Review: WELCOME TO THE KOOKY TOWN OF JUBILEE,  MONTANA
Rating: 3 out of 5
Date: 06 27, 2014
Welcome to the quirky and one of a kind town of Jubilee, Montana that is filled to the rim with unique and original townsfolk. Once you enter, you will never want to leave!Prudence Worthington was married at 18 and widowed by 20, all do to the Civil War. She lived with her abusive mother-in-law and indifferent father-in-law after hubby's death, but she needed to break from her old life into a new one. With the help of her Uncle Edwin, she is 1 of the first women to enroll into the Lamere Business School and passes with higher scores than most of the men. Prudence decides to accept a job as a secretary to an inventor and professor in Montana, that her Uncle knows well. She takes off on her brave and courageous trek across the US, during the Civil War, to her new life.Professor Gerritt Rinehart is an inventor of all things mechanical. He became an inventor for the US government by accident in the war. When one of his commanding officers noticed that Gerritt modified his rifle to shoot one bullet after another, he was pulled from the field and now he designs many mechanical things to help the North to win this ugly death filled war. Gerritt is hopelessly unorganized and his office looks like a tornado plowed through it. He needs an organize secretary to pull him out of his Hades of an office and help him with deadlines and filling patents. She must be a plain woman because women are in shortage in Montana and he doesn't want to lose his secretary to marriage. He corresponds with his old professor's niece, Prudence, and hires her.Prudence is in Montana and looks at the metal thing that is spitting out steam and is told that this contraption is her transportation to the town of Jubilee. The tall and handsome man, Brandon, tells her it is called the Screaming Meemie and to straps herself in. She is taking on an 1863 screaming and laughing rollercoaster ride through the mountains. That is how this crazy madcap romance begins. Gerritt is on top a windmill and jumps off, with his trusty rubber bands attached, and meets his new secretary, as she schools him on his foolish behavior in front of the children. These two are like oil and water, but they must work together to dig his office out of Hades. As Prudence begins her new life in Jubilee, she is almost killed by a rattlesnake in the bathhouse and Garrett rescues a very naked Prudence. Now that Gerritt has seen her, in all her glory, he can't put the genie back into the bottle and begins to crave her.These two receive some much needed help from their fairy Godmother, Alma, Gerritt's housekeeper and busybody. She sprinkles them with her sugar and spice and watch them boil over more than once. Prudence never knew a man could make her feel so treasured and special. Gerritt is scared of falling in love and thinks LOVE will become an obstacle to his secret project, for the North. Prudence is almost injuried or killed more than once, spies are afoot, many toe curling kisses, thieves are searching for Gerritt's plans and will not mind killing for them, a scheming Alma, an afternoon picnic where their passions unleashed and a mysterious nemesis, who wants Prudence for himself. How will Prudence show Gerritt that love will make him stronger? Who wants to destroy their blooming love? Can Gerritt knock down the wall around his heart and let Prudence in? When will Gerritt and Prudence realize that they are the other one's half? How much trouble will Alma cook up?This book was a lot of firsts for me, like my first Civil War era romance in Montana and my first, but not last, adventure by Ms. Stone. She filled the small town of Jubilee with all walks of life, some characters I loved and some, I wanted to slap upside they heads. Prudence is woman born in the wrong era, but that didn't stop her from going after what she wants. Gerritt just lives in his cluttered and disorganized mind and would stayed there, if his housekeeper, Alma, didn't slap him upside his head on occasion. Alma was my favorite character because she reminded me of a Dowager Duchess with her scheming and telling you want to NEEDED to hear. I have read other steampunk books, but I got lost in the tech filled stories and this is the second steampunk book I have actually finished. Jubilee is in my book cosmos now and I can't wait to read Ms. Stone's next Jubilee tale. She earns a score of 3 fingers up and 8 toes for this madcap journey that is Prudence and Gerritt' s love story.NetGalley ARC given for my honest review.