That Wyoming Wind by Jo Barrett

TITLE: That Wyoming Wind
AUTHOR: Jo Barrett
PUBLISHER: Wild Rose Press
LENGTH: Novella (roughly 25k)
GENRE: Time travel romance
COST: $3.50

Life couldn’t get any worse for Jodi Parker…until she gets picked up by a freak dust devil and dropped in the middle of 1907. She gets taken in by Maggie, a friendly nearby rancher, but being the new woman in a small Western town means all the single men are now looking in her direction, including one sexy ranch hand named Dan…

This sweet romance offers momentary escapism, based on charming characters that never place heavy demands on the reader. Jodi has had her life ripped out from underneath her by an awful ex-boyfriend, leaving her broke and looking for a new start when the dust devil steals her from the present day and drops her on her butt – literally – in 1907 Wyoming. She has absolutely no reason not to embrace her new life once she’s past the shock of being in the past, and with every single male in a twenty-mile radius sniffing after her, including two of the area’s most eligible bachelors, it seems like a situation too good to be true. It is, a little bit, but as long as you’re willing to accept the complete fantasy of her new life, it’s not necessarily a bad one.

Jodi is strong and resourceful, declaring her independence in a world filled with women who only want to snag a husband and then keep him. She’s helped by being found by the other independent woman in the area – a too convenient device – and that difference supposedly makes her even more attractive to all the men. Dan, the ranch hand, especially seems to respond to her attitude, though I never really understood why he was so determined to take her to wife except that he was incredibly attracted to her physically. There’s a vague attempt at a triangle, but Jodi never expresses anything more than surprised delight at Wayne’s interest. The romance for Wayne, in fact, seems convenient and far too easily resolved.

Editorial issues hold back what should have been an easy read. Coral gets mistaken for corral more than once, along with other minor issues. The author’s predilection for headhopping is minimal, thankfully. If it had been worse, it would have been harder to get through, due to the other errors. There is a loose – very, very loose – link to the author’s Challenge books, but those are absolutely not necessary to read this. If you’re in the mood for something sweet and completely unchallenging, this could fit the bill.

Readability	7/10 – Minor editorial issues slow down an otherwise easy read
Hero	5/10 – He’s charming enough, but there’s just not enough there to give him any depth
Heroine	6/10 – Resourceful and strong, albeit a little flat
Entertainment value	6/10 – It’s a sweet romance that begged for more than it got
World building	7/10 – A feel for early 20th century Wyoming, but nothing overwhelming
TOTAL:	31/50