Mail Order Doctor

Brides of Tombstone #2

by Cynthia Woolf

Librarian Note: Alternate Cover Edition for ASIN: B00ZJRFEIC

Julia O’Brien is a practical woman. A nurse and midwife, she was perhaps the most surprised when she fell in love with Dr. Matthew Reynolds and agreed to be his mail order bride. She sets off for Tombstone carrying his letters and a heart full of hope.

Dr. Matthew Reynolds didn’t want a wife, and is shocked when Julia arrives on his door step with a marriage license bearing his signature. He discovers that his grandfather has wooed the young woman without his knowledge, and made promises in his name without permission. An annulment seems to be the easy answer, but Julia has nowhere to go. Now, his unwanted wife is sleeping in his house, working with him at his clinic, and generally driving him to distraction.

When a call comes in from a desperate young mother, Julia handles the call alone. The young woman gives birth to a beautiful baby girl, but does not survive childbirth. Suddenly, Matthew is faced with a new choice, not only does he have a beautiful and caring wife, but a precious new daughter to fill his empty life. But Julia is not willing to accept less than his whole heart, and when the young infant’s father attempts to steal her away, Matthew will have to move heaven and earth to convince the woman he has grown to love that he can be what she needs.

Genres: Romance, Historical Romance, Western Romance, Westerns, Mail Order Brides, Historical, Medical

291 pages, Kindle Edition

First published June 11, 2015

About the author

Cynthia Woolf is the USA Today Bestselling and award-winning author of eighty-five works of romance fiction. Comprising sixty-six historical western romances, ten contemporary romance novels, two contemporary romance novellas, one historical western romance novella, and six sci-fi space opera romances, which she calls westerns in space. Along with these books, she has also published twelve boxed sets of her books and two short stories.

Cynthia loves writing and reading romance. Her first western romance, Tame A Wild Heart, was inspired by the story her mother told her of meeting Cynthia's father on a ranch in Creede, Colorado. Although Tame A Wild Heart takes place in Creede, that is the only similarity between the stories. Her father was a cowboy, not a bounty hunter, and her mother was a nursemaid (called a nanny now), not the ranch owner.

Cynthia credits her wonderfully supportive husband, Jim, and her great critique partners for saving her sanity and allowing her to explore her creativity.



WEBSITE – http://cynthiawoolf.com

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TITLES AVAILABLE (English unless otherwise stated)

COLORADO BILLIONAIRES (sweet contemporary novels)
THE CEO
THE RANCHER
THE MAVERICK
THE TYCOON
THE ARTIST (coming soon)
THE QUARTERBACK (coming soon)


MONTANA BILLIONAIRES SERIES (contemporary sweet western novels)
Her Secret Cowboy Billionaire (Available in German)
Her Mysterious Cowboy Billionaire (Available in German)
Her Royal Cowboy Billionaire (Available in German)
Her Christmas Cowboy Billionaire (Available in German)
Her Bachelor Cowboy Billionaire (Available in German)
Her Wild Cowboy Billionaire (Available in German)
Her Elusive Cowboy Billionaire
Her Disguised Cowboy Billionaire


CHRISTMAS AT THE MISTLETOE INN (contemporary novella)
Cooking Up Christmas


THE BRIDES OF THE KLONDIKE
The Gold Rush Bride (Available in German)
The Gold Mountain Bride


THE PRESCOTT BRIDES (Available in German)
A Bride for Ross
A Bride for Frank
A Bride for Tucker
A Bride for Clay
A Bride for Brodie



THE HEART WISH MAIL-ORDER BRIDES SERIES
Heart of Stone
Heart of Shadow


MARSHALS MAIL ORDER BRIDES
The Carson City Bride (Available in German)
The Virginia City Bride (Available in German)
The Silver City Bride
The Eureka City Bride


ANGEL CREEK CHRISTMAS BRIDES
Adele


BRIDES OF GOLDEN CITY
A Husband for Victoria
A Husband for Cordelia
A Husband for Adeline


