Although I am enjoying myself while reading this series, and like the whole "mail order husbands" concept, I found myself a little irritated at times by these ladies and their failure to let men help them and be interested in their opinions and ideas. In this story, although I liked Lacey Lyman, her attitude towards men annoyed me also. These books could be read as stand alone stories, but they do inter-relate with each other, so to get the full gist of what is going on, I recommend reading them in the order they were written.

Lacey Lyman is a young woman trying very hard to rebuild the town of Hope Falls, which went downhill when the mine collapsed in and killed many. Now she wants to turn it into a sawmill town and has the men to help her, who answered their ad for, "Godfearing men who want to marry and have joint ownership of a sawmill".

Chase Dustan, who is a "reclusive hunter", arrives in town to figure out how the mine collapsed and investigate whether it was an accident or on purpose. But it is hard to investigate when Lacey Lyman is around, always wanting to follow him and learn how to hunt. Or criticize him, or try to run his life. But in the end, they will both find strength from each other and also find a love strong and true. ( )

Wanted:

3 men, ages 24-35.
Must be God-fearing, healthy, hardworking single men with minimum of 3 years logging experience. Object: Marriage and joint ownership of sawmill.
Reply to Hope Falls, Colorado, postmaster by May 17

Braden Lyman convinced 4 women to invest in a Colorado mining town, Hope Falls. When the mining town suffers a tragic mine collapse, leaving Braden himself a victim now bedridden, the town itself is on the verge of collapse. The women who were in Charleston at the time, rush back to Hope Falls after learning Braden has miraculously survived, it's only to hear him denounce them as fools. Lacy, Braden's sister convinces the women that despite the mine collapse, she has an idea that could help the town recover. She proposes turning the mining town into a sawmill by buying up the surrounding land, but they need to hire men - and they need investors - or husbands and that is where the idea for the ad came into play. Little did the women imagine that these men would show up in person to apply not only for the job but for potential husbands as well.

Chase Dunstan, has tracked one of his former brother in laws, Robert Kane, to a jail cell to learn about his own brothers death in a mine collapse that left his sister, Laura now a widow using what little money there was as a settlement to start a new life. He has to know the answers to the reasons behind the collapse, the way it was handled afterward, what current plans pushed Braden to stay in Hope Falls and what did any of this have to do with the incredible ad. He believes that there is more to this collapse than what he knows and sets out to investigate in Hope Falls, when the ad arrives in the paper looking for experienced logging men/husbands. Might just be the perfect way to get to know the owners of the town and look for clues to what might have happened to his brother in law.

When he arrives in Hope Falls, Chase sees men being forced on to the train against their wishes to go. He also sees a man, Granger, who he used to work for three years back working as a guide through prospective timberland higher in the Rockies. Having Granger here in Hope Falls, the claim they're trying to build a sawmill gains credibility. Grangers know lumber like no other family in North America. But why were the men calling him Creed? These men were the rough customers who insulted ladies and brawled in the streets, and now caught fighting were being ordered to leave town on the next train out of Hope Falls.

What exactly was really going on in the town of Hope Falls and just what did the ladies behind the ad have to do with it all? You'll have to pick up a copy of Kelly Eileen Hake's novel, Tall, Dark and Determined to find out. This is the second book in the Husbands for Hire series and draws an interesting parallel on the mail order brides idea. This book does have a confusing start, but once you iron out the details of who is whom, you're off on a really great adventure. At times, it seems the story is a bit faced paced and I found myself going back to re-read parts of it again to clarify what I had missed. I would have preferred to see this one slow down a bit because the premise behind it all was a great reason to draw my initial interests in.

I received this novel compliments of Barbour Publishing and Net Galley for my honest review. Being a huge fan of the western romance genre I was hoping for a bit more than I got. However, I am determined not to give up on this series just yet. I rate this one a 3 out of 5 stars and look forward to picking up the first book in this series, to see if I may have missed something that would have aided me in understanding the story of these characters more. ( )

TALL,DARK,AND DETERMINED by Kelly Eileen Hake is an interesting inspirational historical romance set in Hope Falls. It is book 2 of the "Husbands For Hire",while it can be read as a stand alone, you really need to read book 1 first in order to understand the story better. See "Rugged and Relentless". "Tall, Dark, and Determined" is the story of Lacey Lyman and Chase Dunstan. Lacey is one of the women who owns Hope Falls and is one of the two women left looking for a husband.She is a chatter-box,when nervous,her brother owned the mine and was in a mining accident. While,Chase poses as a possible husband,and a hunter,he is the friend of one of the other women's fiance. He is really on the hunt to find out why the Hope Falls mine collapsed and his sister's husband was killed. Believing Lacey's brother may have had something to do with the collapse,he finds Lacey is more than she appears. "Tall,Dark, and Determined" is a story of love,forgiveness,determination,longing,danger,and faith. Received for an honest review from Net Galley and the publisher. Details can be found at Barbour Publishing and My Book Addiction and More/My Book Addiction Reviews.

RATING: 4

HEAT RATING: Sweet

REVIEWED BY: AprilR,My Book Addiction and More/My Book Addiction Reviews ( )

Don't like the way she writes!!!

Review:Tall, Dark, and Determined by Kelly Eileen Hake
5 stars
Lacey is smart, stuborn, good shot, wants to learn, young lady. I enjoyed her fighting for women's rights.
Decoy is a big well trained wolf hound. Wish my dogs as well trained.
Chase is looking to find the truth about the mine collasp, his brother's death the hurried sale of the mine and town. He is one of the best trappers,hunters around. He is quite and strong and willing to protect the women of the town.
The town of Hope Falls was a mining town and when the mine collasped killing most of the miners. One owner hurried sold the town and left.
Lacey was an investor of the mine and the town. She lived back east and when she thought her brother Braden Lyman was dead, then finding he survived but very injured. Lacey came up with a plan and talked her cousin, her brother's fiance and her sister to invest and go live in Hope Falls.
Lacey decided that to save the mining town to open up a saw mill. Lace bought out her brothers partner in the mine and town. Bought all the land she could and then wrote an ad saying. Want three single men with experience in logging to marry and start a saw mill and be part owners of the mill.
Two dozen men showed up in town for the prospect of marrying a rich wife.
In the previous book I believe Evie fell for Creed and now they wants to marry.
Evie's sister Cora Thompson was Braden's Fiancee. Braden trapped in bed tries to break up with Cora and send all the women back east. Cora is not letting Braden off the hook on marrying her.
Naomi was the oldest at 27 and Lacy's cousin.
They all agreed with Lacey's plan and were looking for men to help then and marry them. Lacey just turned 18, So could get controll of her money, with Braden hurt badly she took controll over his property, Sold their family home to move to Hope Falls to save the town and help her brother get well. Women at the time could not be property owners. They were not paying the loggers for their help. They provided good food and the chance to marry one of three women and become part owners of the mill.
I enjoyed reading of about the four women who came to a mining town and were going to own and turn it now to logging town. Would love to read more books to find out what happens next in Hope Falls.
Its a clean and old fashioned romance novel. I was given this ebook to read in exchange for honest review from Netgalley. ( )