A Tailor-Made Bride

Title: A Tailor-Made Bride
Author: Karen Witemeyer
ISBN: 978-0-7642-07556

From Goodreads:

A dressmaker who values beauty tangles with a liveryman who condemns vanity, yet when something deeper than vexation sparks between them, will it be enough to unknot their differences?

Jericho "J.T." Tucker wants nothing to do with Coventry's new dressmaker. He's all too familiar with her ilk – shallow women more devoted to the latest fashions than to the true beauty of godly service. Yet as his daily routine intertwines with hers, he discovers that except for her well-tailored clothes, this seamstress is not at all what he expected.

Hannah Richards is confounded by the man who runs the livery across the street. The unsmiling fellow riles her at every turn with his arrogant assumptions, but his acts of kindness contradict his cantankerous attitude. Which side of Jericho Tucker reflects the real man?

When Hannah spruces up Jericho's sister to help her catch a beau, will Jericho and Hannah find enough grace and understanding to bridge the gap between them, or will prejudice and stubborn pride keep them apart?

My Take:

This is one of those books I looked forward to ever since I saw the cover art last year. The more I read about it, the more I wanted to read it. It didn't disappoint.

I know you shouldn't judge a book by a cover ~ but how many of us do just that? We either are drawn to the gorgeous dress (like on this one) or repelled by what we don't like on another. It's like that in life too. Jericho Tucker has done just that in this book. He takes one look at Hannah Richards and sees all the things he hates and fears. He certainly doesn't want to get to get entangled with the seamstress himself - no matter how nice she seems.

The two of them are like watching an old fashioned bumper cars at night. They slam into each other and seem to be causing quite a fuss ~ but beneath all the noise and clamor you see the sparks flying.

Jericho is a wonderful hero. He is two parts stubborn and three parts generous. Add in a little bit wounded, handy with his tools, protective, and thoughtful. He looks out for his sister, the widow that works next door to Hannah, his assistant, Tom, and even Hannah. He may not want to get involved with her, but he doesn't want her to get hurt or not have what she needs.

Hannah can't understand why the livery owner is so grouchy and mad at her - and yet helps her so often. Even worse, she finds she likes him far more than she'd like to admit. When she finds out he objects to her job and thinks she is trying to lead women astray by appealing to their vanity, she knows there is no hope he'll ever like her.

Hannah is great. She's determined, independent, kind and trusting. She is a little insecure and fearful, but she is willing to work hard to overcome any difficulties that come her way. She was a really like-able person. I found myself wanting to have her for a friend. Maybe we could meet for hot cocoa in the morning after she went for her "constitutional." :o)

When you want to sit down with the characters in the book then you know the author has done an excellent job. This was one of my favorite books so far. I have to thank the author and the publisher for providing my copy of the book. I am very thankful, but it in no way influenced my review.