BRIDES OF THE OREGON TRAIL (Available in German)
Hannah
Lydia
Bella
Eliza
Rebecca
Charlotte
Amanda
Emma Rose
Nora
Opal


BACHELORS & BABIES
Carter (Book 3)


BRIDES OF SEATTLE (Available in German)
Mail Order Mystery
Mail Order Mayhem
Mail Order Mix-Up
Mail Order Moonlight
Mail Order Melody


CENTRAL CITY BRIDES (Available in German)
The Dancing Bride
The Sapphire Bride
The Irish Bride
The Pretender Bride


HOMESTEAD CANYON SERIES
Thorpe’s Mail-Order Bride
Kissed by a Stranger
A Family for Christmas


HOPE’S CROSSING
The Hunter Bride
The Replacement Bride
The Stolen Bride
The Unexpected Bride


AMERICAN MAIL-ORDER BRIDES
Genevieve, Bride of Nevada


THE SURPRISE BRIDES
Gideon


THE BRIDES OF SAN FRANCISCO
Nellie (Available in German)
Annie (Available in German)
Cora (Available in German)
Sophia (Available in German)
Amelia (Available in German)
Violet


THE BRIDES OF TOMBSTONE (Available in German)
Mail Order Outlaw
Mail Order Doctor
Mail Order Baron


DESTINY IN DEADWOOD (Available in German)
Jake
Liam
Zach


MATCHMAK

Reviews

[Jessica's Totally Over The Top Book Obsession · Rating 2 out of 5]

2 Cowardly Stars



*** Lots of Spoilers ***

Yeah well hmmm. I am having a hard time expressing my feeling on this book. I have changed the rating 3 times now from 2 to 3 stars and back. See here is the thing, Cynthia Woolf is my go to feel good read when I am craving Western Historical Romance. She is the queen of mail order bride books, and she always gives me the sweet HEAs. The problem with this book is that even though it had all the things I have come to love from Cynthia Woolf, it also had my 2nd biggest pet peeves in it. Cowards!!!! OMG nothing kills my love for a book more than an over the top cowardly hero or heroine. And our hero in this book Matthew, was a huge, mega, over the top, make me want to rip my hair out, and smash my kindle against the wall coward! It really upsets me because I love CW and I was really looking forward to the warm fuzzies that her books always give me.



He is literally the only thing I didn't like about this book. You see in this book Matthew is the town doctor. Now Matt is 39 years old and at some point he was to be married but his fiancee left him at the alter. So Matt's grandpa started writing a Mail Order Bride acting like Matt. Then married said MOB to Matt by proxy by having Matt sign a paper he thought was a will. Now Julia shows up in love with the man she had been writing for months the man she married by proxy. Only she finds out that he had no clue who she was or that they were married and that his grandpa tricked them both. Problem is she still wants the marriage anyways. He was still the man she fell in love with. The letters detailed the real him, even if he didn't write them. Matt wanted an annulment. Julia plans to change his mind. So up to this point I am diggin' this book. I can understand Matt's anger. But here is where it starts going down hill for me. Matt acts like a wishy washy jerk that lets her live with him. Uses her like a slave to cook, work at his doctors office( She is a nurse and midwife) but keeps pushing her away. Then he would kiss her and tell her he wanted her. Then he would push her away again. He does this not for a little while but for the whole book. One minute he would tell her he wants her , then he would tell her he didn't want the marriage and he felt trapped. He would tell her that he was scared she would leave him like his ex. He strung her along so much that I didn't feel bad about his past hurts I just wanted to beat the crap out of him myself.



