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5.0 out of 5 stars
Entertaining Read.....Not particularly romantic...., April 23 2004
Wow! This was an excellent read! Prairie gold is the story of twelve women who travel out west to become mail-order brides. The story focuses primarily on Perrin Waverly who is an intelligent widow with a big secret. Also in the spotlight are the other women who accompany her, including Perrin's nemesis Augusta Boyd.I really enjoyed Prairie Gold. Maggie Osborne is at her absolute best when writing about the frontier days. Perrin and the other women were fascinating creatures and their struggles truly horrific at times. While I liked this book, and give it a five star rating, I didn't find it particularly romantic. Mostly because the romance was rather downplayed, and was rather bland. The hero Cody Snow was rather typical for a romance hero (his wife did him wrong so he hates all women) (bleh). The romance between the character Mem and Webb Coate was more interesting but very unrealistic. The character, who, ironically I liked the most, was Augusta Boyd. Augusta was portrayed as a spoiled princess, but I felt she was the most realistic character as she reflected many of the attitudes and prejudices of the time. PEEVES: The "Good" characters were quite politically correct. Also parts of this novel did not ring true for the period. Examples: Once discovering Perrin's secret, the women of the camp (and men) would shun her. I also could've done without the 'obsessed stalker' character (how realistic is it that this person would be able to sneak around unseen amongst such a tight knit and close community and wreak havoc? (Besides I felt this subplot was unnecessary and cluttered an already action-packed plot). And last, despite myself, I wished for a happy ending for Augusta, who grew a lot, and deserved more than the author wrote for her. Overall, a great read. Sure to please the most discerning historical fan, but a little light on romance.
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