Dusty Britches

Dusty Britches
Marcia Lynn McClure; Distractions Ink 2001

Summary:“…Dusty’s heart panged a twinge with she saw the bullwhip strapped to the saddle of one of the horses tied to the corral fence. “Why today?” she wondered. Why was her memory tarrying on a young cowhand from five years ago? 

…Well…now,” a deep, masculine voice said from behind her, “if it ain’t Miss Dusty Britches!” 

Dusty felt the color drain from her face…felt the blood seem to drain from the rest of her body and puddle in her feet. She was dizzy and nauseated all at once. 

…There was only one person on the whole of the earth who ever called her Dusty Britches, and that was the cowboy who gave her the nickname in the first place. ...Dusty slowly turned around to see standing before her a man whose eyes were those belonging to a boy she’d once known—a boy who had grown into a man.” 

Angelina Hunter was seriously minded, and it was a good thing. Her father’s ranch needed a woman who could endure the strenuous work of ranch life. Since her mother’s death, Angelina had been that woman. She had no time for frivolity; no time for a less severe side of life. Not when there was so much to be done—hired hands to feed, a widower father to care for and an often ridiculously lighted-hearted younger sister to worry about. No. Angelina Hunter had no time for the things most young women her age enjoyed.

And yet, Angelina had not always been so hardened. There had been a time when she boasted a fun, flirtatious nature even more delightful than her sister Becca’s—a time when her imagination soared with adventurous, romantic dreams. But that all ended years before at the hand of one man. Her heart turned to stone…safely becoming void of any emotion save impatience and indifference.

Until the day her dreams returned, the day the very maker of her broken heart rode back into her life. As the dust settled from the cattle drive which brought him back, would Angelina’s heart be softened? Would she learn to hope again? Would her long-lost dreams become a blessed reality?

My Review: This is one of my favorites by Marcia Lynn McClure. With Valentines Day approaching, I felt the need to read some of my favorite romances. Dusty Britches is a refreshing novel and a tender romance. It is definitely an old western love story. I think that is why I like it so much. Cowboys, rolling in the hay, cattle,  wagon rides, and a bit of sparkin'.

 I think out of all the characters in her books, I relate the most to Angelina. She is suffering  from a broken heart and because of her broken heart she has become stern and hard.  Deep down she knows she can be happy and care free like her sister, but that would mean she would have to open her heart again and risk it being hurt again. As the book goes on, you can see her come out of that hole, and open up. I seem to be in the same type of situation. Where you are at a cross road. Deciding whether or not to open up your heart again or stay the same and not get hurt again. 

Ryder is a beast of a man. I am going to name one of my future children after him. He seems to be so patient with Angelina and helps her tear down the walls she has built. And his kissing abilities could make any woman swoon.

Overall I quite enjoyed this book and have read it many times. Hopefully you will like it too!

Watch Out For: Fighting, Kissing, some violence, and mild cussing.