See I can understand a little push/pull. A little indecision, but he doesn't make up his mind when she leaves. He still doesn't make up his mind when she got shot and almost dies. Not until the very end and only then did he tell her he wanted the marriage. Oh but you know, he doesn't know if he can ever love her. Are you kidding me???? Matt had me so frustrated that it killed everything else I loved about the book. I loved Julia but I felt so bad for her that I didn't want her to end up with Matt's butt. I wanted her to marry Ben who was so good to her. Ben wanted her. she should have ended up with Ben, and Matt should have lost out. Because when you snooze you lose! And Matt snoozed the whole damn book. Matt hurt Julia so much throughout the whole book that he turned her into a doormat. Not that she was weak or anything. It's just that she let him string her along so long. Then took him back without any groveling or begging forgiveness. So it felt like he walked all over her and her feelings. See that's my problem I loved the town, the secondary characters, the plot and Julia. Matt ticked me off some much that he was the killer of my joy!



In the end I have to keeps it real, and give this book a 2 star rating. Because even though I love me some Cynthia Woolf. The hero ruined this book for me. I know I can't love every book even from one of my favorite authors, but I hate giving her such a low rating. The fan girl in me wants to up that rating, just because I love her work so much, but I can't. I will still read every book of hers that I can get my hands on because she is an awesome writer and I love her style.




http://jessicasoverthetopbookobsessio...

[Sissy's Romance Book Review · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received an eARC, from NetGalley and the publisher, in exchange for an honest review.
This is book two in the 'Brides of Tombstone' series.
I have not read book one "Mail Order Outlaw"yet but I have read book three "Mail Order Baron". I felt this was a standalone book. This is a really sweet, clean love story that I enjoyed having the chance to read.
Julia O’Brien is a hard working nurse and midwife. Julia has been writing/involved with Dr. Matthew Reynolds and is surprised when she thinks he has asked her to be his Mail Order Wife. Julia heads off to to join Matthew with her marriage license she was given with his signature on it. But when Julia arrives it to a surprised Matthew who knew nothing about it. It seems his grandfather had a hand in making this relationship for his son. Matthew talks of getting annulment and while waiting to do so, Julia starts to help him with his Clinic. This starts their sweet love story... I hope that you will enjoy it too.

[Stephanie · Rating 2 out of 5]

I felt really really bad for Julia (heroine). To chase after a man (her husband, technically) and to be repeatedly rejected?? Time and time again? Girl, you got some self - esteem issues! I know, it's the 1880s or whatever, but no one should stand for that. Fool me once, shame on you... fool me twice, shame on me. Urrghh.

As stated by several previous reviews, the hero was a coward, and lacked a backbone. Even a few pages from the conclusion of the book, he (can't even remember his name :P) stated something along the lines that he cares for her, but is unsure that he loves her? Yuck! Julie, you should have showed that jerk the door... never settle! And ya should have taken Ben King up on his offer *sigh*

On to book #3 in the series... "Mail Order Baron". Fingers crossed that it will be an improvement.

[Cheesecake · Rating 2 out of 5]

Mathew is pushing 40 and his father wants grandkids damn it! So he tricks Matt into signing a marriage by proxy to Julia (who is pushing 30). She was unhappy as an underappreciated nurse in the city.
But Matt has been stung by love before (yes... that old chestnut), and even though the judge says it's legal, and his entire family loves her, he wants an annulment.
A case of cutting off your nose to spite your face, if I ever heard one. AND he keeps neglecting to factor in that Julia was just as duped as he was and just as entitled to be pissed off!

I wanted to like this one more but the good doctor takes almost 90% of the book to pull his head out of his arse. A lot of pushing and pulling the h's affections. Mostly because he feels his free will was taken away when his father chose her for him. Heaven forbid you should admit your father has good taste and knows you better than you know yourself!

What helps bring them together is a new baby Julia ends up taking care of when her father runs off and the mother dies. But it was still A LOT of back and forth... I'm leaving, no I'm coming back. I want you to stay, but I don't want to be married to you. Blah blah blah.

There is a wonderful epilogue though.

[Trina · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was a very good story and I enjoyed rooting for Julia as she went along her journey of life in Tombstone

[Bev Walkling · Rating 4 out of 5]

A quick easy read with an intrresting premise - the doctor's grandfather arranged his marriage by proxy without warning him ahead of time.

