Book review: A Chance at Love by Beverly Jenkins

Loreli Winters never imagined she'd end up a "mail-order bride" in middle-of-nowhere Kansas -- until the two adorable orphan nieces of a dusky dream named Jake Reed beg her to be their new "mama." And one look at the dark, devastatingly handsome man is enough to entice her to abandon her California plans and stay put for a while in this one-horse frontier town.

Strong, sensible Jake was hoping for a wife to help him raise his girls, but Loreli may be more than he can handle. He can't stop wondering what it would be like to hold the fiery enchantress close and kiss her deeply. Surely he could never compete with the sophisticated gents she has known, yet he intends to try. But will his honest passion be enough to take a chance on a long-shot called love?

This was another ebook downloaded during the shocking B&N free ebook dump of last year. I had read of Beverly Jenkins, an iconic Black historical romance novel author, in an article about the historical romance genre, so I was pleased to nab this book. I read it in late February for Black History Month. 

Loreli is your typical Headstrong Tempestuous Heroine™ who is independent and doesn't need a man. She's stunningly gorgeous and turns heads wherever she goes, all the men want her, etc. Jake is your typical Good Steady Man hero who is also kind of a stick in the mud and Disapproves of the heroine's behavior. Loreli ends up in this farming community (which sounds like it's mostly Black?) because the train she's on took mail-order brides there (she decidedly isn't one but is happy for the women she befriended, who've all made good matches). She plans to go on to California for the adventure but then meets two adorable 9 year old twin girls who ask her to be their mama. They're orphaned and being raised by their single uncle Jake, a hog farmer-slash-unofficial vet who is single and gorgeous. 

Loreli has no plans of being tied down, but the adorable girls win her heart. Jake doesn't think Loreli is wife material (she makes her living by gambling and wears flashy fashions, plus the headstrong thing), but the girls love her and they really do need a mama. Loreli and Jake agree to marry and mother for a year, until he finds a more suitable wife. What with divorce not being a thing, I don't know why they thought getting married would be a good idea if it was only supposed to be temporary, but whatever. L&J are super attracted to each other (Loreli is the experienced one, while Jake has never been with a woman). They learn about and start to respect each other, reluctantly falling in love as their arrangement is supposed to be temporary and love isn't supposed to come into it. Then disaster strikes on their wedding day...

The story and characters are tropey, but I liked this book. It's a very solid example of its genre and achieves what it sets out to do. I liked that Loreli is 35 and Jake is perhaps a little younger; it's a nice change from the "18 year old girl + mid-thirties man" pairing you get a lot in this genre (looking at you, Georgette Heyer). Both characters are settled into who they are, but they help each other grow. Jenkins is a skilled writer and I'd definitely read more by her. A friend who read a different BJ book told me she was a librarian, so that's probably why she's such a good writer. Her setting felt researched and rooted in history. Jake is a union man, and has to deal with both political parties giving African Americans the runaround despite promises made during/right after the Civil War (this book is set in 1884). Jenkins includes some of the history she mentions in the story in her author's note, as well as suggested sources for further reading on the topic of labor unions and African Americans. Love that! Hell yeah unions and librarians. 

Overall, this is a good, interesting and steamy historical romance novel about two people learning to parent and overcome their childhood wounds. I recommend it for anyone who likes this genre. 

Score: ★★★★ out of 5 stars
Spice score: 🌶🌶
Read in: February 25
From: B&N Nook

Genres/classification: historical romance

Representation: African American/Black, poor, Loreli is biracial (Black and white), rural Midwestern; Black female author

Tropes (spoiler-y): that thing I already mentioned where she's headstrong and tempestuous and he's like >:( about it, opposites attract, experienced heroine, virgin hero; one of them's uninhibited about sex and the other's repressed, good man who keeps his word (she find that hot), marriage of convenience, "it's only a temporary arrangement", catching feelings during a practical arrangement, instant family (kinda), "I'm just here for the children", that Maria/Captain Von Trapp vibe. you know what I mean, "I can't fall in love with them because this is a temporary arrangement/he's going to find someone else", this house needs a woman's touch, that thing where a rich person solves everyone else's problems with money, someone from a character's past appears, someone objects during the wedding after "speak now or forever hold your peace", "I must leave in order to protect those I love, because while I'm with them, they're in danger", surprise pregnancy trope. This pairing has Taming of the Shrew vibes but luckily she's never tamed, he just gets over himself and goes along with her

Trigger warnings: racism, murder, kidnapping, sex shaming/whorephobia, a character was raped as a young teen (past, not described), extortion/ransom, past parent death, trauma, a character has a phobia of horses due to seeing someone be killed by a horse, an adult verbally abuses children and threatens them with corporal/physical punishment, sexism, terrible judgy pastor, religious abuse, past financial abuse if you squint, infidelity mentions, betrayal, corruption