Left At The Altar is the first book in the “Match Made In Texas” trilogy by this author and this ARC is one of the backlogged books on Netgalley. I am super close to 100%, like 98% so I am trying to get through all fo those forgotten books that I didn’t even download and do a review for them. Thankfully this author’s book are at my library through the Libby app and I was able to find the audiobook for this title. I have been curious about this author’s work, I simple adore western romances especially books set in the wild west. I love the pioneer feel to them, and the sense of crafting something new in a very wild and rugged atmosphere. I will first mention the heat in this book is low….its more on the level of inspirational romance style. So it is more fade to black and/or wholesome level. I do not mind this in books but I didn’t realize this author wrote with this level of heat.

Left At The Altar is a story that literally begins with that setup. Our heroine, Meg Lockwood, is about to be married to the son of her father’s enemy. This wedding will be a way to bridge the gap between the two fathers and mend some bridges and the brutal feud that causes so much splitting loyalties in the town. But then her fiancee breaks it off on the wedding day to pursue his dreams of traveling and admitting his feelings for her aren’t what they should be. But her father is furious over it and files a lawsuit against her ex-fiancee and Meg is torn about it. Because while she feels humiliated by the experience, she also doesn’t want to force him into a marriage he doesn’t want and he is a friend and knows his family couldn’t ever pay the 10,000 dollars demanded in the lawsuit. But what she doesn’t expect is to attract the attention of a lawyer, Grant Garrison, who has been hired to defend the groom in the case. A match between them currently is forbidden and would force another scandal that Meg doesn’t need currently as she is always fighting the current one of being ruined in the eyes of town. But there are secrets that are building this rivalry…..ones that could destroy people Meg care about. Will the secrets that become revealed destroy or unite the town? And will Grant and Meg find a way to be together in ways that will work with her family and the scandal?

Left At The Altar was actually a story I liked, and while I didn’t love it like I was expecting to, it was a nice distraction. It didn’t have the powerful sexual heat or chemistry I have become used to in westerns, so I had to re-adjust to it since its been a while since I have read a fade to black. But I did enjoy seeing their connection. I will say that there wasn’t that much focus on their romance as I would have liked, so it’s a mix of historical fiction and historical romance. I did quite enjoy the setup of the story, and there are many other factors that come into play other than the romance itself, there is such a quirky drama plot going about involving the feud and I found it so intriguing and I didn’t expect the reason revealed to be the EXACT reason that is revealed. It was so low in my expectations but sometimes I guess we humans blow little things out of proportions but I did enjoy seeing the build-up to the reveal and see the after-effects of it. The romance itself was intriguing, soft and gentle, and not too much conflict despite it being a forbidden theme to their relationship. The angst felt low even though on the surface its not. Not sure if this is a product of the author’s intention or just by happenstance, but it made it easy to cruise through this book without getting too involved emotionally.

Overall I found Left At The Altar to be a low steam, sweet romance with quirky moments, laughter, a town feud, and some unique surprises along the way to keep you invested….. A WARM SOLID ROMANCE TO BE ENDEARED TO.

I have long enjoyed Margaret Brownley's books. Western historical romances are not my usual bill of fare; but she has such a competent voice and I enjoy the way her personality shows through. They are light, sure, but Brownley is such a professional that she slips in interesting tidbits about her country's history during a tumultuous and exciting time.

There's a jilted bride, there are two warring suitors, and all plays out in action, banter and repartee that might very well work as a stage comedy.

But there is also a lot of heart

This is the beginning of another trilogy by a long-time favorite author. Brownley manages to combine a bit of the Old West with quirky characters, romance and an all-around great read. Characters will make you smile and this is a suitable, clean, light western, historical romance.

I really enjoyed reading this book and loved seeing how the characters interacted. It was funny seeing the feuding and small town actions. It made me want to be on the sidelines watching to see how everything came out. Great read , can't wait for book 2. I enjoyed it so much that I purchased it as well.

This book opens up in a small Texas town that has a feud between to jewelers and the standard of time. Now hoping to put an end to this with a wedding the bride is tired of waiting for the groom to show up goes looking for him. She finds him and he tells her he can’t go through with it and it is not her fault but his, and then does the manly thing and leaves town so she can be the one to tell everyone that the wedding is off. This of course does not end the feud only enhances it. Her father sues on breach of contract and the man who witnessed what went on between the two of them Grant new to town takes her case really to get to know Meg, after finding out that his sister had passed away before he arrived during child birth. There is a lot going for a story sent in the 1880’s and the author does a good job with having characters from the town give their opinion asked or not. You also feel for Meg because she is torn not wanting to sue Tom because they grew up together and though they are not together she still cares about him, but her father is about the way it looks and for the time period I understand that as well. A good story.

