Review: A Tailor-Made Bride by Karen Witemeyer

Jericho "J.T." Tucker wants nothing to do with Coventry, Texas's new dressmaker. He's all too familiar with her kind--shallow women more devoted to fashion than true beauty. Yet, except for her well-tailored clothing, this seamstress is not at all what he expected. Hannah Richards is confounded by the man who runs the livery. The unsmiling fellow riles her with his arrogant assumptions and gruff manner while at the same time stirring her heart with unexpected acts of kindness. Which side of Jericho Tucker reflects the real man?


If I saw this book in the bookstore, I'd pick it up because of the title and cover. I loved them. It was great getting between the pages and realizing that the outside reflects the inside.
Karen Witemeyer's debut historical romance is a sweet, humorous story that I enjoyed reading. The heroine Hannah is both funny and smart and I liked J.T.'s gruffness. Even though the plot felt a little on the predictable side to me, the characters were awesome. One of my favorite parts is when Hannah uses J.T.'s real name to rile him. He deserved it, don't worry. :-)
I think Witemeyer did a great job with characterization in this book, and I also liked how she worked some biblical truth into the story without being preachy.
I'd like to get the story out there, so if you'd like to read it, leave a comment and I'll hold a drawing.

You can find Witemeyer at her website which has all sorts of cool links. Keep an eye out for her next story, which sports an equally adorable cover!

Comments

Terri Tiffany said…
I love the cover and that she uses humor too:) How nice to share about her debut book!
June 25, 2010 at 8:09 AM
Linda Kage said…
Wonderful review. I probably would've bought it for the blurb alone! Thanks.
June 25, 2010 at 8:32 AM
patti said…
Thanks for introducing me to a new book AND writer.

Blessings,
Patti
June 25, 2010 at 9:11 AM
Sherrinda Ketchersid said…
I love this cover and it looks like it would be a great read! Nice review!
June 25, 2010 at 11:05 AM
Dara said…
I saw this earlier and it looks interesting. I sometimes hesitate to read the Christian romances though because they can be a little preachy and predictable. However this one sounds like it could be different.
June 25, 2010 at 11:30 AM
Lisa Jordan said…
I interviewed Karen for the ACFW's ezine, Afictionado--My First Sale column. I loved getting to know more about her and her story. Now I can't wait to read the book. :)
June 25, 2010 at 1:50 PM
Nancy said…
Looks like a good book. I choose books by the cover, too. When I saaw the title and the beautiful blue on "Peace Like A River" I had to have it.
June 25, 2010 at 4:22 PM
Lynda R Young as Elle Cardy said…
great review. I'll have to keep my eye out for this one :)
June 25, 2010 at 8:16 PM
Susan J. Reinhardt said…
Hi Jess -

I love the hero's name, Jericho. My mind kept thinking, Jeremiah/Jeremy. Hmm, I guess Hannah made his emotional walls come tumbling down. :)

Blessings,
Susan
June 26, 2010 at 8:14 PM
Angie Muresan said…
I would pick that one up too, just on title and cover alone.
June 27, 2010 at 12:50 PM
Amy DeTrempe said…
I does sound like a fun book and I love that cover.
June 27, 2010 at 1:11 PM
Deb Shucka said…
This definitely brings to the forefront the importance of a book's title and look. This one has both going for it.
June 27, 2010 at 2:06 PM
Jeanette Levellie said…
Oh, this one sounds delightful, Jessie. You did a great job on the review! Please include my name in the drawing, and thank you.

Jen
June 27, 2010 at 2:42 PM
Julie Dao said…
What a terrific cover! I also love your review and it makes me really want to read this book. Gotta go find a copy :)
June 27, 2010 at 8:25 PM
Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

We All Got to Learn to Do It Sometime

*grossness alert* We all have to learn to deal with doo-doo eventually. Consider me a newbie mom, but it never occurred to me that my son should be wiping himself until about a month before kindergarten. And then the flashbulb went on and I scrambled to teach him. One problem. He didn't want to. He's fastidious and doesn't like to make mistakes, so the thought of taking care of this daily chore literally reduced him to screaming and crying on the toilet. Basically, he didn't trust himself. He was afraid. Scared to get his hands dirty. Afraid he'd miss something. This is probably weird, but it made me think of us as writers. There comes a point where we have to "grow up" and trust ourselves. We can't always rely on a crit group, agent, or editor to wipe up our mess. I think this should be a part of maturation for every writer, that we can look at our work and be confident in our ability to clean it up. Not saying we'll make it perfect or that we won...
Read more

Work First, Play Later

I'm back! I had a wonderful time with my family. Thank you all for asking. :-) In 2009 my schedule evolved into a blog first/write later kind of thing. It happened that way because my husband began using the computer in the afternoons and evenings for his project, but now that I have a router, my schedule's changing. It's time to work first, play later. That means I do my chores/errands in the morning, write at naptime, and visit your wonderful blogs in the afternoons and evenings. So if I don't show up in the morning, don't be alarmed (if you even notice, lol). I'm just changing things up. I'm too exhausted in the evening to write, that's why. During the day I have way more energy to write but at night there's a fifty percent chance I won't do it because I'm so tired. When's the best time for you to write? I also need to shout out my awesome crit partner, Linda Glaz! Some of you may have met her at ACFW. She's a wonderful, faithful, ...
Read more

Melodramatic Mother

Mom, this one's for you. *wink* The other day we were on the phone and my mom was describing some of her ailments to me. She's normally a healthy person, but she does suffer from allergies and sinus issues. She's also a vivid person and this comes across in her language. In this case, she told me her pain was skewering up through her nose. Skewering. She never finished the description because I laughed. What a perfect word! Strong, to the point, I had an exact (if somewhat gross) image of what was happening. Do you have a vivid person in your life? Someone who thinks in ways you forget to? And in your WIP, are you using the strongest verb possible to convey EXACTLY what you mean?
Read more