Trigger Warnings
Publisher
Series
Book #
Point of View
Length
Found a trope you love? → Tap it to explore more ❤️
Narrators
Narration Type
The mercantile owner’s eccentric daughter is known for being bad at everything, so how could she possibly win enough votes to become mayor?
When Raven Owens volunteers at the school, she makes the mistake of telling the girls they can do anything they put their minds to. When a student challenges that assertion by daring her to run for mayor, what choice does she have? Running for office will likely get her laughed clean out of the territory, but when has ridicule ever stopped her before?
Panicked over Raven running for mayor, the town council nominates Bowen McGill to run against her. Bo has no interest in becoming a politician like his disgraced father, but Raven cares more about the town than the men queuing up to run against her. If Bo stays on the ballot to keep worse men from running, she might have a chance to be heard. However, she’d never forgive him if he won—and for some reason, that thought bothers him far more than the possibility of ending up with a job he doesn’t want.
Long-held grudges, unexpected attraction, and a scheming town council make it difficult for these two to decide if they’d prefer to win the race—or each other’s hearts.
Everyone has a special talent yet Raven Owens had yet to discover hers. She can’t cook, can’t sew and has yet to prove herself to her parents as a reliable clerk in their mercantile. This was enough to get a girl down but she was willing to try anything to find her strengths. When a temporary positon as the town teacher came up, she applied. The town council doubled she was up to the task, yet nobody else came forth to apply. It became apparent that what she lacked in domestic talents she made up for with good ideas to improve her school and encourage her students. Spurred on by her students, she decided to throw her hat into the mayoral election. Wyoming was a forward thinking territory and in 1885, women could vote and there was even a territory with a woman mayor!
The town council wasn’t having Raven for mayor. The town had been without a mayor since Mayor McGill was run out of office for his lawless ways. They tried everything to discourage her campaign but she was determined to run, albeit with little support from her parents or other townsfolk.
Bo McGill, handsome and good at just about everything he put his hand to, was back in town and quickly unsettled Raven at nearly every turn. He seemed to be everywhere. He was the son of the late, disgraced former mayor. He worked hard to right his father’s bad deeds and establish his own good name and integrity far from that of his father. The town council decided he was the best candidate to beat Raven. He wanted no part of being mayor after his father’s disgrace and assurance from the council it would be a job in name only. He could just rubber stamp their decisions. Undeterred by his willingness to run, the council still put his name on the ballot.
Raven and Bo went way back to their school days when he cheated her out of a win at the school spelling bee. Imagine her chagrin when he showed up to teach math and did so quite well. Everywhere she turned, he showed up. Even as a rival in the campaign for mayor.
Rivals can often be on the opposite spectrum of feelings. Along the way, they both faced issues that determined their outcome. She found courage and strength. He too found a new type of courage and the realization that he was very unlike his father. I enjoyed this book, a book about resilience and love. When we look beyond our feelings, we often find some of the best parts of our lives. Melissa captured the Raven and Bo many people can identify with. To find oneself, it is good to reach out and learn about the world and its wonder.
Loved Raven’s story. A great read with plenty of plot twists and turns with mystery, faith and Romance – what more could you want? Can’t wait for the next in the series. This is the type of series one can reread as it’s very detailed and easy to miss the small details on first reading.
Wooing the Rival is much more than a Christian Historical Romance. It’s also a blend of mystery “who-done-it,” western adventure shoot-out, and political corruption. I was impressed by how much the author packed into this story!
A central theme is the feeling of inadequacy or negative, defeated, thinking. This is expressed through multiple characters due to past experiences and negative comments made to them that they internalized. Throughout the book, the author strives to show that trust in God can overcome such negative thinking.
Sub themes are showing respect to each other and standing up for values you believe in.
I found the book to be a real page-turner.
Thank you to the author for providing an ebook for review. All opinions are my own.
Romance – PG / kissing
Language – Clean
Themes – feelings of inadequacy and trusting God, Respect, Personal Values, Gossip
Violence – Gunfire in shoot-out
My rating – 5 stars
Stop guessing — find books that actually match your preferences
Filter by intimacy level, tropes, and more in seconds
2,700+ books • Filter by exact content levels • Built for closed door readers
Publisher
Series
Book #
Point of View
Length
Narrator(s)
Narration Type
Found a trope you love? → Tap it to explore more ❤️
This guide helps readers understand the content of this book.