Really good book. I enjoyed the characters and their feuds. I would gladly recommend this book.

“Feuds don’t need no reason. Or at least none that matter.”
The year is 1880. The place, Two-Time, Texas, a town filled with gun-toting opinionated people with short fuses. In best-selling author Margaret Brownley’s opening book in her A Match Made in Texas series, Romeo and Juliet gets turned on its head and thoroughly (and delightfully) “western”-ized.
Meg Lockwood and Tommy Farrell have been friends all their life. Children of feuding jewelers who seek to control the town by imposing their own time zones, their wedding was supposed to broker a much sought temporal compromise that goes up in flames when Tommy jilts Meg at the altar.
The sole witness to her humiliation, Grant Garrison, an East Coast lawyer who has recently moved to Two-Time after the tragic death of his sister. Enchanted by Meg’s beauty and courage, Grant nonetheless agrees to represent Tommy in a breach of promise suit filed by meg’s furious father.
Despite their constant run-ins and instant mutual attraction, Grant stays away from Meg and is the perfect foil to the crazy Texans he’s surrounded by. Despite his staid demeanour, there are flashes of wit and a wicked sense of humour. Meg, on the other hand, was a romance heroine I had difficulty warming up to. At first, her thinking seemed provincial and mired in outdated societal mores like propriety and obedience. However, as the story progressed, however, and Meg herself started questioning the roles women are required to play throughout their lifetime (and the alternate ways they can wield power in the absence of political rights) gave the novel a much appreciated proto-feminist bent.
I haven’t read a lot of “clean” romances and it took me over 150 pages to realize that Left at the Altar was one of them. Ms Brownley managed to adequately convey the chemistry between the protagonists, though it is my personal belief that romance could have been developed a tad better. There were a lot of parallel story-lines which left little room for the romance to blossom independently.
The breach of promise suit proves to be a very interesting plot device and also ends up being quite educational through the nuanced arguments made in court and the author’s note at the end of the story. The feud angle felt a bit contrived to me in the beginning but the twisted revolution towards the end proved to be a satisfying explanation. Ms Brownley does a marvelous job of fleshing out her secondary characters and many remain memorable.
Ms Brownley’s Left at the Altar is a fun opener for her A Match Made in Texas series, incorporating socially conscious historical fiction with good, clean romance.

Left at the Altar, by Margaret Brownley is a humorous historical romance filled with engaging characters and plenty of feuds.

In 1880, the small town of Two-Times, Texas is aptly named, since the townspeople follow two different times. These specific times are based on the town's two watch shops and the corresponding shop owners, who are locked in an ongoing feud. The town is essentially a character itself with the quirky townspeople involved in various feuds, particularly regarding time.

The time feud that is dividing the town of Two-Times is supposed to end with the wedding that doesn't happen.

At the beginning of the story, Meg Lockwood is ready to marry her childhood best friend, until she's left at the altar, as the title indicates. Meg's father (one of the town's watch shop owners) decides to sue the former fiance, whose father is the other watch shop owner, for jilting his daughter at the altar.

As a newcomer to Two-Times and a qualified lawyer, Grant Garrison is the opposing attorney in the jilted bride case. As the story unfolds, Grant and Meg are continually brought together in unusual circumstances, and they start to fall for each other.

As the first book in A Match Made in Texas series, Left at the Altar is an enjoyable book geared more towards women readers, particularly those who enjoy reading slow building, clean romance stories.


Note: I received this book from NetGalley, which is a program designed for bloggers to write book reviews in exchange for books, yet the opinions expressed in this review are my own.

Meg is left at the alter and then has to deal with her father bringing a lawsuit against her former fiancee. In the meantime, Meg meets Grant who ends up being the lawyer on the other side of her lawsuit. Although attracted to each other, with the lawsuit in place they can't do anything about it.

With many misunderstandings and help from the many crazy town and family members, Meg and Grant finally find their way to their HEA. I enjoyed reading this story. The interactions between Meg's family and between the crazy members of the town kept me delighted until the very end. You should definitely pick up this light hearted read.

I look forward to reading the next story in the series, A Match Made in Texas, which is Amanda's (Meg's sister) story.