Joe and Mariah could not be more different. Mariah is the typical city girl who cannot forgive her father for abandoning her mother and her for horses. Joe cannot understand why anyone would *not* like the Western life with its horses, sweat, and work. When Mariah's father, and Joe's good friend, passes away, Mariah must decide whether to keep the farm and bring her fathers' dream to fruition or return to what she knows -- the city.

The reader will most likely have a hard time connecting to the characters right away. Joe criticizes Mariah for not appreciating a father who abandoned her far too often and Mariah can come off as whiny. However, the reader will become acclimated to the characters and slowly come to like both of them. Although it might be hard to see how they come to develop a deeper relationship, at least the author did not indulge in the "insta love" that so many other romance books assume.

The plot itself was interesting. The reader will be able to see the appeal of farms and a different sort of life. Lori Wilde does a wonderful job describing the scenes and the characters so that the reader can literally picture them. Overall, many romance readers would probably enjoy THE COWBOY TAKES A BRIDE.