Linda Lael Miller’s books are where I go when I’m looking for some sunshine and some spunky men in chaps, and although this novel may dash foreigners’ beliefs regarding Texas being warm and sunny all year long, you’ll be pleased to know that it doesn’t skimp on the cow-rustlin’ pardners.

It’s the turn of the twentieth century, and wealthy landowner Clay McKettrick is looking to put down some roots, build a home, and perhaps find a wife to cook his meals and bear his children (it’s fun being a wife in 1914). He’s also got some time on his hands, so when he finds out that the Texan town of Blue River has lost its sheriff–in a brothel, no less–he’s happy to step into the role. But there’s one complicating factor to all of this: Dara Rose, the young widow of the previous sheriff, who is currently living in the lawman’s cottage now earmarked for Clay’s use. Dara Rose has two young (and intensely precocious, as all kids in romance novels are) daughters, and is scarcely scraping by as it is. With Clay’s arrival, she’s is as good as homeless and destitute, or at least until Clay lays eyes on her and sparks start to fly–as much as Dara Rose denies it. Clay, being the southern gentleman that he is, graciously offers the cottage to Dara Rose, choosing instead to sleep in the oh-so-comfy lockup. But the cold-hearted townsfolk will have none of this, and demand that Dara Rose be out on the street by the first of the year. Fortunately, this is a romance novel (and a Christmas one at that), so the solution is clear: a quickie marriage.

Miller is a pro at conjuring up warm and relatable characters, and A Lawman’s Christmas is no different. As seems to be the style for her heroes, Clay is firm without being domineering, chivalrous enough when it suits him, and is even the possessor of a biological clock–family invariably looms large in Miller’s books. Not only does he look like an adonis, but he collects stray dogs, buys food for the poor and buys porcelain dolls for little girls. But lest you think that he’s perfect, never fear–a dark past and a broken heart are a-lurkin’. Similarly, Dara Rose is the very picture of the hard done by heroine: beautiful, determined, resourceful, fiercely independent, and of course proud to a fault. You just know that the tug of war is going to be worth the read, and it is, with Miller dialling up the angst and the drama to the max.

The secondary characters and Blue River setting are tidily drawn, with Miller expertly evoking the closeness of a small town and populating it with memorable extras that could easily pop up (and may indeed have) in other novels. Dara Rose’s daughters in particular are great characters in that for all their pomposity they play a larger role than simply being the in-the-way offspring of the heroine; and there are plenty of eccentric individuals and nasty pasties who like to throw a spanner in the works, but who generally have a reason for doing so. Although the idea of the town throwing Dara Rose out of her home just prior to Christmas seems a bit hard to swallow, it works in that we’ve been given enough background on Ezra Maddox–who wants Dara Rose for his own purposes–to let it slide.

Admittedly, the plot is fairly slim, largely comprising the courtship between Clay and Dara Rose and the latter’s efforts to get by financially as a widow in a tough financial climate and during a difficult time of year, but page space in a Christmas special is always at a minimum, with such books running more towards novella than novel length.  Although I found some of the pacing, particularly those parts involving the wedding and post-wedding, a little rushed, especially given the gentle pace of the first two thirds of the novel, it’s not a major complaint. Given the constraints of the Christmas romance genre, Miller does a good job of creating something solid and worthy of a story, even if it does border on the twee towards the end.

In all truth, I find it hard to read Miller’s books critically, and I’d be lying if I said I didn’t get caught up in these. Perhaps it’s Texas, perhaps it’s the cowboys, or perhaps it’s just that Miller is a very polished author indeed. I’m looking forward to the next one.

Rating: (very good)

Your turn: what books do you turn to when you want to read completely uncritically and just for the fun of it?  

With thanks to Merrill L Moss and BookTrib for the review copy

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