Review: I wanted to LOVE it; in one word-- DISAPPOINTED.
Rating: 3 out of 5
Date: 04 18, 2014
MAIL ORDER MINX: FOUNTAIN OF LOVE (Brides of Beckham) by Kirsten Osborne is the first of the Fountain of Love Series books that I've read, though I've already purchased several.  Something about the purported magical or whimsical element of a wishing well appeals to me, and I genuinely adore mail order bride romances.  I also have several other books by Kirsten Osborne waiting in my TBR cue.  This one-hour read seemed just right for tonight.The novella runs 61 pages (minus front-matter).  I was surprised at the typos scattered throughout (dropped letters, dropped words inconsistent formatting, misuse of apostrophes); Ms. Osborne has published many books and because of that experience, I anticipated a cleanly edited read-- if not by herself, than at least through her Beta Readers or an editor.  I found myself lost with the frequent (often every other paragraph) head-hopping...his point of view to her point of view to a secondary character's point of view all within a single page of text.  Not my favorite writing style.  I far prefer a deep point of view that is consistent and allows me to experience a character's personality and emotional reactions, choices and dilemmas.  Because of the constant head-hopping I never connected with the heroine and found her often to be solidly in the TSTL (too stupid to live) category.  Frankly, this read was a letdown.  The "Fountain of Love" played next to no role in the story.THE GOOD:~ quirky heroine who was far from perfect (yet her constant self-talk about how wonderful a woman she is chafed after about the 3rd mention)~ a fun sense of small-town Idaho Territory with community that cared about each other~ a sweet hero that was easy to like~ a hopeful ending (as the genre expects)Sensuality level: PG-13 (foreplay, sexual play that skipped over the 'act')Language: PG (nothing crass or overtly offensive)It's a huge disappointment to me, personally, to have so many books by this author already purchased and waiting....and having, now, so little desire to read them.  This book is #12 or #13 in a series...her most recently published, I believe....thus, the other books I have waiting are older, thus likely even less well crafted (as writers often only get better and better).