The Bequest (The Birch Creek Ranch Series #1) by B. E. Baker

 

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Category: Adult
Genre: Women's Fiction, Romance
Content: Clean

 

Two widows, six kiddos, and a will that leaves them a massive cattle ranch, but only if they work it for a year.

Abigail and Amanda may have married brothers, but they have almost nothing else in common (and really, they never did get along very well). After their husbands both pass away within a year of one another, they have no reason to interact. Their connection drops to an awkward phone call on birthdays and an exchange of holiday cards.

Until an eccentric uncle of their husbands' leaves a massive cattle ranch to the women's minor children. . . if they work the ranch themselves. A ranch that's located near a small town on the Wasatch front that isn’t too keen on outsiders.

They're both going to turn the bequest down, clearly. It’s not like either of them could properly raise their kids or find love again in a backwater province like Birch Creek. But when things at home change dramatically—for both moms—they decide to give it a try. . . just for the summer.

What could possibly go wrong in a mere three months? (Or more importantly... what might go right?)

 

After reading Bridget's Finding Home series I was looking forward to seeing what other adult books she would come up with, and let me tell you, The Bequest did not disappoint me. I thoroughly enjoyed this book! It's contemporary women's fiction with romance, set mostly on a ranch. Just like her finding series, it reads very much like a Hallmark type movie, but it also has more depth to it than that.

One of my favorite things about Bridget's writing is the way she writes such nuanced characters. In the beginning, both Abigail and Amanda had things about their personalities that I disliked. There were also some things that I did like, but I wondered how I would feel about them over the course of the whole book. This is also why the book pulled me in, because as always, Bridget was able to show me different sides of these characters, and I was able to like them despite their flaws. They felt real, and if they had been perfect they wouldn't have. 

I enjoyed getting the different perspectives of both of the ladies in this book and how it showed that we don't always know what's behind the actions of others, and what life has been like for them. There was one part that I thought illustrated this really well, where Amanda thinks Abigail has given her the master bedroom for a not so good reason, but then we learn from Abigail's perspective that it wasn't that reason at all. There are so many times that we as humans make assumptions about other people that are wrong, and this made me examine the many times I may have done this. I'm trying to do better and always give the benefit of the doubt others, even though sometimes it's not easy.

I enjoyed the growth of the characters in this book and reading about how they were able to make changes to their lives and let go of some preconceived notions about each other, and also about other things as well, and I'm looking forward to reading the rest of the series. I highly recommend if you enjoy women's fiction, contemporary romance, or light family drama reads.

Thanks to the author for providing me with an ARC of this book.