Prairie Cowboy

by Linda Ford

Too pretty by half—that's Miss Virnie White's problem. Conor Russell has seen what prairie living can do to a delicate female. That's why he's raising his daughter, Rachael, to be as tough as any boy. The new schoolteacher may have good intentions, but harsh reality will make her hightail it out of here soon enough.

Delicate—pah! Virnie's not budging. Little Rachael needs nurturing and guidance, in and out of school. And Rachael's daddy…well, the headstrong cowboy needs to learn that strength comes in many forms. Yet Virnie isn't expecting the lesson God has planned for her—that with faith, two wounded souls can build a real family together.

Genres: Love Inspired, Love Inspired Historical, Christian, Historical Romance, Historical Fiction

288 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published February 9, 2011

About the author

Linda Ford grew up devouring books and making up stories in her head—often late at night when she couldn't sleep. But she hadn't planned to write. Instead, she dreamed of running an orphanage. In a way, that dream came true. She married, had four homemade children, adopted ten and lived (at times, endured) the dream.

Writing first took her to non-fiction human-interest articles for newspapers and eventually a non-fiction book about tuberculosis set in the 1930s and 1940s (Touched By The White Plague). But romance had always been her first love and she turned to writing love stories. She is multi-published in the CBA market.

She lives on a small ranch in Alberta, Canada, where she can see the mountains every day. She and her husband continue to enjoy their children and grandchildren.

Reviews

[Phylisha Stone · Rating 3 out of 5]

Overall likable book with Rachel, the young daughter of Conor Russell being "raised tough "by her single dad and single school teacher Virnie White who wants to help her be more girly. The character of Virnie had some issues with abandonment that were just a little over the top in IMHO, thus 3 stars.

[Fedora · Rating 3 out of 5]

Virnie White is the new school teacher, and Conor Russell is the father of one of her new students. She sees some of herself in his daughter, Rachael, and knows that one of the reasons she's come to town is to give this motherless girl some love and guidance.

Conor's been widowed for years and while he might miss his wife, he knows that a person has to be tough to survive on the prairie. He's trying to raise Rae to be that tough, knowing that they need to be strong to overcome the physical hardships of the land.

Overall I enjoyed Ms. Ford's story. I found Conor and his viewpoint very hard to like initially, but appreciated how Ms. Ford revealed both Conor and Virnie's strengths and weaknesses, and how God can bring healing to our very brokenness. Ultimately the characters felt real and I enjoyed getting to know them all.

[Jennifer Robb · Rating 3 out of 5]

Warning: Spoilers May Follow. Read at your own discretion.

*****

I felt bad for Rachel when her dad wanted her to be strong and she was afraid of the dog and afraid to tell him because she didn't want to let him down. I do think it is wise to teach children how to problem solve, but maybe the dog wasn't the right problem to have her solve on her own.

I was glad to see Conor grow in his character. I can understand him being angry that his wife "gave up" and didn't fight to stay alive to be the wife and mother she could have been. I can even understand him wanting his daughter to have a strength of character to be able to survive in a rougher environment. I do think he took it to a bit of an extreme and was glad he was able to see that and rein it in.

I can also understand Virnie's feelings of "not being enough" based on her past. I was a bit angry at Miss Price for cutting Virnie off from her family and it did make me wonder if she had ulterior motives--though when we do finally meet her in person at the end of the book, she doesn't seem to.

There was still a bit too much of the "I love him/her but I shouldn't but I do" plot lines for my taste so I can't give it more than an average rating.

[Lindsay Bray · Rating 5 out of 5]

5 Stars! I just loved the character development in this one! This is the third book that I’ve read by Mrs. Linda Ford and hands down, it had the best characters. I loved the backstories, the lives the characters had before we met them, the bible scriptures that were quoted added beautifully to the story. The relationships that unraveled and grew throughout the book were done really well. I can’t say enough about how wonderful this book is.

[Gaylina · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book but felt it could have been shortened by several chapters. I knew Vernie had massive problems. I thought how sad it was that she put her fears above her faith. And Conor was a real pip. Sometimes it takes a barn falling on you before you totally trust in the One who gave us life and is in control of every breath we take. He knows the number of hairs on our head. I was glad that they all learned to trust God, even in the smallest details.

[Vicki · Rating 5 out of 5]

The MC has lost his wife because he feels she wasn't strong enough to survive the hard life on the prairie. He keeps his daughter dressed as a boy which upset the new school teacher.
They both start out not wanting to like each other. They learn how to trust each other and it's a wild exchange of ideas. A fun read really enjoyed it.

[Madeleine · Rating 1 out of 5]

Sometimes the vacation rental comes with an extremely questionable free book.

[Jennifer]

I really liked this story and at the same time I was fustraighted with the characters. Virnie White a pretty young lady comes out west to be the best teacher she can be and ends up butting heads with Conor Russel who believes pretty is weak. The first half of the story Virnie gets attached to Rachel ( Conor's daughter) and teaches her some domestic skills. In doing so Virnie shows Conor that pretty doesn't equal weakness. Then Virnie is somehow fighting with herself about thinking she's not good enough for anyone and is afraid of letting Conor down, as well as God. I wanted to to yell at her and help her to see the light , especially since she helped Conor to realize that pretty doesn't always mean weakness. Will she finally let God help her realize that she's fearfully and wonderfully made? Will she give Conor a chance? Read and findout!

[Shelley Chastagner · Rating 3 out of 5]

Sweet characters, good story line. Great christian values of love, acceptance and dependence on God for our sense of worth and strength. While I found Virnie frustrating, I could readily understand her reluctance to leave her hurts behind and accept love. Her fear caused her to push everyone away, thinking it would be better than disappointing them. Connor and his little girl Rachael cause her to reconsider the walls she's built around her heart.
All read.

[Jamie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed reading this book as Linda is a very good writer.

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love the cover on this book!