A Match for Althia

A Match for Althia is a sweet mail-order bride novella. Althia wanted to marry but had not found anyone in her home town, nor did she feel needed/wanted in her father’s house any longer. She definitely ‘came’ from money. I loved that she talked with her father before setting out to leave and marry Diego. Althia ‘fit’ the description Diego wanted in a wife, but she turned out to be so much more.

I thoroughly enjoyed their brief story and would have enjoyed more development. They came to care for each other quickly. She a ‘lady’ and Diego quite the handsome gentleman were perfect for each other.

Thank you to Netgalley for the opportunity to read and review this book. This is a really great story that held my attention from page one. I have recently discovered the historical mail order bride books and I really enjoy reading them to learn more about history.

The year is 1874. It is April in Chicago.

Instantly you will be on Miss Althia Heathley’s side and hoping her father’s new wife trips herself — any place, anywhere but preferably at the top of a long flight of stairs. Althia’s life had been miserable since her father remarried and it only took four months. And when she isn’t miserable, she is bored. Oh, she makes up stories in her head for the novel she wants to write, but her life is a “prison”. Which is why she secretly responded to an advertisement in her father’s discarded newspaper.

Her father is a wealthy (note the underscore) Chicago hog baron; Althia wants for nothing monetarily. Until her father remarried, Althia took care of the business dinners, parties, gatherings, meetings with new clients. His new wife has taken over. Fired all the staff and hired new. (Enjoy their incompetent moments.) And father doesn’t seem to notice. (Sigh, sometimes men are clueless.)

But when the new wife, Mayda (snarl, boo, hiss), tells Althia to wear a low-cut dress to a dinner party and be “nice” not just “polite” to Reginald Stanfield… When the new butler invades her room…

Enter Diego Roldan now living in Denver, Colorado; raised in north New Mexico Territory. Diego has sent for a bride who knows what Althia knows. Diego wants to expand his leather business; his last business dinner was a disaster. Of course, he forgets to include the new wife needs to be able to cook.

Diego was a bounty hunter before he became a leather worker. And one of the men he captured escaped… You will like this part. Trust me.

I enjoyed this novella immensely. It is complete. No rushed, you turn the page, and it says, “The End”. The characters are fun. The pacing is well, perfect. A quick and completely entertaining read. Two minor things the author included that deserve acknowledgment: 1) Althia’s favorite author is Rhoda Broughton who was a real writer in that period. 2) Hot chocolate made with Baker’s cocoa. I grew up with Baker’s cocoa in the kitchen. A quick history search and Baker’s cocoa began in 1764 in Dorchester, Massachusetts by Dr. James Baker. This reviewer appreciates a writer who checks these things before inserting them.

"A Match for Althia" is #7 in the "Marianne’s Mail Order Brides" series. I had not read any of the previous six books. In fact, I had not read this author before. No problem; this novella can be read as a standalone. And I will be reading more by this author.

I received a complimentary e-ARC* copy of "A Match for Althia" from the publisher, Backlit PR, via NetGalley. A positive review was not required; the opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own.

Rating: 5 stars.
Cover rating: Very nice. But the book made her a big deal of her “Chicago” socialite dresses, I’d like to have seen that somewhere on the cover.
Series & number: Marianne’s Mail Order Brides, #7.
Pages: 123.
Publish date: September 5, 2021.

#AMatchForAlthia #LindaCarrollBradd #NetGalley
e-ARC* — electronic Advanced Reader Copy.

A Match for Althia was a gently told story of the American West through the eyes of Miss Althea Heathley and Diego Rordan. Diego was a former bounty hunter whom now owned a business making leather goods in Colorado. He had plenty of jobs that kept him busy, but he was still lonely. He applied to a matchmaking service for a wife and Althia responded.

Life in Chicago with her wealthy widowed father did not prepare her when he brought home a new wife. Althia soon realized she needed to look for love elsewhere. The only way to do this was to go out on her own using proper channels, of course.

The growing attraction between Diego and Althia was a delight to watch. I enjoyed that Diego respected her enough to give her time to adjust to their ‘instant marriage’. I love it when a man wants a woman and will do everything in his power to win her heart.

*Sigh.* This was one time I wished a novella was a full-length story.

Thank you to NetGalley, Inked Figments and Linda Carroll-Bradd for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This was definitely a sweet Westrrn romance. The story was very nice.
The heroine is a well to do society lady who is having clashes with her step mother. So she decided to become a mail order bride. She is used to living in a mansion in Chicago with her father and servants. But she becomes a mail order bride to leather worker. The hero is also an ex bounty hunter. The hero did not tell this to the heroine when they were wed and the first hour of marriage, he is being confronted by his past?
This story was one of acceptance and learning how to deal with a different environment. The story dwelled on the couple mostly, with some action thrown in since he was a bounty hunter with a past. Thw story is short, but I still read every word from start to finish. This book is why people read romances. I recommend reading with 5 stars.

I want to thank Netgalley and the author for gifting me the ebook. A great women fiction novel. Love the cover.