[♥ WishfulMiss ♥ · Rating 3 out of 5]

Mail Order Doctor is the second in the Bride of Tombstone series and I enjoyed it so much more than the previous book. The book had a more solid plot and the characters were fleshed out and believable.

When Julia travels from New York to the booming mining town of Tombstone with a marriage license in hand, she's looking forward to finally meeting the man she married by proxy and fell in love with through letters they exchanged for the last six months. It's all looking up for a talented nurse and midwife who's dream is to open her own practice along side her doctor husband.

But things don't quite end up that way. Seems Julia's lovesick and understanding doctor isn't at all lovesick or understanding when it's revealed he was tricked into signing the marriage papers by his well meaning but meddling grandfather.

Matthew Reynolds didn't even know of Julia's existence until he finds a strange woman asleep in his home! A workaholic bachelor who's been burned once already in love, Matt is stubborn and at times down right frustrating with his refusal to be roped in and tied down to a woman he didn't choose and wont let himself care for.

I liked that Julia didn't let fear stop her from going after what she wanted. She saw that even though Matt had a valid point (after all he didn't intentionally marry her!) and had reservations against their marriage, she was willing to prove herself. Once she gets to know Matt, Julia realizes that she's fallen in love with the real Matt and decides to fight for her chance at a HEA. Julia was a fighter. She set out to show Matt that they could be a good team not only in their professional lives but also in their personal lives.

I did hope for a better groveling scene from Matt when he finally acknowledges his love for Julia but that's just my own preferences.

Mail Order Doctor was a sweet clean romance. There's only one detailed love scene and it happens towards the end of the book. It allows for the characters to get to know each other and I liked that. Often times the MCs jump right into bed and it can seem really rushed. This was a nicely paced story that explores and builds a friendship before things get physical.

*** ARC kindly provided for an honest review ***

[Dixie-Lee Campbell · Rating 5 out of 5]

Captivated from the beginning... and kept wondering what to expect next. Just when I had I thought I had it figured out.... kept me anticipating "what next" The plot twisted and was not expecting it. Loved the family bonding of the Walt's family. For a late 1800's era I thought it was a forward book in some ways and other the typical view of the period time .

I gave it a 5star rating... opening of the book kept me captured and wanting to read more.... this feeling carried me through different times in the plot to becoming captivated in what was going to happen next.

Romance, humour, suspense, family matters, small town issues & entwined by a chain of emotions.....

Providing an honest review in exchange for ebook via Netgalley . (in the process of providing.)

[Ems Loves to Read · Rating 1 out of 5]

Completely dreadful and that's the nicest thing I have to say about it.

[Nellie · Rating 1 out of 5]

Mail order Doctor

So, I didn't last. I, 40% through it, and super not into it. No cussing so far, and no love scenes, yet, but I think those were coming. It's just not drawing me in. I don't quit on a book easily, but I'm getting nothing out of this story. Fast pass, and good idea, but I'm not liking all the disconnected emotions. Little setup for big stuff, then it's gone too fast without any detail to flesh it out. Oh well. I tried.

[Lyngay Hemsath · Rating 4 out of 5]

Family can mean well in meddling but make us so mad.

Mail order bride, hotel owner and country doctor are a few of the characters in the story. Ever had decisions made for you? Had some one volunteer you but not ask you first if that was OK? This story has all that and more. Well written and good clean entertainment. See how stubborn each of the characters can be and how the tangles are undone. This stand alone entices you to reached the series.

[Janet · Rating 5 out of 5]

Men!

Men can’t make their minds up! If it hadn’t been for Greatgrand daddy Matt would have lived the rest of his life alone. He didn’t trust his heart to another woman not after being hurt so bad. Julia was a practical woman but her patience were running out. Will she find someone else to marry so she can have a family. I hope there is a series of this story line in Tombstone. Jo

[Anne Butler · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great Book

I loved this great book so much it kept me up quite late .It’s a great mail order bride story but a bit different.Julia is a nurse/midwife and she came to marry a Dr. but he didn’t know she was coming.His Uncle Walt had been at it again.Wonderful Book and a great ending.

