setbacks, but Cody believed in the power of true love and trusted Christy. This novel was an easy read and definitely captured the essence of a city girl meets country boy romance.
March 28, 2023
Couldn’t believe how Christy just could not do anything to disappoint her parents. Understood the initial engagement but the continuing procrastinating got ridiculous. Then to marry the sheriff without a wedding after what her sister had done was so out of character and done so quickly.
August 9, 2025
Not bad, exactly what you’d expect with a romance novel. Much more on the sweet side than steamy. I did feel like the end came too quickly and just clos3d out picture perfect in a matter of like 10 pages.
November 9, 2017
I really enjoyed the books I have read in this series.
March 17, 2018
Read in novel the Manning Sisters
March 21, 2018
Wonderful love love loved it
June 3, 2018
Cute story. Always a Debbie Macomber classic. Easy to read
January 12, 2019
Nice compact match
August 16, 2019
What a lily livered main character. Wimp! Engaged to one married to another because she can’t bear to inconvenience anyone? Spare me!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
December 17, 2019
Second time for this fun story.
September 10, 2020
Loved this book about Christy and Cody they are so perfect for each other
October 21, 2020
Wish I would have realized this is book 2. Other than that, it was really good.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 72 reviews