Review: A story of survival and determination
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 11 4, 2013
I picked this book up as a romance, but it's really not. It's the tale of a young, beautiful woman who survives in the inhospitable environment of a timber town in the Western mountains.  Many men desire her after her husband takes off following a knife fight, but her caring is reserved for those in need. First, she finds out that her husband had a child, a half wild preteen who no one seems to care for, but who has endless curiosity and spirit and takes her in. Next, it's the preacher's half demented mother whom she starts visiting. Then she finds the neglected and abused children of an injured company man whose wife died, and she comes to care for them. Slowly she finds work and friends in the town her husband never wanted her to visit, and they come to know and respect her in return.Mae Rose was a model of what I imagine a woman had to be to live in the environment in which she did. She was hard working, practical, compassionate but not a sucker, smart with a little bit of knowledge about a little bit of everything, and a great judge of people. By holding her head high in the face of adversity, she showed that she respected herself and she really forced people to respect her also. Not an easy task for a woman alone.Heat factor mild.