[Sandra Newton · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing story and series

I love this story. A caring grandfather starts this exciting adventure by secretly ordering his grandson a Mail-
Order Bride. And all ready hurt by love once he fights his attraction to her. The events that happens make for a fabulous story. I highly recommend you read this story and the others in this series and all title's by Cynthia🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟💖💖💖💖💖

[Alisa · Rating 2 out of 5]

I wanted to really like this one, but it just seemed to drag and go in circles. I never really connected with either of the main characters. There are a lot of typos--wrong word tense, missing words, etc that were distracting.

[Sydnee Walsh · Rating 5 out of 5]

Julia will stop at almost nothing to show Matthew they will work. Walt Matthew’s grandfather ordered her but the man he wrote to her about is the Matthew she has come to love in person. Now she just needs to convince Matthew of that while they take care of baby Hope.

[Caroline · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sweet!

Sweet and sassy! I liked the strong characters, especially the female lead. A good story and a perfect ending! 👍👍

[Robin Brennan]

Did not read - having trouble getting rid of stars

[Becky Bowen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great idea on how to write a book about... Good

[Prac Agrl · Rating 1 out of 5]

All crap
The amount of chances the h gave to the undeserving H was astounding it seemed she was desperate should have married the OM.

[CB]

Dnf book in series. Willing to try newer books by this author.

[Angela Goodrich · Rating 3 out of 5]

Mail Order Doctor reads like an over the top western soap opera – the fun kind. It’s not a deep book by any means, but it was a nice change of pace for me. It was a quick and easy read that entertained and frustrated me, it made me laugh and made my eyes sting a time or two. I had to remind myself, repeatedly, that mail order brides were not uncommon back then, and that while there were times I wanted to yell at Julia to stop putting herself out there, I had to remember that women didn’t have a lot of options in the late 1800s. So what I saw as a woman repeatedly setting herself up to be a doormat, was actually the actions of a woman determined to grab hold of the life she wanted.

As the blurb indicates, Julia arrives in Tombstone expecting to begin a new life married to a man she has fallen in love with via letters. Needless to say, both she and Matthew were surprised to learn that it was actually Walt, Matthew’s grandfather, who wooed Julia on Matthew’s behalf, and then arranged for the marriage by proxy. I will admit that I found Julia’s acceptance of the hoodwinking to be a bit baffling, but knowing that women’s attitudes regarding their roles and marriage have changed drastically in the last century and a half, I just had to go with it. In the same vein, I found Matthew’s reaction and his tendency to lash out at Julia over the situation to be hard to take – she was the innocent who was tricked by his grandfather, and, in my opinion, had far more of a right to be upset over the situation than Matthew did. Yet this did not keep Julia from putting herself out there and getting rejected by him over and over, until finally she couldn’t take any more rejections. Because Mail Order Doctor has a soap opera feel to me, it wasn’t surprising that it took a rather dramatic act before Matthew finally put his pride aside and realized that Julia was more important than his pride. However, by that time, he had to prove his worth to her.

Mail Order Doctor is an easy read that moves quickly. Sometimes it moves too quickly, with little to no transition between scenes or haphazard references to time passed, which made some of the events jarring. While I enjoyed the story, I never really felt the chemistry between Matthew and Julia. To be honest, I didn’t expect there to be any in the beginning because they didn’t know one another, but as they spent time together and learned more about one other, I never felt that spark between them. Not even in bed. Even though they worked well together, and they certainly bantered like friends, it never felt like more than that, which left the romance aspect unfulfilled for me. I should note that I did not read book one, but I don’t believe there is any connection between the books other than the location of Tombstone. Although not my typical genre, Mail Order Doctor proved to be an entertaining read precisely for that reason. So if you’re looking for something a bit different, maybe a little over the top, check out the sample to see if the writing appeals to you, because you should be able to tell if it’s what you’re looking for within a few pages. I don’t know that I’ll go back to read book one, but I would be interested in reading book three to find out how Ben fares with his mail order bride.