Click the ⓘ icons to see how each level is defined.
Trigger Warnings
The mercantile owner’s eccentric daughter is known for being bad at everything, so how could she possibly win enough votes to become mayor?
When Raven Owens volunteers at the school, she makes the mistake of telling the girls they can do anything they put their minds to. When a student challenges that assertion by daring her to run for mayor, what choice does she have? Running for office will likely get her laughed clean out of the territory, but when has ridicule ever stopped her before?
Panicked over Raven running for mayor, the town council nominates Bowen McGill to run against her. Bo has no interest in becoming a politician like his disgraced father, but Raven cares more about the town than the men queuing up to run against her. If Bo stays on the ballot to keep worse men from running, she might have a chance to be heard. However, she’d never forgive him if he won—and for some reason, that thought bothers him far more than the possibility of ending up with a job he doesn’t want.
Long-held grudges, unexpected attraction, and a scheming town council make it difficult for these two to decide if they’d prefer to win the race—or each other’s hearts.
Everyone has a special talent yet Raven Owens had yet to discover hers. She can’t cook, can’t sew and has yet to prove herself to her parents as a reliable clerk in their mercantile. This was enough to get a girl down but she was willing to try anything to find her strengths. When a temporary positon as the town teacher came up, she applied. The town council doubled she was up to the task, yet nobody else came forth to apply. It became apparent that what she lacked in domestic talents she made up for with good ideas to improve her school and encourage her students. Spurred on by her students, she decided to throw her hat into the mayoral election. Wyoming was a forward thinking territory and in 1885, women could vote and there was even a territory with a woman mayor!
The town council wasn’t having Raven for mayor. The town had been without a mayor since Mayor McGill was run out of office for his lawless ways. They tried everything to discourage her campaign but she was determined to run, albeit with little support from her parents or other townsfolk.
Bo McGill, handsome and good at just about everything he put his hand to, was back in town and quickly unsettled Raven at nearly every turn. He seemed to be everywhere. He was the son of the late, disgraced former mayor. He worked hard to right his father’s bad deeds and establish his own good name and integrity far from that of his father. The town council decided he was the best candidate to beat Raven. He wanted no part of being mayor after his father’s disgrace and assurance from the council it would be a job in name only. He could just rubber stamp their decisions. Undeterred by his willingness to run, the council still put his name on the ballot.
Raven and Bo went way back to their school days when he cheated her out of a win at the school spelling bee. Imagine her chagrin when he showed up to teach math and did so quite well. Everywhere she turned, he showed up. Even as a rival in the campaign for mayor.
Rivals can often be on the opposite spectrum of feelings. Along the way, they both faced issues that determined their outcome. She found courage and strength. He too found a new type of courage and the realization that he was very unlike his father. I enjoyed this book, a book about resilience and love. When we look beyond our feelings, we often find some of the best parts of our lives. Melissa captured the Raven and Bo many people can identify with. To find oneself, it is good to reach out and learn about the world and its wonder.
Loved Raven’s story. A great read with plenty of plot twists and turns with mystery, faith and Romance – what more could you want? Can’t wait for the next in the series. This is the type of series one can reread as it’s very detailed and easy to miss the small details on first reading.
Wooing the Rival is much more than a Christian Historical Romance. It’s also a blend of mystery “who-done-it,” western adventure shoot-out, and political corruption. I was impressed by how much the author packed into this story!
A central theme is the feeling of inadequacy or negative, defeated, thinking. This is expressed through multiple characters due to past experiences and negative comments made to them that they internalized. Throughout the book, the author strives to show that trust in God can overcome such negative thinking.
Sub themes are showing respect to each other and standing up for values you believe in.
I found the book to be a real page-turner.
Thank you to the author for providing an ebook for review. All opinions are my own.
Romance – PG / kissing
Language – Clean
Themes – feelings of inadequacy and trusting God, Respect, Personal Values, Gossip
Violence – Gunfire in shoot-out
My rating – 5 stars
Stop guessing — find books that actually match your preferences
Filter by intimacy level, tropes, and more in seconds
2700+ books • Filter by exact content levels • Built for closed door readers
Level 1
Level 2
Level 3
Level 0 — None
Level 1 — Minimal
Level 2 — Moderate
Level 3 — Heavy
Zero
Mild
Moderate
Severe
Zero
Mild
Moderate
Severe