After six months in Kansas City Jess Poterfield has returned
to Whitman Falls, Arizona and his family's cattle ranch.
Needing a job he takes on the role of town Marshal in hopes
of uncovering the clues behind his father's death. However,
not long after returning home his childhood sweetheart,
Addie Wilcox, is charged with a crime she did not commit,
and now Jess must do everything he can to protect the small
town doctor, and possibly the love of his life.
THE LAWMAN is the second in Anna Schmidt's Where
the Trail
Ends series. Jess is a wonderful hero. I appreciate
that he
is flawed and imperfect, while also being kind-hearted. He
tries to do what is right, and his imperfections balance out
his personality and make him a well-rounded character. Addie
is a fiercely independent heroine, with a feisty and
stubborn streak. She is the type of heroine readers will
admire and fall in love with. She is focused on her career
as a doctor and loves helping people, and just like the
hero, she is a well-rounded and fully developed character.
Separately, I find the hero and heroine to be great
characters who I can connect with, however, they don't seem
to have much chemistry, and honestly after all their
fighting I was surprised they chose to marry. By the end of
the story I was hoping Jess and Addie would go their
separate ways.
The romance is steamy, but Jess and Addie seem to enjoy
fighting with one another, and while some might find this
builds tension, I thought their romance could have been
sweeter and more intimate. I was thrown out of the story a
few times when Jess thinks and says "damnnabit." I wish
Schmidt had just let Jess curse. The mystery behind Jess's
father's death, and the plot twist with Peal Tipton help to
move the plot along at a quick pace, and will keep readers
interested in the story. The little tidbits and clues
Schmidt places in the dialogue will have readers theorizing
about who the real antagonist is until the very end. The
setting is lively, and pictureseque, and readers will easily
be able to place themselves in the small Arizona cattle
town. THE LAWMAN is a fast-paced story with well-developed
characters, a sneaky antagonist, and a plot twist that will
leave readers speechless.
"This is me, Addie," Jess murmured. "You and me, the way we always were." But it wasn't, no matter how much she wished it were true. They were different now. She would always love him... But can she trust him not to break her heart? Jess Porterfield fled to the big city after his father's sudden death, leaving behind his family ranch-and his childhood sweetheart. Now Jess has returned as the local lawman, determined to prove his worth...and win back the one woman he could never live without. Young frontier doctor Addie Wilcox was devastated when Jess left her behind. Now he's back and it's difficult to remember why she should keep her distance. But with the town's richest man set to see her hang for a crime she didn't commit, Addie must put her faith in the lawman who broke her heart-and trust that together they'll find their second chance at love.
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