I received a complimentary copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.
Reviewed by Angela at Crystal's Many Reviewers!

[Itsy Bitsy Book Bits · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mail Order Doctor by Cynthia Woolf is a solid 4-Star read as well as the second book in The Brides of Tombstone series yet is a capable of being read as a standalone title. (I had not read book one in the series and enjoyed this title just as well as if I had without feeling as if I were missing anything.) Starting with the arrival of Julia O'Brien Reynolds to Tombstone, the book opens as a traditional 'mail order bride' scenario. Julia has married Dr. Matthew Reynolds by proxy after corresponding with him via letters for some time. The twist arrives when Matt is revealed to have been tricked into the marriage, never wrote any letters to Julia, and had no idea she was coming so he protests being forced into a marriage from the very onset of the story.

Julia is an accomplished nurse as well as no sweet young thing. At twenty-eight-years-old, she's lived in New York her entire life where she's delivered hundreds of babies thanks to her specialty in midwifery and the care of pregnant women. She arrives hopeful to start her own family with Matt as well as to open a practice alongside his where she can tend to the booming population of Tombstone being brought in by the silver mines. Her love of nursing is apparent in everything she does; Julia is a very admirable woman who is no shrinking violet even when faced with a husband who doesn't want her after she's traveled hundreds of miles to meet him.

I particularly liked Julia's reasoning as to why she wouldn't give up on Matt when it was apparent he wasn't happy at all about their marriage. She explained it as:

"Because...I fell in love with the man in the picture I received and from the letters and so far, Matthew is that man. His grandfather may have written them, but it's Matthew he was writing for and about. I can't leave without even trying."

Matt has spent his life being raised in a house filled with men give his three brothers and grandfather are his remaining family. He's gruff yet still kind in his own way. There's never a time I questioned Matt's care for his patients or love of being a doctor. Throughout the book, it is emphasized how he refuses to turn away patients who cannot pay when they are in need and he will go out of his way to help someone who needs a doctor's care. He even takes in an orphaned child when he has no reason to and when it ties him more firmly to Julia, a woman he was married to through trickery on his grandfather's part and who he had never even heard of much less meant to marry.

"I don't know if what I feel is love.---I don't know if at this late date in my life I can feel love."

Watching Matt come to terms with his feelings for Julia while she learns what it is to be a married woman is a very enjoyable journey. I'd give it a solid 4 Stars for being a comfortable read with a lovely HEA ending. The main characters are well-developed while the secondary characters make for a great background for the story. I'd recommend it to anyone who wanted a traditional Old West romance with a guaranteed happy ending.

[Char (1RadReader59) · Rating 4 out of 5]

How many of you have someone who loves you say, “I did it for your own good.” When in reality you’re thinking no you did it for yours. Yet, in some cases it can ring true especially if you are the type of person who could not get out of his own way due to fear. Enter Dr. Matthew Reynolds. So Walt his grandfather, who raised him and his 3 brothers, decided to take matters into his own hands.
Turns out Walt was acting on Matt’s behalf by getting and marrying by proxy a woman from New York, Julia O’Brien. She was the closes thing to perfect for Matt. As they wrote each other back and forth over 6 months he found out that not only did she want to be married and have children which to Walt was important, but she was a nurse and midwife. So she wanted to help Matt out at the office plus start her own clinic for women. Not to mention over the course of the 6 months she had fallen in love already.
Well, wasn’t she in for a surprise? For when she arrived no one was there to meet her. Then since she had taken the coach with Ben a wealthy businessman and friend of Matt’s she asked his assistance. When Walt all of a sudden showed up saying Matt was out on a call and he would be taking her to his home for him to help get her settled. He takes her to the house/clinic where after unpacking she falls asleep. When Matt comes home to find her asleep on his bed late at night he is not happy. Matt is pissed at Walt and feels cornered like an animal.
She explains the whole story as she knows it. He says he will get it annulled and she says fine but that he will have to pay to have her stay at the hotel until she finds a job and housing that she can afford once she finds a job. He is not too happy about that for it can get expensive she says not her problem he signed he pays not her problem he didn’t read what he signed. She says or you can rent me the spare bedroom, I see patients, and help at the office organizing you and get 25% or your pay. That’s how they started negotiations to see if he would like her and keep her.
At some point I found myself saying, “Enough Matt Out!” Then Julia was just sassy enough as a character to get me to keep reading. Other than that…I give this 4 stars. Provided by netgalley.com. Follow us at: www.1rad-readerreviews.com.

