Last Chance Cowboys

November 1, 2016
After six months in the big city, Jess Porterfield has to find his place in his small hometown, so accepting the position of marshal seems like a good way to prove himself, especially when the woman he loves is threatened by a powerful enemy.Jess isn't proud of the fact that he left his family just when they needed him most, right after the death of his father, when the town's detested Tipton brothers, Jasper and Buck, were trying to take over their ranch. Restless and grieving, Jess made plans to leave for Kansas City and asked Addie Wilcox, the woman he wanted to marry, to come with him, but she refused. Six months away was enough to make Jess realize how much he missed his family and his girl, but in coming back, he's stunned to learn that his sister has solved many of the crises that had overwhelmed him. Addie is angry and hurt, which isn't completely surprising, but disturbingly, Buck Tipton has his sights on her. Plus there are rumors flying that his father was murdered by the Tiptons, even though another man has been charged with the crime--the former marshal. Since the position is open, Jess throws his hat in the ring and is hired, then begins to earn the town's trust with his levelheaded problem-solving. However, things take a serious turn when Jasper Tipton's wife, Pearl, turns up dead, and Buck accuses Addie of murdering her. Dragged to Tucson and thrown into a horrible jail, Addie champions better conditions for the prisoners even as Jess has to figure out how to save her from hanging and convince her he loves her. Despite some intriguing historical details, the writing is uninspired, and many of the characters' choices are annoying or too easy--Addie's day-to-day seesaw feelings toward Jess, her overdramatic "confession" regarding Pearl, Buck's drunken admission to his brother that exonerates her, etc.--ultimately dragging down the pace and overall solidity of the book. Disappointing.

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June 22, 2015
Schmidt, best known for her inspirational and Amish romances, tackles a different genre with this predictable historical western, which opens the Last Chance Cowboys series. In 19th-century Arizona, Maria Porterfield has inherited a modest ranch from her father and is desperate to make it succeed, though she already owes more to the bank than she can repay. Even worse, she’s being hounded by a shifty foreman and a conglomerate that wants to take over her land. Feeling friendless, Maria is suspicious but grateful when Chet, a handsome and mysterious cowboy, comes to town and takes temporary employment on her ranch. Chet quickly becomes the one person she can trust, but headstrong Maria is determined not to lose her heart to a man who’s unwilling to settle down, especially one with a secret in his past. Readers will be disappointed by the shapeless plot and a heroine who talks a good game about being independent but lacks decisiveness and logic, spending much of her time yearning for a strong male shoulder to lean on.

January 22, 2018
Schmidt’s enjoyable fourth Last Chance Cowboys historical (after The Outlaw) has the unusual backdrop of tensions between cattle ranchers and sheep herders in the late-19th-century Arizona Territory. Beautiful and resilient Nell Stokes is doing her best to survive after unknown assailants killed her husband and left her to take care of their young son, Joshua, and run their sheep ranch alone. When nearby cattle rancher Trey Porterfield tries to befriend the young widow, she’s wary of him, but Trey is unlike the other cattle ranchers Nell has met. Soon she is attracted to the handsome rancher, whose kindness is as seductive as his powerful physique. Unable to resist Nell’s allure and hoping to help end the feud between the ranchers and herders, Trey asks Nell to marry him. After a too-brief period of relationship development, they make mutual declarations of love, and then Schmidt dives into nonstop action as Nell and Trey try to stop the fighting and maintain a solid marriage. Strong, well-developed characters fill the pages of this novel, which highlights both sizzling romance and the trials of the Old West. Agent: Natasha Kern, Natasha Kern Literary.