Texas Rain (A Whispering Mountain Novel Book 1)

Really enjoyed the characters and the storyline. Looking forward to the rest of the series. Jodi Thomas always makes me smile when I read her books!

I wish the ending had included Rainey’s father and consequences there. I thought he would follow her for running away. He really needed to meet Travis.

This book had almost everything: a good plot, great secondary characters, good dialogue, and a hero to die for. The heroine? Not so much. Rainey was an educated woman (a teacher) who had lived a life of abuse. She was on the run from her father and determined that she would never be under any man's thumb again. I can understand that, but this part of the plot was carried on so long that it just became dull and irritating. On the other hand, Texas Ranger Travis McMurray is everything you could wish for in a hero. He's tough, handsome, and compassionate. If your heart doesn't melt at his care for the little boy Duck, you have a much colder heart than mine. The love the two of them share is my favorite part of the novel. The first part of the book seemed slow to me, but the second half...especially the ending...really picked up the pace. Was it up to the usual standards of Jodi Thomas? Hmm, not really, but it was still a better read than most.

Jodi Fisher has quickly become my go-to author for Western historicals. Texan Rain is the first book in a series about the McMurray clan, a mixed Irish-Apache family living on a ranch in Texas. Travis is a Ranger chaperoning his sister at a barn dance when he's kissed by a girl who then steals his horse.It's a slow-burn romance as Travis and Rainey chase each other, getting into lots of trouble along the way. I really liked both of them and how they worked together to build their relationship and also escape the bad guys. There's a wonderful cast of supporting characters who I suspect we'll meet again in later books. A great start to this series.

This story takes place prior to the Civil War (1854) in Texas. Whispering Mountain Ranch has 3 sons, a daughter and a housekeeper. Eldest brother Travis McMurray is a Texas Ranger and has been away from home for about 2 years and he's on his way home. Travis meets a woman, who brazenly kisses him at a barn dance.Rainey Adams is running away from her father - and a marriage she doesn't want. Meeting Travis at a local barn dance, she steals one of his horses, to continue her journey away from her hated father.Rainey writes a letter to Travis, telling him how sorry she was for stealing his horse. In the meantime, Travis was severely injured while helping some immigrants travel over a dangerous area of Texas. Rainey's letters help him tolerate the months of recuperation on the ranch.Rainey and Travis learn much about each other through their letters; love starts to grow between them. In one of their letters, Travis realizes Rainey is in danger and goes to Austin - even though he isn't really well enough to travel.Travis has been a Ranger for about 10 years and has many enemies to show for his efforts. Some of the worst of those enemies come to call.There's lots of action in this tale and the pacing is excellent. Both main characters are likeable and engaging. 4 stars.

I would prefer to give this book 3.5 stars. It was O.K. but not what I have come to expect from a Jodi Thomas novel. I already know that I will never want to read this one again. Once I discovered her books I became such a fan that I went back and bought every one of the stories I can get my hands on written by her. In my notebook most of the books receive either four or five stars. This one was just O.K. and for me that is a huge disappointment. I don't want to write a negative review of one of my favorite authors, but the truth is the truth and my truth is that I did not like this book very much.I didn't know anything about this book. I ordered it just because of the author. I put it aside for a while to read when I really wanted to savor a gold nugget of a novel. It didn't turn out that way for me. At one point I actually turned to look at the cover to see if I was reading a Jodi Thomas. Has she decided to change her writing style? It seemed to me that the rhythm was different, the flow was diffeerent, the descriptions, the female character. All seemed different. Most of the sentences seemed short and choppy. I did not like Rainey, maybe that was my major problem. I liked Travis, Teagen, Tobin, Sage and Martha but not Rainey. I was not enjoying the book. In fact, it seemed as if there were actually two books, one concerning Travis and one concerning Rainey. The amount of time the two of them were together in the first half of the book was a matter of minutes, minutes for goodness sakes! Over half of the book is written with them completely apart. For me, the letters didn't work to form a bond in which I saw them interacting as a couple. They were just two people who happened to be in the state of Texas.I know this is the first book in the Whispering Mountain trilogy. I do not think it was a good example of Jodi Thomas at her best. I will probably buy the next book, but I'm sorry to say I'm actually not looking forward to it. Maybe the more familiar Thomas style will reassert itself by then.

Jodi Thomas is a master at weaving action and adventure into the standard boy meets girl, fall in love, get married. Her characters have to work through unexpected twists and turns to get them, were we as readers, want them to end up. The story stars on page one and pulls you through the entire book. Thank you Jodi for continuing to bring wonderful stories to readers.

I can't get enough of Jodi Thomas. No matter how many times I read one of her books I still enjoy it like it was the first time.

Good reading

3 young orphaned McLain brothers defending their family ranch

I didn't like the slow way this book started, and I grew to dislike Rainey, the lady in this story, she was sneaky and not likeable. I lovedTravis McMurray and the way he looked after Duck, the lost little boy, I just struggled with this book, what a shame, I love J.T books,But this one I'd give a miss!