[Torri · Rating 2 out of 5]

1.5

This book fell flat for me. I felt everything was rushed. There wasn't enough detail or back story for me. They are just thrown at you, and just continue to speed along.

Spoilers beyond this point.

Julia shows up in Tombstone under the assumption that her husband-by-proxy, that she has been corresponding with for a while, is going to be there waiting for her with open arms and a loving heart. What she gets is a man that has been unwittingly married off by his grandfather, whom has run off so he doesn't have to deal with the mess he's made.

Matthew-the husband-is completely against this marriage. He wants nothing to do with her, but he's not a complete dick and gives her a place to stay while things get sorted out. During this time Julia takes absolutely every chance there is to convince him that he does, in fact, want to be married to her. (He just doesn't know it yet.) This was a little irritating to me. I mean, how would you feel if you found out the guy that you had fallen in love with wasn't actually the man you'd been talking to?

Pissed, a little creeped out and really, really hurt. But she instantly switches on her we-will-stay-married mode, and forget anything that he has to say about it.

And the marriage proposals! What?! Ben I can understand, they spent time on the trip to Tombstone. But Blaine?? No. He loses his wife, Norma, in childbirth, which he is so upset about that he abandons his child, Hope. Then a month or so later comes back, kidnaps his kid and Julia, then tries to get her to marry him after he's shot her.

She was to blame for Norma not being there to take care of Hope, so she would just have to take Norma's place. He wouldn't mind if she took Norma's place in all things.

This book wasn't for me.

I did receive this book from NetGalley for an honest review.

[Amanda Richardson · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was a little bit of a let down because some of the scenarios and ideas of the main characters were so unbelievable and didn't seem to fit the time period.
Julia travelled from New York to be Matthew's mail order bride. She is a nurse and he is a doctor. Julia wanted to open her own practice with Matthew and she would take care of women and babies while he took care of other patients. This in itself seems a little unbelievable and too modern.
Matthew didn't ask Julia to be his bride, turns out it was a manipulation by his grandfather who wants to see all of his grandsons married. He is super angry at his grandfather and kind of continues to take out his feelings on Julia who was an innocent party to the deception.
I liked Julia, but I didn't care for Matthew. He was extremely whiny about the situation and couldn't make up his mind for like two months on if he would want to stay married to Julia or not. He would kiss her and then be mad about it. I would have walked out on him a lot sooner than she did, gotten the annulment, and then married the sexy saloon owner Ben King who was in love with her.
Julia ended up saving an infant and had custody of her while the father took off. She talked to the father about custody arrangements, he could pick her up on Saturday morning and bring her back Sunday night, this again seemed like a usual modern custody arrangement between divorced parents. I would have enjoyed this book more if the main characters would have gotten together soon and if Matthew didn't spend 9o% of the book doing the "I don't want you, but I don't want to let you go," dance.

I received a complimentary copy from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review

[Njkinny (Njkinny's Blog) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mail Order Doctor by Cynthia Woolf is the story of Julia who travels to Tombstone as a mail order bride thinking herself in love with Dr. Matthew Reynolds and vice versa but is shocked to find that Matthew doesn't even know of her existence!

What will happen to Julia?
Will she get her happily-ever-after?

This is the second book in the Brides of Tombstone series but can be read as a standalone without any issues as experienced by me. I hadn't read the first book but dot easily engrossed in this one.

