Review: Typical Mail-Order Plot
Rating: 3 out of 5
Date: 04 5, 2014
A MAIL ORDER BRIDE FOR CHARLIE by Carre White is an 89 page novella (minus front- and back-matter), though advertised as 174 pages.  It's the first book in a series of four total, one for each of the Carson brothers.  There are very few characters in this novella, some of whom will play a secondary role in the remaining 3 books, i.e., the four Carson boys' mother, and one Charlie's brothers, Grant, for whom the bride was intended, and the married woman Grant is messing around with (ICK!).This novella follows a very typical mail order bride plot.  Bride comes west because she has little choice.  Instead of being sent for by the groom himself, she's actually the victim of a deception, but everything works out as she falls in love with the right man for her.  I found the plot to be predictable, shallow, and absent of anything beyond the regular romance plot arc.  Sadly, much of the should-have-been-BIG turning points in the story were glossed over or happened "between the scenes," leaving me without an emotional investment in the characters.I was personally aggravated by the 1st person storytelling...in BOTH the hero and heroine's point of view.  It often took a couple of paragraphs before I knew point of view had switched OR to determine whose head I was in.Sensuality level: spicy.  It had been really quite clean up until the last 20%.  Interesting, because they're in the same house with his mother.  The story would've been BETTER, IMHO if it had remained G-rated.  Throwing in the sex scene(s) seemed unnecessary and gratuitous, did very little to show me they were in love (attracted, perhaps, but in love?....no.).Based upon so many rave reviews, the overall success of Ms White's books, and how long this series of four novellas has been in the top 100 of Western Romances and Historical Romances, I expected to really like this book, and had planned on purchasing others in the series upon completing this one (which I was fortunate enough to pick up for free when it was offered without charge on Amazon).  After reading it, I'm not so sure I'll bother with the rest of the series.  My reasons include: $2.99 is TOO HIGH for a 90 page novella I'm not desperate to read, the first book didn't captivate me, the first book didn't demand an emotional reaction, and with so many well-written mail-order bride romances out there, I'm thinking I'll spend my time elsewhere.