The blurb and title are intriguing and captured my attention right from the start.

The story is straightforward but the author manages to throw some well calculated surprises and had me engaged throughout. The characterization is realistic and I loved Julia's strength, determination and grit but was a bit let down by Matthew. While his objections are understandable but after a while he started looking childish and stubborn not at all like the responsible and mature man he had started as.

I enjoyed meeting Matthew's family and am eager to read their stories. Also I liked Ben and hope to read his love story soon.

The world building is vivid and had me easily transported to the harsh and hard settings of the America of 1800s with mining towns, horse carriages, gown clad women and struggle filled living.

Cynthia's writing style is fluid and engaging and I enjoyed her narration. Hope to read more from her in the future.

All in all, Mail Order Doctor is a clean romance with a strong heroine who wins over all her difficulties to get her happily-ever-after. 4 out of 5 to it and recommended to all lovers of western romance.

Received the book from Netgalley for honest opinion.

Read the review on www.njkinnysblog.com

[Beverly McCall · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mail-Order Doctor is the second in Cynthia Woolf’s Brides of Tombstone series. In this age-gap historical western romance, readers witness the romantic journey of Julie O’Brien Reynolds and Mathew Reynolds. She is 28, single, a nurse and a midwife. He is 39 the eldest of the Reynolds brothers and a doctor. Unbeknownst to the couple, their arranged marriage was manipulated by Walter Reynalds, the grandfather. Both are surprised with Julie’s arrival. Matt fights an internal emotional battle. He is smitten by her but cannot get over being betrayed by Abigail, his ex-finance, who left him at the altar. Julie is determined to make the best, but each time Matt rejects her it hurts. Julie has another suitor, Ben King. Will Matt comes to terms with his conscious and conquer his fears? Can Julie forgive him? Will Ben have a chance? To discover what lies ahead, you must read this book.
This book is another delightful age-gap historical western romance. Ms. Woolf possesses a remarkable skill of creating diverse and appealing characters with vulnerabilities. There is a chemistry between the two main characters. This book is beautifully written with great dialog and descriptive scenes that lends credibility to this HEA romance.

[Peggy Beckman · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was looking for a light read to entertain me on vacation. This did the "Trick". The book is set in the Arizona territory in the late 1800's. An independent thinking female nurse living a more refined life in the eastern U.S. takes on the tasks of moving to the West to become the wife and nurse for a single doctor living in Tombstone, AZ. She mistakingly thinks she has been corresponding with her betrothed for several months and is excited to meet him. Upon arriving in Arizona she discovers the single doctor has no knowledge of the arrangement that brought her to Tombstone. Dr. Matthew Reynolds is not pleasantly surprised with the news that he is actually married to Julia O'Brien Reynolds. The marriage was done by proxy in the days before Julia's arrival. Needless to say there are many things to be resolved and the reader gets to go on the roller coaster ride to discover how this couple finally decides to settle their differences, and who is responsible for the arrangement in the first place. If you are looking for a quick read to take you to another time and place I feel this book will fulfill your desire. I received this book in exchange for an honest review.
Margaret Beckman

[Confessions_of_a_Serial_Reader · Rating 3 out of 5]

What do you get when you have a Doctor, a nurse and a meddling Grandfather? A mail order debacle of course!

Julia falls in love with a doctor in Tombstone, Arizona through his letters. They agrees to marry by proxy and she leaves New York to fulfill her dream as being a Nurse/Midwife. Until she gets there only to find out that her and her 'husband' Matthew were duped by his meddling grandfather who is hell bent on marrying his grandsons off...without their knowledge. Now throw in a baron who is more than willing to take what Matthew is willing to toss away and an orphaned infant that steals everyone's heart.

This is my confession: Mail Order Doctor is a quick paced fun read. At times, a bit too much drama with the way both Matthew and Julia are hot and cold toward each other. One minute they want an annulment, the next they want to make it work. To be honest it tended to leave you with a touch of whiplash. But its a bit of what you expect with the sugary kind of historical romance.